Make sure the Eleven Rack plays fine now stand alone (e.g. no clock related problems). Then buy and install the Pro Tools 9 upgrade. Make sure your computer meets the Pro Tools requirements if you plan on recording, especially things like separate audio and systems hard drives. You will need the ElevenRack serial number to qualify for the upgrade price. You do *not* need to mess with an 8.0 install if you don't have one already, just use the full installer for 9.0. You will need to create an account at
www.avid.com if you do not have one already. You will need an iLok (get the new generation one if you don't have one already). Create an account on
www.iLok.com and register your iLok. You need that for Avid to push a License to you. Once you have 9.0 installed and working and talking to your Eleven Rack then install the expansion pack and follow the instructions in the two step install to update the firmware and Pro Tools. I don't see any reason to install any intermediate firmware updates. Best advice is to read all those install docs - they are pretty good. Many people having install problems clearly have not done that.
Enjoy. Definitely get the expansion pack.
Darryl