My first modem was a 9600 IIRC and I was using a BBS before going on the internet.. just as a user though... I couldnt find a local Atari BBS so used to log into the one in durham. First phone bill was about 300 quid and that was for a month
Ceejache : Yes many years ago on the newsgroups such as 'comp.sys.atari.st' people used to star watch.. see how many groups on top of the pops had an atari in the setup , or concerts etc. My most recent one was a couple of years ago there was a house interview with Carley Simon and going into the room where she does her work.. there it was.. an atari st.....
I never got into the music side of it... which means even though I did so much with mine.. I probably didnt get the best out of it... There wasnt another computer at the time to rival the atari midi ports.