Without also getting in a position
Building the most optimal set of gear for your particular spec is also one of the things that let more expert players demonstrate mastery of the La Tale Ely game. If the set pieces were always better, that would not happen. In fact one of the reasons we made sets smaller (not 8 pieces or whatever) is so players could still undertake the challenge of completing them without also getting in a position where they were very reluctant to upgrade again.