upgrading from win xp 32 to win7 64 bit

I have been in xp 32 bit for a long time but now I need to upgrade to win 7 64 bit. Is this a straight forward put in the disk and follow the instruction or what do I need to know that might grab me along the way. Should I wipe the disk clean and do a new install, My main programs are Sonar 8.5 & dim pro 1.5 with m audio delta 44( I see there are new 64 bit drivers) Thanks for any help Wyndham

Good Idea on the HD. Thanks

You cannot upgrade from Windows XP to Windows 7 in place. You have to backup all your data and format the disk drive and then do a clean install of Windows 7, re-install all of your applications, and then restore your data. It takes some good planning to do this properly especially if you have a lot of applications. You'll need to make sure you have all of your installation disks or downloads, serial #s, passwords, etc. You should also run the Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor (free from Microsoft) to see if your hardware and software is compatible with Windows 7. If you have some old hardware, you'd better make sure the manufacturer has 64-bit drivers for it or it won't work. This is not something to rush into. 

When I upgraded to Windows 7, I purchased a new disk drive to install Windows 7 on so that I didn't have to format my XP drive. That way if something went wrong, I could go back to the old XP system or if I forgot to backup a file, I could go back and get it. After I confirmed everything was working, I formatted the old XP drive and used it for additional disk space. 

Good idea about the Windows 7 testing Dave. Like I say, Hard drives are cheap, so just stick it on a shelf for back up. I have not done this with Windows 7 , but with XP and IDE slave/ master jumpers , if you marked the old drive as a slave it could go right back in the computer without even re formating. The OS junk would still be there but harmless. Not sure what happens with SATA drives now but can you not assign drive letters so the old drive becomes a "F" or something harmless?

It won't "upgrade" per se. Like others, I would say to put your current drive in an enclosure, then plug it into your new system (or your newly upgraded system) AFTER you've booted up the operating system, or it may not know which drive to find its OS from!
Once you have, then your old files are all there for you to be able to access from your new installation. You will need to reinstall all of your programs to the new drive, but all your data, files and documents will still be on the old system, including old SONAR files. Cleanup may take you quite a while, though, as I just did this same thing not long ago, 'upgrading" from XP64 to Win7 64. Wasn't fun, but it's all done, finally...good luck!!