I protect my brown sugar from drying out and hardening by storing it in one of these and also putting one of these in the canister after soaking it in water 15 minutes. It works a charm.

Bonavita brewer - $131.96 (or newer model)

Capresso Infiniti burr grinder - $84.95

Hario Scale - $42.91

Bamboo filters - $6.88

Total: $266.70

This is more or less the setup that I use every day both at home and work, and is why I almost never bother making pour over anymore. A good starting point is 1000ml water with 60g of medium grind (start there and tune grind to your preference before tuning water/coffee amounts).

To me the grinder and scale are the most important parts. If I could only get two items, it would be those (and good beans) and I'd tolerate an old mr coffee until I could get a better brewer. If your grind is inconsistent and old (pre ground), even the best coffee brewer won't be able to help. Having used both the Capresso Infinity and the Baratza Encore extensively, I slightly prefer the Capresso. Don't get me wrong, they are both great and will get you where you are going, but the Capresso is a faster grind and easier to clean by (only) minor amounts.

You could even throw in a Goose neck kettle and coffee dripper to experiment with pour over.

Something else to consider is a airtight storage container. I particularly like these - they keep your beans gooey/oily and fresh for weeks if you don't drink all your beans within a week of getting them.

Happy brewing!

Edit: words, grammar