my one cent..
i think the main difference is between a serious musician and a collector.
a serious musician spends most of his time making music. so he'll swear by faithfully to only one gear. because too many gears will get into the way of learning songs etc.. i know people like this. they're proud of their beaten-up cheap guitars. they go "it's in the fingers, dude" :mrgreen:
while a collector doesn't play as much but loves to admire the beauty and sound of the equiptment. these are the kind of people who will go all ends to get that "super-rare super-limited" fender and place it in a vacuum case. i also know people like this. :mrgreen:
for me, i got two cheap bass and an amp, no fancy effects. though the GAS does bother me at times. and no, ive not spent too much on bass. though i plan to. hehehe..