Eeehhh don't always pass up on the big names.. They got money and some of them spend it on R&D! You can make a killing signing up for Waves mailing list. I have never paid more than $29 for a Waves plugin. I only paid $40 for the entire V-Series bundle and I think $40 for the CLA compressors. Both Abbey Road reverbs and the SSL G compressor were free.
Plugin Alliance has some really really good stuff too and those guys are having daily sales as well.
For mixing stuff (compressors, limiters, eqs, etc) I regularly use the Waves API and V eqs, the SSL bus comp is on every song I do (its already loaded in the master strip in my default Logic template), the CLA-76 and CLA-3A get ALOT of use as well. I have the SSL eqs but eh I rarely use them. When it comes to hardware Im an API guy so I grab those plugins first. I use those 'vintage' kind of eqs usually only when I want to color something and boost a frequency. Anytime Im just doing cutting to make things fit, any old surgical multi band eq will do. Fabfilters Pro-Q3 is awesome, DMG's Equilibrium is at the same level, the ones in most DAWs work just fine too.
For delays oh boy.. Picked up Soundtoys Echoboy a couple months ago when it was on sale for $50 and use it all the time. Overloud makes the most awesome Binson Echorec emulation if you're into those, but it aint cheap. Speaking of PSP I cant live without the PSP42 delay. Ill probably still keep using it even after Ive finally managed to pick up like 4 of the real ones. The Lexicon PCM41 and 42 were the shit and the plugin nails it.
You didnt say what DAW you're using or specifically what plugins you need and why though.. Your DAW might actually have everything you need right there to get going. Ive been a Logic user for over 20 years now and I could honestly live with just the plugins that come with it. I already owned all the Waves junk beforehand but Apple's new compressor models and vintage eq models give the Waves (and UAD and everybody else) a run for their money. Finish a couple tracks and start mixing with what's in there. You may like everything just as it is. You might find that your compressor just doesn't give your drums that OOMPH it should. You might find the EQs really brittle or lacking. You might get done and say 'Yeah I really do want that SSL sound instead'. Then you know what to start looking for. We can all throw plugins at you all day but what do you need first?