If it’s such a financial drain, why do you keep doing it?
Who said it was a financial drain? It's a question of what satisfies the requirements of the task at hand.
When I have a task that can use something available commercially, I buy it pre-built. OTOH, when I need something that's not available commercially, I build it myself. Simple. I have no agenda -- I only do what's necessary to get what I want to do the job I have to do.
My point was that adding up the initial acquisition cost of a batch of inexpensive PC hardware, and comparing that price to that of a pre-built high-end Mac that comes with support, etc., is a silly comparison that misses some important factors, that's all.