Flexible home-recording set-up for rehearsal and recording

Hello,

I want to set up a system that can be used for both rehearsals of the bands I work with and also recording and mixing multiple tracks. I want the system to be as simple as possible and avoid excess gear or connections. The band contains electronic drums, a fiddle, a bass, a singer and harmony singer (I think I need a minimum of six inputs, if I include 1 extra). I am new to computer software for recording but a quick learner. I have a PC with Windows XP professional and plenty of RAM and an external hard drive. I would like to be able to do quiet rehearsals with everyone on headphones if it's not too expensive to add. From my reading, I am currently looking at the following set up options:

option 1Roland TDS-V drums
two shure sm58 vocal microphones
one shure condenser microphone for the fiddle or acoustic instruments
rockit monitor speaker(s)or similar powered small speakers
m-audio or other audio interface with at least 6 inputs
headphone amp
headphones
pre sonar or cubase recording software

option 2roland v drums
2 vocal microphones
1 instrument microphone
USB mixer with 6 to 8 inputs
monitor speaker (s)
headphone amp and headphones
recording software

plus cables for above

Can anyone tell me 1) if I am leaving any parts out and 2) if there is a simpler set up I could use for my needs. I don't need a finished album quality of recording but I would like to make good demos where I can manipulate individual tracks at some stage of the process.

Thanks for the help.

Jrr123

I can't help you out with actual hardware (mics, cables, etc.) but i can say that i'm not so sure wether sonar or cubase is right for you as you said "simple" and to a beginner they would not be simple. Although long-term they might be a better idea if you plan to use midi, either of these would be very time-consuming to learn so you have to balance time with practicallity. If you are looking for a good multitrack recorder i would suggest Steinberg Wavelab or Adobe Audition from personal use. Both of these are professonal Mastering applications although they do not need to be used as such if you keep it basic. There are demos of both these apps on their designated websites. www.adobe.com and www.steinberg.de
I hope this helps a little

Thanks for the advice. Do you think that Sonar (versions 7 or 8) is any easier to use? Since I already have a computer, I would like to utilize it rather than spend the money on a recorder, really I want to know if I would benefit from the external mixer set-up or use the audio interface and take the plunge of learning the software--it seems that the computer based-studio is the direction the industry is going.

There must be other musicians out there who want to have this dual set-up for rehearsal and recording, right?