a little post production processing perhaps
Man, I've tried setting the EQ on flat and the music just seems lifeless, and just for the record I don't crank the volume all the way up.
There is a lot of snark here...but this is a serious suggestion. Evil, go down to your local Guitar Center or equivalent pro-audio outlet, buy yourself a BBE 362 Sonic Maximizer (these are processors typically used for live reinforcement or production and can be had for about $80), and throw it in a tape loop (or put between your source and amp). It functions basically like tone controls, with two knobs for bass and 'effect'. It has clipping indicators, so you can empirically know if you're over-doing it, thus sparing your speakers to some extent. With the 'effect' knob anywhere beyond 11 or so you'll get some seriously enhanced highs (easily overdone, but given your apparrent preferences may be good). They sound way better than simple tone controls, in my opinion. For 'fake liveness', these are cheap and effective tools. These can do wonders for poorly produced recordings, no joke!