I just wait a year or so on most things and get them on sale. Both my Xbox Ones, both my PS4s, my Wii U, and a good bit of games and online subscription codes come from sales and Black Friday leftovers (you'd be surprised how many goodies you find for cheap even towards the end of the night on Black Friday.) My TVs are from pawn shops, store closings or the curb.
The one thing I put lots of money down on was a refurbished computer tower I got secondhand from an animation studio. Spent $1,100. That was in 2011. Still got the same one, and it's only now becoming truly obsolete. Except the graphics card, which has been replaced 4 times thus far.