A lot of people swear by the cheap creatine monohydrate, but for me I never responded well to it. I think it works for some, but in my personal experiences that hasnt been the case. For me I had really good results with BSNs Cell-mass, however it is definitely one of the more expensive ones out there. I think you should try a bottle of one of the more "hyped" products (ie. Cell-mass, Size-on, Cell-tech etc) and see for yourself. I think you will find that you respond better to these formulas than regular creatine monohydrate by themselves.
I know a lot of people on this board will disagree with me, but I think if you stick to reputable companies I think you definitely do get what you pay for. You cant tell me that if someone asked you which would you take for free, a bottle of straight up creatine monohydrate or a bottle of Cell-mass or Size-on that you would prefer the monohydrate. It has been my experiences that every time I sprung a little extra cash for a supplement I got better results. Now it becomes a question of whether these additional costs are worth the additional benefits. I dont know your money situation, but I have a good job so springing $30 for creatine isn't really a big deal and I feel the added benefits are worth the costs. If you are a student, broke, etc then you may have to ration your money better.
I can see the onslaught of Get Biggers that will say stuff like "Dont waste your money you moron blah blah" but some of these supplements do work better in my opinion. I also have a feeling that a lot of these skeptics who bash designer products are middle-age men that are broke and still live with their parents.
So my advice would be to throw down $30 for one of these creatines and try it yourself. Thats the only way you will know.
As far as your second question is concerned, I think most people stack their creatine with some type of fast digesting carbs that will spike insulin levels. These carbs are usually in the form of dextrose/maltodextrin (many creatine formulas include these already) or another option is a high molecular weight carbohydrate like Vitargo/waxy maize. These I believe are the most common things people take with creatine.
