Altera has free software for their FPGA. It will open up a new world to you.

http://www.hbbrbasic.com here is a BASIC compiler for ARMs. You almost have to use LPC2000 type of ARMs or AT91SAM7. The price is right! You will get 50MIPs and RAM! 10X speed!

I do not know of DSP-BASIC. DSP is the right choice.