What I crave to know about the new Iconica library

Virtual instruments Virtual Effects and Add-ons
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#1

What I like so much about Halion Symphonic Orchestra, is that it’s so tooled toward live keyboard players.
Full strings ensemble mapped across the keys, the option to control dynamics via velocity, velocity curves, etc…

I crave to know whether Iconica is also tooled toward live keyboard players and also has those features!
If that is the case, this is a great news!
HSO sounds good, but Iconica is few level above+HSO is lack in many instruments and articulations.
So if Iconica is as good as HSO for live playing, it would be an incredible upgrade for my keyboard rig!

#2

These videos show the instruments being played live using a regular keyboard controller:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=REf2Hshb_gc&list=PLkihDs-2CP2QNcW-2y8MuvZ15Tlfcv64b&index=2

It definitely sounds impressive even with zero MIDI programming. The strings in particular sound considerably more realistic than HSO thanks to the dynamic legato samples.

#3

Yeah but he uses the modwheel for dynamics the whole demo, is there a way to play velocity-dynamics?

#4

Yes, you can change the articulations to use key velocity and even disable velocity layer crossfades if desired, just like HSO.

#5

Wow, that’s great!
And what about “Full Strings Ensemble” patches, with all the strings section mapped across the keys?

#6

On the Iconica product page for some reason the video that gives a detailed overview was buried in the middle.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=beoW5OO9aqE

Cool to see it supports Note Expression.

The way they’ve setup key switches is pretty interesting, especially being able to fade between articulations.

Also it was interesting to discover that Cubase is capable of importing Expression Maps from the VSTi just like it can with Drum Maps. I was unable to find any other Halion presets that used Key Switches to see if anything besides Iconica can do this. As expected Kontakt doesn’t do this. But it is a very cool feature that should make working with Expression Maps much easier.

Time to go check how that trial download is progressing…

#7

What are your impressions of Iconica guys, having lived with it for a while? I am really interested in the interface it looks intuitive and capable