Great question. It really depends on the directory. As a general rule, if the directory is advertising that is "sells links," those links are likely to be valueless, or potentially even detrimental.
On the other hand, directories that have fees for "editorial review" (i.e. dir.yahoo.com, etc), are less likely to have that problem.
Generally speaking, if a directory is specifically relevant to your site (i.e. content and/or geography), the directory will likely have more value than a general biz, or non-relevant directory.
I also like to stick to relevant directories with DA equal to or higher than the site that I'm submitting.
In my humble opinion, the value of submitting to a large number of low quality directories, as well as, article directories, is very low if not non-existent.
However, if you find higher quality directory links in your competitors' back link profiles, they may be worth the investment.