I'm a DAZ Mod so obviously I'm biased, but I think that if you're starting off, getting the 3D Starter Kit with the V3 Reduced Res and M3 Reduced Res included is a very good deal. Although I thought that Don was much better than the P4 guy, the only thing I liked about Judy was that she could take V2 textures. I've never liked Judy, especially around the eyes. The current products for Judy make her look better, but I still don't like her as much as V3, even the Reduced Res V3. And between Don and either M3 or David, Don loses every time.

Making your own characters is great, but I don't see much difference between using the P5 fem and using V3 when it comes to "using your own tools." If you want to make custom characters, you can do that with both. The only difference is (IMO) you get more that you can do with V3 out of the box before needing to create your own magnets.

Hope this helps,

Cres