If I use the built-in reverb/delay inside a VST instrument and then add a compressor or limiter in the effects chain, it also processes the reverb/delay.
I wonder if this should be avoided, when possibile. In a typical effects chain, reverb/delay usually comes at the end, so it isn’t affected by compression or limiting.
I understand I can use external reverb/delay (via send/return) for better control, but in some cases these effects are part of the sound itself and can’t really be separated.
This is why it’s generally a good idea to remove the delay and reverb from the actual VST instrument and use a separate delay and reverb as an insert or send effect. Gives more flexibility. Unless the VST has its own compressor, there’s no other way.
You can do that in most cases, but sometimes the delay or reverb is actually part of the patch itself. It can still be removed, of course, but the sound would lose its peculiarity.
I believe, and I may be wrong, that FX that come with VST instruments are intended for stand-alone usage, eg live performances. In a DAW, they are largely redundant. On top of that, the average DAW has far more, and varied, FX than any VSTi.
