I was struggling with a bass sound from an audio track.  Tried a lot of eq and compression/limiting but couldn't really get it to sit in the track. 
In my old studio days, I would sometimes record a bass played through a 10" speaker with an SM57 just to limit its sonic range.  I know that the original Fender Super Reverb amps with 4 10's was used alot by bass players. 
 
Anyway, when I remembered this technique, I thought I would try sending the signal through the only amp I own which is a Vox VT30. 
I then read the online post about Guitar Rig vs. Amplitube and decided to check out Amplitube because it has mike placement options.
 
I installed Amplitube Free and used that on the bass track.  I learned that I could move the SM57 around the speaker (a 15") and I was able to find the sweet spot I was looking for off center of the cone. 
So, remembering an old technique and substituting digital technology really helped me on this project.  It didn't cost a dime and I am pleased with the result.
 
Rimshot
 

great tip, Jimmy.  thanks!  I've just recently been learning some bass to be able to put my own bass parts on my songs and this will help!

realize that a 57 has a built-in roll off, right at the frequency where the low fundamentals are on bass guitar.

in other words, you're missing frequencies you cannot add with post-EQ.

That is correct batsbrew but in some situations, limiting the frequency from the source might just work earlier on than waiting until the mix. 

For a paying client, I would want to capture more of the full bass range and then re-channel through a speaker like this or experiment with software like I did if that is needed.

Rim 

yes, i do this on a regular basis with my own bass tracks.

i always track a direct line thru a sansamp bass di, and take the 2ndary 'thru' clean signal, directly to my guitar amp and cabinet, which is setup for 'midrange grunge' for the bass.

i sum the two tracks together, to get my super lows clean, and midrange dirty, and blend to taste.

Nice!  I am going to try to send the direct bass audio track feed through my Vox VT30 and mic it just for fun.  I have no idea what it will sound like but that's all part of it anyway.

Rim

just be aware of lining up the audio waves so that they are together, IF you have too much distance between the mic and the speaker, and IF you have latency issues with your system.

Good point I'll keep in mind.

Great thread!

Concerning the sm57 and a 'safe' small speaker, its sonics may be alright (theoretically), though Bat understands this better.  

But even for hip-hop ... your sonic technique seems excellent.  (No one uses a bass like a kick these days ... and skating rinks always raise the kick levels ... the bass doesn't always rule iows)

Mix-wise, I always roll off at 79 Hz (in the mix) ... no exceptions ... since the bass fundies drown the kick.  These are Danzi's live bass recordings as well as Trillion Fender (acoustic) samples.

(Sorry to derail slightly: Regarding getting the bass into the mids, I'm still struggling with that since I've heard some well-gel'd mixes that almost seem like: (1) kick -- (2) bass -- (3) vocals/details/etc. ... ruling the lows, mids, and upper mids, respectively.)

Good points Phillip.  Can you tell me the cue setting for your rolloff and what module you use for that?  Is it Sonitus?  

Rimshot