Gearing and drop rates, AH use almost required to progress.

[FoxBat]

Crafts in D3 are supposed to fill this gap, but they're just so inefficient compared to the AH. I'd be willing to spend the current prices if there were ilvl 63 recipes, but blowing millions of gold to get one potentially good piece that isn't even max level...no. Gambling in D2 was way better.

"Crafting" in this game means you are willing to sell off most of what you make at whatever price it can command. As long as crafting results aren't BoA this result is inevitable, as the people who are doing this drive mat prices up and the resulting crafts down.