@'hzr':
I agree with you on price issues matt, although I think most people are not as technically adept to create their own morphs and shapes and rather just dial in and combine what is already there.
Theres no need to buy any generation 5 stuff. You can be fine by just getting those things :
(from DAZ store)
Evolution body morphs : 20 $
Body Resource Kit1 : 20 $
Muscularity : 40$
GenerationX : 32 $
(Renderosity)
Ideal Beauty : Feet, Legs, Hips
The prices listed below are non-Platinum Club prices, at the time I posted this.
For the sake of argument, I'm using the Evolution Morph Bundle - $32.95, since the functionality is close to Morphs++. Thankfully, you only need to buy one - there's no separate prodcut for male and female figures. I didn't factored in the Muscularity and Body Resource Kit morphs since not everyone will buy them.
Evolution Morph Bundle - $32.95
Genesis Generation X (Upgrade from Gen4) - $11.95 - note: only if you already have V4 and M4
Genesis Generation X - $31.95
V4 and M4 Shapes for Genesis - $19.95 - note: according to DAZ's website, required to use Generation X
That's already something between $64.85 - $84.85. Add the fixes for Genesis something like $16, so that's around $80 to $100. You still need to add the DSON importer - $24.95 - if you want to use GenesisV4/M4 in Poser.
Here's the breakaway alternative
Genesis Michael Victoria Combo Bundle - $124.95
It includes M5/V5, the complete Evolution morphs (Body, Head and Muscularity), plus both genitals. Add another $15 for the ideal fixes, a total of $140.
I actually bought this when it was on sale for about $75. Used a coupon to save 30% to bring it down to $50. Frankly, it was a good deal and it offers all that I wanted out of Genesis. Didn't bought the fixes, since I'm partial to doing it myself.
Anyway you look at it, transitioning to Genesis required a sizable investment. If you already have V4 (and her Morphs++), buying fixes, be it PerfectV4, my own Beautiful Bends V4 (both around $35) or the V4WM (free, but Poser 9/2012 only) is still a lot cheaper.