The SpectroProofer is unashamedly built to shun the photographic community(for the most part). For proofers it's a great option, and even those doing high volume print for pay I think it has it's place. The problem is that the SpectroProofer alone doesn't give you much. It does export CGATS measurement data so if you currently own profiling software then you can use it to generate profiles, and it does come with a basic method for verifying proofs, but really it is designed to integrate with a RIP. If your feeling ambitious you could use the free Argyle profile creation software to generate profiles, but it's not exactly a solution for the novice. For the same prices as the 44" SpectroProofer you could get a fairly complete i1 profiling package , or a color munki, several rolls of paper, a very nice single malt scotch and a trip to vegas for the weekend.
The profiles Epson is releasing are also quite good these days. The only problem is that they didn't have profiles for all their papers last time I checked, I'm assuming that this will be remedied. I'm also surprised by how awful some 3rd party paper profiles in circulation are.
In regards to the 24" vs 44" debate, most people opt for the 24" and if you are only going to print for yourself this is probably the way to go. That said when I used to do print for pay, the several really large prints I did for clients payed for the difference between 24" and 44" printers rather quickly.