I avoided the manual for 5 + years.  I remember thinking "manuals are for computer nerds."  Turns out SONAR is actually a computer software program!  Who would have thought!??  Anyhow, after my third time through the manual I can confidently say that I would have saved myself literally months, maybe years, of frustration if I would have just read the manual from the get go.  Short cuts are only helpful when they get you somewhere your familiar with.
 
Beyond that, I too support Groove3.  Eli really makes sense to me.  Of course, this could change from person to person.  
 
Good luck!   

cseybert 
I really wish I would have listened to the Amazon reviews that said "DO NOT BUY THIS IF YOU ARE NEW TO RECORDING" LOL, I am not THAT new to recording, but what I was using before (freeware like Audacity) is like playhouse compared to this.... however, I have a lot of work to do.
 
Thanks again!

That review was written by some beginner who thought it's plug'n'play and making hit records by pushing the Pro Sound-button. The basics are practically the same in all DAWs. In any case it takes something like two years of intensive practice before you can say you know the software. Still, after that you'll find details you did not know about.The basics of Audacity are like those of SONARs audio features, Audacity just doesn't support MIDI.
 
I'm old school, so I prefer manuals to videos. With a manual you can get an overview of what can, and what cannot be done, and in which direction to look for solutions. With videos you need to know more exactly what you're looking for. And while reading, you think more, that enhances the whole learning process.
When I bought my first DAW, Cakewalk Pro Audio 6, I spend two weeks reading the 900 page manual before I installed the software. Now it's 1800 pages, they tell me :o/

I think you will fine with this. Maybe someone who has it, will chime in to tell you their experience.
Make sure to download the latest ASIO drivers for it from http://www.presonus.com/support/downloads/audiobox-usb
All the best.

I've never used prosonus stuff before. but it always seems to get good reviews on the net. You could do a google search, reviews usually list pros and cons, so that might give you a chance to see if this unit will do what you need.
 
Lastly, I think if you now you're looking for opinions on a piece of hardware, rather than a question on how to operate software, that I might make a whole new post to that effect.  The guys on this forum have used EVERY piece of gear imaginable and I bet you'll get a lot of helpful input.
 
Best of luck with you projects!