ive used acid as my main tool since 2.0
personally i dont think it could be an easier tool for people just getting into song writing and sequencing. i think ive finally gotten to the point where i think i need to move on. for my cinematic pieces i find it a bit lacking and a little constrained with only loop based programming.
i really havent fiddled with any of the FX as i mainly use soundforge to edit my samples.
anyways ive been looking to move to live as soon as possible.