Sit down Jason, I got some advice for ya.
If you want a piece of gear, save up and buy the good one, don't by the far cheaper and lower quality version that you will have to replace 3-4 times.
Plugins are a rip off. Find a single family of good plugins like Izotope, Fab Filter, Slate etc that has all the basic tools and just use those. You only need 1 good EQ plugin, 1 good, flexible dynamics plugin, and Valhalla Classic Delay and Reverb, everything else is a distraction.
Preamps matter, but no preamp is really worth more than $500 a channel. You are never going to use compression or EQ going into the DAW so don't buy Channel Strip style preamps.
Most of the Mics you buy will collect dust. Buy less of them but better ones.
Most of the guitar pedals you will buy will collect dust, buy less of them and better ones.
Just buy a Super Reverb and a nice Bassman and never look at amps ever again.
Stop looking at the internet, playing video games, watching tv, general fucking around and play music instead... you waste too much time.
Buy the absolute best monitor speakers out can get. Take out a loan for speakers and drive a total piece of shit Honda. The frustration you will have from 2 decades of fighting bad speakers in a bad space and the money you will spend endlessly swapping out mid-grade monitors that all sound the same will drive you crazy.
Almost all "reviews" are actually ads.
90's Mexican Strats are dollar/utility the best guitar deal that will ever exist. It's the only electric guitar anyone really "needs" and will last forever.
Re: Gear advice for my younger self
62Does it say Yamaha on it? Ok, it's good enough.
guitar in - weaklungband.bandcamp.com/