Soundiron Hopkin Instrumentarium: Icicles & Pop Ice

Icicles & Pop Ice are a pair of distinct string instruments that deliver a bright, crystalline tone, thanks to their short, highly tensioned strings and a rigid stainless-steel sheet soundboard. Suspended directly from the strings, the sheet creates a long, shimmering tail of reverberation, enriching each note with depth and complexity.

   Icicles features 26 short string segments, each vibrating in unison with the resonant stainless-steel sheet. The result is a pure, shimmering sound that evolves organically with every pluck. Pop Ice takes this further by introducing a thin Styrofoam sheet, placed in direct contact with the strings. This secondary soundboard produces a sharp, percussive pop when plucked, followed by the sustained resonance of the stainless-steel sheet, adding a striking contrast to the tone.

   In this library, we’ve captured the full sonic spectrum of both instruments. You’ll find three main articulations: pure plucked-string sounds, percussive strikes, and glisses. With two microphone perspectives, up to 8x round robin, and 6 velocity layers per note, you’ll have complete control over the expressive potential of Icicles & Pop Ice. We’ve also included 20 custom FX presets and atmospheric sound design content, giving you even more creative freedom to shape these resonant instruments into something entirely new.