You're right that there are peaks and valleys in the bass response due to the standing wave pattern in the room, and that this means sub placement is critical relative to the walls and listening position in most rooms.
Within the peaks and valleys you are still hearing true low frequency notes ... just the standing wave pattern makes the relative volume of the sub and the main speakers vary thoughout the room. Hence the placement issue.
This aside you can have very satisfying, if not perfect, low frequency reproduction in a small room, and for me this substantially increases my enjoyment of the music. What you are presenting are facts, but they're not the full facts, and to imply that they are is misleading.
Have you ever heard a good sub setup ?
Within the peaks and valleys you are still hearing true low frequency notes ... just the standing wave pattern makes the relative volume of the sub and the main speakers vary thoughout the room. Hence the placement issue.
This aside you can have very satisfying, if not perfect, low frequency reproduction in a small room, and for me this substantially increases my enjoyment of the music. What you are presenting are facts, but they're not the full facts, and to imply that they are is misleading.
Have you ever heard a good sub setup ?