Acid is not a bad bit of software I did one of my albums on an early version of Acid. Currently I use Ableton Live but this is a little more pricy that acid. Make sure you get your hands on some quality loops as this will make it a bit easier to get a good sound.
Midi controllers, there are so many! Are you a keyboardist or just want to trigger loops or even play some sweet beats. How many keys do you need, do you need drum pads.
What you will need is plenty of Knobs/sliders to control the effects and synths if you have any. Also your budget will also dictate the build quality ( pads and keys can get a lot of bashing lol ) Cheep and cheerful may mean frustration or less fun, you would be surprised the difference it can make to your music production
