They are viable, albeit not as efficient as the HQ/Melded option. If you're a casual crafter, you can't go wrong with an augmented set, but if you're a perfectionist/purist who wants the utmost top-results, you have to be prepared to do the grunt/gil work. Assuming you have no interest in special recipes or max-tier crafting, even just HQ 290's (o-meld) will suffice for everything and anything outside of mega-recipes, though by all means, use the weekly Custom Delivery income to grab yourself the main-hands and augment them at will.