Like most have said the best that you can afford, if that means getting less expensive gear to get you by until you can afford something nicer, better, etc. then do so. Then when you upgrade perhaps sell the starter stuff or hang onto it. Say for example you buy a cheap pair of binoculars to start hunting with and then you scrape enough together to buy a nice pair of dream binoculars, you can always stick the starter pair in your truck for when you are driving down the road and spot a flock of turkeys, herd of deer, whatever. I don't know how many times I was driving and wanted to get a better look at something across the field. You see what I am getting at. When I upgrade my bow when I get the funds for it, I am keeping my old bow as a backup (provided that my wife will let me). Probably won't have to buy much to upgrade my gear right now, bought some of the best stuff I could afford and by and large it is some of the best stuff on the market. Badlands packs (one was new, the other used off of craigslist), Whitewater clothes, Leupold bino and spotting scope, Bushnell rangefinder. I had orginally outfitted myself for Alaska, but never did get to hunt while I was up there, now I am pretty much set for New Mexico. Just have to get through school first.
branded WV