So sub or not to sub

I have to say that since systems are taste AND room dependant there is nothing that works for everybody, except maybe keeping level under control...I'm sure many digital system squashers sound great to the swquashees (squashoids?), but I'm into "less is more" and ear trustage (!) in both live sound mixing and active hifi listening.

Get a used REL if you are cost sensitive (or even if you're not) as they leave your main speakers unmolested yet enhanced, not unlike my cousin Shirley. You don't need the greasy digital fingers of "bass management" wrapped around the throat of your lower mids and bass to get great sound as you should simply pay attention to sub placement, the sub's frequency range, and level. Note that a good sub "charges" the listening room with the warmth of ambient and instrumental lower frequencies and makes everything sound more realistic, thus making the listener a better person.

You have to move the sub around to get it right...walls and corners can be your friend in what you hear at your listening spot, and a single sub works in MY room because I'm lucky. Dr. Earl Geddes claims (more or less) that one's taste (or opinion on bass quality) needs to be ignored until supported by test data. This is why I don't have him over anymore. That, and he keeps staring at Shirley. In the time it takes to read through white papers and well thought out science backed opinion, you could have moved your sub around a little, adjusted its level, and started having fun.

I don't suffer baloney well after decades as a professional in the music business, and that includes nonesense such as woofer "speed" in reproduction of low frequencies, many (not all) theoretical or supposed scientific explanations of why something sounds good, or blind acceptance of what anybody else thinks is the "correct" or "corrected" sound of music. And, I can spell "frightened." Note that Bo1972 has said that he uses stereo subs at high crossover frequencies which are then squashed by digital compression and limiting to make them listenable...now THATS music!

I stick little rubber feet under the lower corners of wall art, otherwise the furniture seems to control things somewhat. Bass frequencies are longer sound waves that are harder to wrangle, but I do know that tube traps of some sort can work if needed.