Are subwoofers worth the trouble?

I've had little trouble dialing mine in, and leaving it alone. If your room is properly treated, the end result is very rewarding.

Very much agree with Onhwy61. He's a "good'un", as John Atkinson likes to say. I agree with highway on every point he describes. Of course I don't use mine for "effect". I'm not a neophyte at this.

Kacz is far more objective than the rest of us, so by all means, follow his "one sided" view closely. I was just trying to give the best advice too...It's not as if Emil was describing an inept subwoofer (REL), as Kacz suggests. The FREE in-home trial period for the ACI sounds great to me. I've not heard that one, but as long as it's fully adjustable, it should work great. And it doesn't take much longer to get the sub right than it takes to get the left/right speakers in the right place without a sub...only with the right sub, you don't have to trade off bass for imaging, as with a "full range" speaker. You do need ASC traps to get the best out of either, though. Just ask anybody at any hifi show or exhibit, or any reviewer for that matter. Those that don't use them are wasting theirs, and everybody else's time, IMHO. "There is no way you would ever need a sub," blah blah...Only a handful of speakers don't need subs, and they are costly, and no better than a great speaker with a great sub.

I'm in full agreement with you about subs, BMP. I don't have the REL, I have the Sunfire. The Velodyne HGS-15 is my dream sub. As for your question, I suppose if the sub has line level as well as speaker level inputs, and can togle between the two based on whether it senses a signal or not, it would work. You'd need to try it first. I don't see it being difficult to do. AND YOU ARE SO RIGHT ABOUT BOB HARLEY!!!! He isn't always at his best (who is?), but his body of authoring work is truly the best in the world (with most of his reviews being better and more important than even his CGTHA book...the original Wadia 27 review in a 1996 SPHL is maybe the best review ever!!! And I don't even prefer any of Wadia's products right now...). I put Atkinson second, and Fremer a very very close third. Fremer knows how to review anything, not just vinyl; and he knows how to listen to an audio system. (He feels as we do about subs.) These guys are my audio heroes, whatever shortcomings they may have. I'd love to make friends with any of them sometime...I'm one of many who would.

I'm sure it was a blow to him, but he's probably over that by now.