Lately I've been using an EQ--Plat Verb--Dir Mixer plug chain then Sound Designer thru a bus (this is Logic with 1st Edition btw)
This alows me to place the instrument in the stereo field with a localized verb/early reflection sort of thing. The Plat verb has a warmer, shorter verb (1.8 ms) at 75-80% wet/dry ratio, I narrow and pan that with the Dir mixer, then send it to the main verb(s). Also, I've been working with zero pre-delay on everything, so I can help kill that "dry" signal combined with reverb sound that William is talking about.
Since I'm on an old machine, I usually bypass the Plat Verb while I work, occasionally unmuting it to check the part with others in its family (all brass, for instance). At the end, I will freeze most of the tracks for final mix tweaking of the remaining parts.
Works pretty well, and the dry, close VSL sits better with the Project Sam stuff (close or stage mic, as I send everything thru SDesigner in the end), for example. Totally unscientific, I should say, as I am "earballing" the sound.
Clark