sampler

Sampler is a term with multiple meanings across disciplines, generally referring to a device, instrument, or person that collects samples for analysis or playback. In technology contexts, a sampler stores short fragments of information and reproduces them under user control. The exact sense depends on the field, from music to statistics to crafts.

In audio and music technology, a sampler is an electronic instrument or software that stores audio samples and triggers them in response to keyboard notes or MIDI input. Early hardware samplers appeared in the 1980s for drums and loops. Modern samplers combine sampling with synthesis, time-stretching, looping, and effects; widely used software samplers include Kontakt and Ableton Sampler.

In statistics and data science, a sampler is a method or tool that generates samples from a population or distribution. Techniques include simple random sampling, stratified and cluster sampling, systematic sampling, and bootstrapping. In Bayesian inference, Metropolis-Hastings and Gibbs sampling are algorithms that draw samples from posterior distributions.

In crafts, a sampler is an embroidered or cross-stitch piece traditionally used to demonstrate stitches, patterns, and techniques. Historically produced for education, it often doubled as a sampler of a stitch library.

In electronics, a sampler can refer to a sample-and-hold circuit that captures an analog signal at a moment in time for conversion, or to a person who samples products, such as a taste tester in quality control.