All I can say is if you do not plan to raid then you do not really need the raid gear other than showing it off. I got my ilvl to 470 so I can do LFR and grab a couple nice pieces of healing gear. But I only casually raid now. (Don't get me wrong, I use to do that race for server first bullshit, I know how to push my class). I just don't have the time anymore especially with finals coming up and whatnot. But I have fun doing bgs and challenge modes. Bgs have nothing to do with valor gear so I don't mind. And my ilvl gets minimized anyway in challenge modes so better gear does not mean anything to me.
Just throwing this out there too, for all of you saying "dailies is the only way to gear up for LFR/raids," no. Get your heroic gear, bam, LFR #1. Do the klaxxi QUEST LINE not the dailies and you should get a neck piece there. Craft stuff (like what 8k or so for 376 stuff. and grab a conquest pvp piece. (plus if you are a leather wearer and for some reason you have a cloth piece that is higher ilvl than your current leather piece, keep it in your bags, it counts to your ilvl.. this goes for all armor wearers as long as the item is equippable. ) sorry.
But if you don't raid, then you don't need the gear. If you do start raiding, you can't just jump in like wotlk or cata and be awesome. They did a better job this expack of the tier raiding system like vanilla and tbc. There is no way around getting better gear then if you can't raid.
EDIT
Just saw your solo post. At this point you can almost global the mobs, so much better gear won't help too much.
*Fun fact! Globaling comes from vanilla/early tbc where mages can PoM Pyro with a trinket on use and do double the damage, if it crits, you died. (In one global literally!)