Audio drivers with Reason & Ableton

[elwoodblues1969]

I may have run into two potential problems...since I will be investing in Reason 4 & possibly Ableton Live some day,both of these programs recommend that you have DirectX or Asio audio drivers and my pc has RealTek...will this present a problem...& if so,what will be the nature of the problem(s)?
I am also confused by the difference between buying a sound card to upgrade,or downloading a driver update?
Apart from the sound card issue....I was wondering...I had read on a gear forum that Ableton Live works very well with Reason's Rewire...does anyone here have experience with these two programs in conjunction with each other?
At this point,the thought of eventually adding an additional DAW to Reason is very sketchy,because I don't think my current pc will be able to handle the load?
I'm speculating that if I were to have both Reason 4 & Ableton Live together,that I at least need to have a quad core processor to be absolutely safe from any crashes.
I've read that like Reason 4,Ableton Live is also a very stable program,but it is expensive & it may be far more of a pc multi-tracker than I would need,I gather?

I would very much appreciate any & all advice on this matter.

Thanks,

-Thom

[Oren]

Thom,

I don't work with Windoze much any more, so most of your questions no longer apply to my new situation.

If it was me, I'd stick with the hardware synths and your current PC.

Then, download a Linux music distribution, and learn how to run it on your computer as a second operating system - time consuming, but worth it. And very little load on your processor, RAM, and harddrive. Once you have the Linux O/S under your belt, get an M-Audio soundcard and the M-Audio controller. M-Audio works well with Linux.

With the JACK audio connection kit in Linux, ASIO is not necessary, and there are dozens of free, highly functional softsynths and sequencers available from the open-source community. And you'll be free of corporate shenanigans - forever. No viruses, no meltdowns, loads of new software, and frequent free upgrades to your existing arsenal.
It works for me...

[elwoodblues1969]

Oren,

Thanks alot for the advice! 8)I think at this point & for the next couple of years to follow,I will just get my feet wet with with Reason 4 & just see how it operates with my current pc set up and just not worry about a pc multi-tracker for a while...meaning that I will stick with midi sequencing for a stretch.
As it is now,I am trying to configure my way through Mozilla & I will soon have a new workstation platform to contend with..so the concept of tackling a new OS is unthinkable...at least for now.
As for open source software..well..it's a beautiful thing and I am sure that general audio recording in the open source realm will be more than sufficient...but when it comes to free softsynths-they're fantastic for what they are,but my objective is to go beyond the quality of what my hardware set up provides & I don't think I'm going to achieve that for free.
Wyatt was kind enough to open my eyes to the world of Propellerhead Reason 4 & I'm sold on it completely,as I am confident that there is not a better DAW out there for the money & the sound upgrades are truly spectacular!
As for avoiding corporate shenanigans..well...I eliminated most of them when I retired! Seriously though,as it is now,I have AVG, Audacity & Mozilla which are wonderful...but I just can't pass up Propellerhead and if you were a keyboard guy for the last 21 years as I've been,you'd understand why Reason 4 is an absolute must-have!

-Thom

[Oren]

As for avoiding corporate shenanigans..well...I eliminated most of them when I retired! Seriously though,as it is now,I have AVG, Audacity & Mozilla which are wonderful...but I just can't pass up Propellerhead and if you were a keyboard guy for the last 21 years as I've been,you'd understand why Reason 4 is an absolute must-have!

Well said!
Someday down the road, you will no doubt spend some time with the GNU/Linux sequencers, softsynths and audio processing tools. But there is never any hurry - ain't life grand?