I would like to hear a GOOD reason as to why fast gearing was a problem. I currently have 24 toons (16 toons before the DvL event) and with 4.0, as much as I was not entertained by the storyline (and that was basically not at all), I applauded the gearing system and the fact that all 9 ops were now relevant.
There is content that would be horrible to repeat (aka Uprisings, Seeker Droid and Binoculars missions, some of the Flashpoints, Class missions, KOTFE/KOTET Chapters) and then there is content that I would have no problem at all repeating, if it meant getting rewarded too at the same time (Operations, HM Flashpoints, PvP, Heroics).
So with 4.0 I was able to:
1. Gear most of my 16 toons with full set bonus
2. Have a lot of fun playing with my friends
3. STILL be challenged enough for the higher tier gear and be part of a progression raiding group
4. See how ops like EV, KP and EC are SUPPOSED to be like, since I did not do endgame content back in 2012
5. Log into the game all the time to enjoy the game
6. Be a happy paying customer
I dont' see how any of that causes any problems. If anything, the lack of new content was not as noticeable as it is now (and has been for a long time) since there was still stuff to do. Fun stuff to do.