Are they worth the trouble? In this man's opinion, yes! For me, I feel, there is so much information below 40 hertz, the lower limit of my system without a sub-woofer, that is important for the recreation of the hall's sound and the original music event. Is it difficult to set up? At times it can be with some systems and some rooms. My experience has been that it is no more difficult than appropriately setting up a balanced two channel system. Which means, if you read between the lines, it is a passionate effort. As for continually adjusting your sub-woofer; Once I have it dialed in I leave it alone. I believe my ear to be a good tool. However, that can very depending on the software you use. That is why I always use warble test tones and a meter. A good place to start is with Stereophile's test disk and Radio Shack's meter. Of course the accuracy of the meter is questionable at the lower extreme's, 35 hertz and down, but you can adjust for that within its variance or deviation from flat. Using subjectivity and measured objectivity has always afforded me great sound and accurate recreation. I wouldn't give up the lower extreme's for the world. It will have to do until I can afford a full range system as balance as my present system. As for the above comment about dialing it in until you hear it. Frankly, I never can hear my sub-woofer. It always appears to me as if the sound is coming from my main speakers. And, if there is zero information below 40 hertz within the recording, it sounds that way. However, when the information is there, well, then that's why it is worth it.
