+1
A good friend who started sound with us in the 70's and 80's can now be seen at a number of "3 big name band" shows behind the board(Heart, Journey, Cheap Trick being the last one IIRC). We BOTH started from scratch and learned/taught each other tons with books, learning from pro-shows(Showco, Claire Bros, etc), local wizards in New Orleans at that time(Peter with Pace Sound), AND experimenting.
The "pay the pro for on the job training" sounds great IF you can get the rookie to acknowledge and understand that he/she is LEARNING how to duplicate what your band sounds like on the CD, in the studio, and/or on stage. I've worked with a "know it all" with wooden ears before in a church setting and wound up quitting so it can be EXTREMELY frustrating if there is no learning going on.
Michelob_64:
With an Epi T-Bird + 15 + 4x10(I've experience with all 3), try this. Put your compressor back in the loop for fastest attack/release you can set it on(speaker protection and a little smoothing) but make sure you can't hear it doing it's job. If you use roundwounds, set your TB with the front pickup wide open and the rear pickup on 8 or 9(you get cancellation with both on 10), and the tone between 5 and 10. Try(but experiment) this on the amp: bass flat(depends on what your 15 cab can do), mids slight boost, treble slight boost. Run a DI PRE-EQ(I suggest a Countryman or other high quality DI box since your amp's DI seems to be lacking) to the board for your "dry/bass signal". It will most likely have the highs cut a good bit, mids cut some, bass flat or boosted. This signal makes the PA subs punch folks in the stomach. Mic the 10's with the mic about halfway between the edge of the cone and the edge of the dust cover. This will be your dirt/grit/punch/bite that is picked up from this mic to the board. This signal is a bassist's ability to cut thru in a mix and be "un-muddy". It is blended with the DI to give a summary sound that should be VERY CLOSE to what your stage sound is but yet fits in the mix of the band. For the mic, a Sennheiser MD421 works great but an SM57 can suffice....whatever your budget/preference. The mic angle and EXACT location will depend on your cabinet/speaker sound and the mic used. Experiment at normal(SHOW) volumes with this somehow. Once you KNOW where the mic goes and angle(if needed), remember it or some mark it with tape or perm. marker(for roadie-proofing).
The MAIN purpose of your rig is a stage monitor for you and band members. It does not need to be so loud as to interfere with the PA bass. With 2 lines(dry and mic) to the PA with two specific functions, getting a consistent bass sound is much easier.
Warning: Murphy will show up and throw sick rooms/venues at you that sound like crap no matter what you do. For those times, you can get extreme(experiment & learn) with EQ settings and play with cabinet placement(esp. with hard walls/corners directly behind your rig).
Hope this helps & apologies for length. I've been where you are before.
