There are a lot of really good helmets on the market for $200 or less. Some have nearly the fit, finish and comfort of the expensive brands and all will protect your head equally as good (the Snell vs. DOT debate notwithstanding). You won't go wrong with an Arai or any premium brand, but there are plenty of alternatives for less money. As others have said, the fit is the most important thing. And protecting your head with the lid you like best, regardess of cost, is money well spent.
I won't buy a real expensive helmet because I have an annoying habit of banging them up (thankfully, not through crashes). I also like to change them every two or three seasons (call it A.D.D.).
I recently retired a KBC VR-1 (I paid about $200 bucks for it), which was very comfortable, relatively quiet and had lots of high-end features. Unfortunately, this particular model (with a special Black Chrome finish) had a few fit and finish gremlins.
I replaced it with an HJC CL-SP for about $170. I've never been a huge fan of HJC but they usually are spoken well of and much of their line has been redesigned this year. The build quality is extraordinary (Webbikeworld claims it's as good as anything) and, although it seems to be made for a slightly rounder head shape than mine, it still fits very well and the vents actually seem to work. Webbikeworld also claims it's one of the quietest helmets they've ever tested, although, I must say, in certain conditions (and on my head, of course) it seems pretty noisy. Obviously not everyone's head is the same, so results vary.
The new HJC quick-release shield mechanism may be the best one on the market. It literally takes only a few seconds to do a change. It just pops off and on.
Jackets/pants/boots are a little trickier. The quality does vary, even within manufacturers' own lines. I have two Fieldsheer Jackets (fairly inexpensive brand) that are pretty well made. But the only pair of Fieldsheer pants I've had began to disintegrate almost immeadiately. Joe Rocket stuff, by and large, seems to be pretty good. You'll probably find more consistent quality in the more expensive brands but there is plenty of more affordable stuff that works well, too.