I bought a frame and a Jewel (by BabyLock) this past year. I find that just doing my own stuff is amazingly stressful, as I am NOT an experienced longarmer. I am still learning, and I'm not sure when I will be up to speed. Maybe years.
I bought a computerized program for the machine and find it somewhat unwieldy. I don't particularly like the patterns offered, and at this point, the program doesn't allow the import of patterns. The program is, as well, difficult to learn.
Unless you are pretty good at free-motion on your own machine, I would think very seriously about attempting to earn any money for a pretty long time on a big system.
I have a Janome 11000 and that is what started me thinking about a big system. I love the Janome, but it certainly isn't a system using a frame and a long-arm.