I might be braindamaged, but the time I subbed to iR in this year and bought the RUF along with a few tracks, I opened a practice session with the RUF Track @ Suzuka and the way the car gripped into the first turn gave me chills and Assetto Corsa-like joy when I first tried the game with the E30. Somehow the less-filtered FFB in there complements the lack of actual feeling when it comes to attacking a corner and going past the limit isn't that bad as I remembered it would be around 2011 when I first tried the game. I could probably drift a whole lap on the track in the RUF or the MX5 if I wanted, although it doesn't mean I am over the limit, cause that would be drifting of course, but sliding in or out of turns while lapping isn't a fuss really.
About opening your wallet into your hobby, hmm... I'm trying to find the proper example on this, but I'm struggling. Well, if you choose tennis as a hobby, you probably won't buy a tennis racket for $600 in the first place, but rather building up... in either small or big steps. Or for me, I started playing guitar without even knowing I would success or fail at it miserably and I wanted to learn it all alone, so there was an even less known chance of my performance. Therefore, I got a guitar for like $80 which got me going and I could decide if I was enthusiastic enough to continue. Now I have 3 guitars incl. the first one, and well... the other two cost numerous time the initial one.
I'm not saying you should give up your living for your hobby, I'm talking in spare money. Food is still more important than driving around Suzuka in a virtual car, but that doesn't mean you can't let yourself go and spend your spare money on something that takes your free time and makes it a blast.