Gary,
Some of the discount department stores have some good prices on low-cost laptops -- although I can't vouch for them. Be sure to get a "Soundblaster" or "Soundblaster compatible" sound card. If you want to send the BIAB signal from the laptop to an amplifier or PA system, you can get an Edirol SD-20 "Virtual Sound Canvas" for well under $300. You plug your laptop into the SD-20 and plug the SD-20 into a mono or stereo system and it gives a relatively realistic sound. If you use an SD-20, the signal goes directly to it and doesn't go to the sound card, so the kind of sound card doesn't make much difference. I'm no expert in this area of technology, but by following the advice of a couple of guys whose judgement I trust, I wound up with a pretty good system using the SD-20, and did it all for a reasonable price.
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[This message was edited by Roy Ayres on 07 December 2005 at 04:12 PM.]