You'll be needing a proper audio interface anyways, many of these come bundled with one or more low-end versions of DAWs, usually Ableton. That'll get you started for the cost of something you need anyways, and again save money when upgrading later on.
It'll set you back roughly 10€, but get you started with little hassle, and without the risk of virus from cracks. It come with a DVD with some 80 VSTs, both instruments and effects. I also recommend picking up an issue of Computer Music magazine. Searching up the likes of U-He Tyrell N6, old Togu Audio Line plugins (the old free ones, newer cost money), and the like will help. They require some digging, but there's plenty of quality to be had for no money, or next to no money.
#ALCHEMY VST SPLICE UPGRADE#
They'll be missing some features too, but they can get you started, and are cheaper to upgrade later on if you so desire. These will not have a lot of content in themselves, but have the option to expand with lots of readily available free VSTs. Cubase, Reason, Ableton and the like have entry versions around 100€, and Reaper is even cheaper. There are some pretty decent, very cheap DAWs out there. However, seeing as you want to come in as close to free as possible. I'm guessing it's a crack since you've tried a roughly 10 years old version 5, rather than the current version 10 which has loads of awesome content, but will set you back some 500+€ for the full package. So say an old Cubase won't exactly impress.
Including a lot of content is a relatively new thing, and the more money you drop, the more content you get. Starting with your list of DAWs you've tried, looks to me like they're old and/or free. But before that it was hardly free, and you shouldn't be expecting something of Alchemy's caliber for free. Alchemy was bought by Apple, so it's only available as a part of Garageband and Logic Pro.