A configuration question..
 

First off I am running a SL900 with an APF compressor.

Before I got the compressor I used to run through the DI on my 900 with the switch set to pre EQ so the soundman would have a cleaner signal to work with and I would work the tone on the amp onstage. I recently had my amp in the shop and when I got the compressor the backup amp that I was using was my church's Ampeg Ba-115 but the DI on that amp is very noisy so I used the compressor's DI straight to the board and went from the output of the compressor into the amp.

I now have my 900 back and I used it last night and am going to be using it from here on out. The DI on my 900 is clean as a whistle. The soundman said he really liked what he was hearing with the compressor as a DI so I want to keep using it but not the DI .. My question to those more knowlgable than myself is..

Which one of these setups would be most practical.

1-Use the compressor's DI and go Bass->Compressor->Amp

2-Use the 900's DI and go Bass->Compressor->Amp

3-Use the 900's DI and go Bass->Amp -- with the compressor going through the effects send/receive

I am thinking that the 3rd option would actually add another component in the chain that is not really necessary and am leaning more toward the second option .. but I have never really used any effects seriously so I am wondering which config would be best. I want to use the DI on the amp because I can still use the mute for when I tune. Does it even matter? When would I use the effects send/receive? Both DIs are clean so if I used the amp's DI what would be the difference as far as the signal gong to the board aside from where it was coming from?

I hope I am making sense ... :)

Try all 3, pick which you like best.

+1 to trying them out, since there is some logic to all three.

For me, bass to compressor to amp makes much sense though, for the following reasons:

1) It will allow you to use the nice pre EQ setting of that very nice DI on the Streamliner. (not sure where the effects loop is placed on that amp... before or after EQ).

2) Not familiar with your compressor, but if it isn't a high quality 'rack' type unit, often the signal from the effects send will result in some distortion in the input stage of a 'pedal'.

3) If you are using a compressor to smooth your peaks, it seems that you would want that as early in the signal chain as possible (i.e., to control the peaks hitting the very first state of the input of the amp).

The bigger question is, do you really even need the compressor, given the very complex, tube driven gain stages of the Streamliner. With some experimentation, I found I could get a very authentic 'all tube amp' type of natural tube compression directly from the input gain stages of that nice amp. Might simplify things for you.