Myth

Midi Controller, Digital Interface And Mic Advice

(All prices reffered to are street prices)

Hey, I'm just starting out and have a 3 part question:

I have an M-Audio O-Zone and am not too thrilled with it; no master volume, no endless knobs, weak pre-amp . I want to start recording vocals and wouldn't trust the built-in preamp. So:

1)
I want to get a good interface and am leaning towards the Focusrite Saffire: onboard DSP, 4-ins, 8 outs. Up to 192 kHz sampling rate. Is this a wise choice? My budget would be $400 USD for the interface. Other options are the Presonus Firebox or the E-Mu 1616.
What do you think?

2)
What would you recommend as far as a midi controller to replace my O-Zone? I like the endless knobs on the Alesis Photon x25. It seems like this would be ideal for performing live efficiently, I use Reason 2.5 (upgrading to 3 soon) and am probably getting Live within the next months too.

But…I have heard many good things about Novation controllers, as well as Edirol's, which are paper thin, a plus for portability. I just want a stable, efficient controller with endless knobs if possible, audio interface not necessary. Budget for Controller is $300. Anything crappy about the Alesis? Let me know, what do you think?

3)
I'm looking to get a decent mic for vocals under $250, I've read many good things about the Røde NT1-A and the Audio-Technica 3035, and I am slightly interested in the Electro-Voice Cardinal but can't really find any reviews on it.

Any other mics I should be aware of in this price range?

Thanks in advance for your time!

Turning Visuals & Grahics Into Sound (?)

Hi, I've read about people turning images and other grahics into sound somehow. Does anyone have any information about this?

…specific tools used to accomplish this?