Routing a dry synth's audio through a sampler adds onboard effects without extra mixer channels

Some samplers and drum machines accept external audio inputs and can apply their onboard effects to that signal. Routing a synthesizer without its own effects (such as the Arturia MicroFreak, which has no onboard effects) through such a sampler kills two birds: it reduces the number of separate audio cables to the mixer, and it gives the synth access to the sampler’s effect chain. The same principle applies in DAWs (audio from a hardware synth into a track with an insert effect) and in modular setups (patching a VCO through a module that also hosts effects). The trade-off is that the synth and the effect are now coupled — you can’t process them independently at the mixer.

Examples

MicroFreak audio out → SP-16 audio input. The SP-16 applies its onboard effect (e.g., reverb or delay) to the incoming MicroFreak signal before passing it to the mixer.

Assessment

Name two advantages and one disadvantage of routing a dry synth through a sampler’s audio input versus sending them as separate channels to a mixer.