I'm not sure why you think you "have to tinker". I run Ubuntu 14.04 and use i3 window manager. I haven't "tinkered" with the setup in about a year-and-a-half, dating back to when I installed i3 shortly after I got the my last computer. The default Unity DE is nice, too. I don't use it, but I could have used it all this time, can't imagine what "tinkering" would be required.
I have to tinker all the time because hw compatibility still sucks. Wifi, sound, video-cards often require tinkering to get them working, especially after upgrading. They are a lot better than they used to be, but they still have a ways to go.
I've had zero driver issues on my Asus UX305 laptop. Even if I had, those issues are generally solved once on installation, not continually tinkered with.
I've had quite a few computers that didn't have any problems and worked right out of the box. That doesn't mean there aren't still problems with other computers.
