I have some basic questions for any Pro Tools user.

First of all, I'm a songwriter in Nashville and I'm curious about upgrading to a protools setup.

1. Why choose a Mac instead of a PC?

2. Besides the Protools software, can someone list what all I need? I can't seem to find any complete information on what to buy. And some general price estimates would be great. I'm interested in the HD recording and not simply recording it to the computer's drive

I probably sound like an idiot, thats because im pretty new to this. Anyone that could help and be a reference or a guide would be greatly appreciated

Welcome aboard sailor ! Here we go:

'1. Why choose a Mac instead of a PC? '

PC are harder to set up, it's as simple as that... If you don't want to lose time looking for that *$%@#&!?°° .exe extension that's freezing up your whole comp., go for a Mac. Now, if you're already a confirmed PC user, stick with it.

'2. Besides the Protools software, can someone list what all I need?  I can't seem to find any complete information on what to buy.  And some general price estimates would be great. I'm interested in the HD recording and not simply recording it to the computer's drive'

You'll need Digidesign hardware unless you want to use Pro Tools Free which is limited in tracks count (8 max) and is not as well built as the 'real thing' (PTLE or PT TDM). If you wish to go with PTLE (light version), you'll have to buy the hardware: DIGI001 (around 1000$), MBox (not sure of the price, but less than a thousand for sure) or used Audiomedia III. If you've got big,big money, you can go for the TDM gear (now called HD); we're talking thousands $ here...
You're saying: ' I'm interested in the HD recording and not simply recording it to the computer's drive '...you'd better be !...Recording to the system drive is highly not recommended (fragmentation). You'll have to get one (or more) IDE or SCSI drives. I would personnaly recommend IDE (7200 rounds) which are way cheaper and work perfectly with PTLE.
If you intend to record accoustic instruments (guitar, voice...), you'll need at least one mic, maybe a preamp (if you can afford it; otherwise the 001 and the MBox have built in preamp that are said to be OK), and a mixer could also be usefull but not mandatory. You'll also need some cables (that can quickly add some bucks to the final bill!...).

'I probably sound like an idiot'

Sure you do !! But don't we all from time to time?... I certainly do !

For more technical infos on Pro Tools, go there: http://www.digidesign.com
For prices: check your local dealer (I'm french, so what the hell do I know about prices in the US?...) or US Websites.
Keep us posted if you need more infos ... I'm pretty sure you will (-;
See ya.

More info:

Pro Tools LE comes with the Digidesign's Digi001 interface or the Mbox. Check www.zzounds.com for very competitive prices.

The software is very reliable on a Mac. Most folks in Nashville run PT on Macs.

You'll need at least a G4 to run it effectively. The Digi001 requires a PCI slot, which means you'd have to buy a regular Mac. The Mbox is USB, and that will work with an iMac. But, I'd recommend at least a 19' monitor and that rules out the iMac in my humble. Yes, you'll need an additional 7200 rpm hard drive...the biggest you can afford. Also, beef up your RAM to at least 500 mB.

I recommend a $300 AKG or Audio-Technica condenser mic. Great for vocals or acoustic guitar.

But does the mbox have any latency problems when recording audio? I thought usb was the main cause of latency, but I'm using pro tools free and i'm going directly into the mic input on the back of my g4, and there is still some latency. It drives me nuts but i'm learning to cope. At least with my four track cassette i can overdub in real time.

Ahhh...latency... I'm glad I have a mixer to avoid it...
Meanwhile, are you aware that there is a feature in PT called 'Low latency monitor'?... It has some drawbacks (disable all plugs inserted on the recorded track, disable display of the track in the Master fader) but will surely reduce latency to almost nothing. Give it a try (it's in the Operation menu).

Low Latency Monitoring is not available to Pro Tools FREE users.

low latency= lowest buffer setting, simple as that. a g4 should be able to cope.
zero "audible" latency should not be hard to obtain on a g4.
is it really protools that you need?
digidesign don't give anything away unless you want to spend megabucks!
dp3, logic and cubase kick their butt in this price range...

"digidesign don't give anything away unless you want to spend megabucks!"

Funny... Aren't they the only one to provide a free version of the soft ?...
Haven't heard of "Free DP" or "Free Logic" lately...
Despite the fact that I'm a PT user, I've always been very critical about Digidesign and its general policy, but let's not get too subjective here...

To the others : Sorry guys about the Low latency Monitoring tip...since I'm awfully rich and my name is Jackson Clapton, I'm using PTLE not the Free version.

Well, if i had some cash i would move past the free software. Personally i think cubase has a much more clean and elegant interface, but i guess i'm stuck with the free stuff for the next few months.

PT Free does have a hardware buffer size thing. The latency is just a hair, but it sucks just the same. I was reading a review of the mbox. It says it has zero monitor latency. But what about latency of the recorded track itself? In PT Free i mute the track i'm recording, so i hear myself live thru my four track. Which is fine but i don't want to have to nudge or use the grabber or whatever once the track is recorded. Since it's such a tiny latency, it's hard to really tell when it's right.

If i bought a soundcard or an mbox or something down the road, will i have no latency in any form? What do i have to do to get absolutely no latency at all? Is this even possible?

Don't worry, the latency we're talking about is only a monitoring latency (while recording), once the track is recorded, there shouldn't be any "slidding" of the track/region.
The only "real" latency you can get on a track can be caused by the use of many plugs. To check that latency-> Apple+click on the volume/pan/... button of the track (you'll see the peak indicator, apple click again and you'll get a "dly" indicator for "delay").
But there again, there's nothing too worry too much about... For example a track with no plug shows "dly=0" and one of my track loaded with a 10 bands EQ and a limiter only shows "dly=4". 4 is for samples... and I can tell you this: a 4 samples delay is completely unnoticeable!