in audio, you want stuff that works. You don't want to start dicking around with things otherwise you'll just get old fast.
If you have/buy a mac, this stuff just works. Really.
On the Mac side, Logic has gotten a lot easier to use, and depending on what you want to do it can be great. Other choices are Live (
www.ableton.com, but more loop based), ProTools (you have to use their hardware), Digital Performer (they -
www.motu.com - make great usb/firewire interfaces as well), and on the lower end Garageband.