If your primary goal is low frequency extension then they could be considered even better than many newer JBLs... especially the L212 system!
Ultimately it comes down to which compromises affect your enjoyment the least. To many people a nice Bose system is worth the acoustic compromise... OK, that was uncalled for!
Seriously though, if what you want is ass kicking sound and you don't mind slightly less than stellar imaging or don't care about having the most neutral sounding speakers, then one of the big 43XX systems, a vintage Altec system, or a nice DIY system is really all you need and dropping big coin on one of these newer systems would be a waste of money.
If on the other hand, you want a fairly neutral sound with good extension and low distortion but you don't mind missing a bit of imaging focus or the snappiest of dynamics, then a 250Ti or XPL system is probably all you would ever need.
With the latest JBLs the trade off is low frequency extension... though with the 1400 Array, what is missing is pretty trivial... I personally couldn't live with the K2-S9800 or S9900 without a sub, but that is my choice. With the 1400 Array, room depending, in most cases I doubt you would ever want more or deeper bass.
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