I'm going to second the "XP if you need Windows"!
Anything after XP (Vista onwards) has, I believe, Digital Rights Management built in - it's intended to "prevent" media piracy but I found it wouldn't let me use my "racket room" PC any more when I tried to upgrade!
It objected to the audio inputs and outputs being 24-bit instead of 16 (so up to "professional" pirate standard), the fact my PC had 16 channels each of full-duplex inputs and outputs, and the fact I didn't have DRM licences for music *I had made myself*. It locked the machine down to 2 16-bit inputs and 2 16-bit outputs as the hardware wasn't on the "approved" list.
After making enquiries, I found Microshaft would sell me a licence to play / record *my own* music, but the price made me faint...
I went back to XP Pro, and stuck with old, stable software...
Most of the XP "updates" which will be cut off soon are for known Microsoft-authored vulnerabilities to viruses etc., not really an issue for a machine that's kept off-line (e.g. home studio, CAD/CAM machines that sit in quiet isolation Doing A Job).
Just my ha'pennorth,
Dave H. (the other one)