I normally go in my PC player's breaks around release time. I have done it over 20 times now and I don't think I have ever got more than a $4-$5 card but I continue to do it because it's cheap compared to a team. My player too is also dirt cheap.
I like these breakers on ebay called AMT I think. Something like that. They have a green logo. They are very organised which makes it easy to find you break on youtube later on. I also like that at the end they recap ALL hits, so if you're like me and cant watch a 90min break intently, I just scroll to the end.
But I think you are doing it the "right" way in that I think buying multiple players will definitely give you better odds of hitting something to at least break even.
I could be wrong, but I also believe they refund your shipping if you don;t hit anything which is my biggest gripe with player breaks. They charge $5 shipping to like 400 players and most don't refund you if they have nothing to ship.
All just my internal thoughts here. haha