MR Hum 6

Name: MR Hum 6
Price: 39 USD
Author: Wave Arts

by Wave Arts · Restoration · Hum and buzz remover

Not rated yet

MR Hum 6 removes hum and buzz with up to 10 harmonic notch filters tuned anywhere from 20 to 200 Hz, plus a separate buzz processor.

Brickwall filters, spectrum analysis and a monitor of the removed signal are included, with zero latency. It sells for $39.

Best for: Guitars, Vocals, Bass, Acoustic Instruments. Genres: all genres.

Keywords: repair, low latency, built-in analyzer, surgical, zero-latency, bass, corrective, tracking, vocals, electric guitar, simple, field recordings, mixing.

What it does

MR Hum 6 removes mains hum and buzz with a set of notch filters placed on the harmonics of the hum's base frequency, usually 50 or 60 Hz. Wave Arts aims it at recordings with "any sort of hum or nasty buzz".

Hum removal: 1 to 10 harmonic notch filters, so you can remove the fundamental alone or the fundamental plus up to nine harmonics above it.
Tuning: the hum and buzz frequencies are adjustable from 20 to 200 Hz, with adjustable notch widths.
Buzz removal: a separate section for the harsher, harmonic-rich buzz from things like dimmers and bad grounds.
Brickwall filters: steep filters to take out low rumble and high hiss.
Spectrum display: a high-resolution analyser that can show the signal before or after processing, to line the notches up with the hum.
Monitoring: every section can be monitored to hear exactly what is being removed.
No latency: usable on live inputs and while tracking.

It is part of Wave Arts' Master Restoration Suite alongside MR Noise and MR Click. The current version is 6.09. It works in mono or stereo at up to 192 kHz. A free trial is available.

Source: Wave Arts product page

When to use it

MR Hum 6 is a simple, zero-latency fix for hum and buzz that sits at a fixed frequency. Compared with the de-hum module in iZotope RX 12, it is cheaper and lighter and runs live, but it does not follow hum that drifts in pitch; Sound On Sound noted an earlier version lacked the frequency tracking Sony Oxford's tool offered. Unlike Waves NS1 or MR Noise 6, it targets only the hum harmonics, so the rest of the spectrum is left alone. Against a spectral editor such as SpectraLayers Pro 13 it is less flexible but much faster for a whole track.

Best for: 50/60 Hz ground hum and dimmer buzz on guitar and bass amps, DI tracks, vocals and location recordings.
Genres: general purpose.
Look elsewhere if: the hum drifts in pitch or comes with broadband noise; RX 12's adaptive de-hum or MR Noise 6 suit those.
Tip: start from the 50 Hz or 60 Hz preset for your mains, then use Monitor to check that only the hum is being removed.

What producers say

Reviewers of earlier versions rated it among the best plugins for hum and buzz.

Tape Op (Garrett Haines, 2008) called it "as good as any other plug-in" for buzz and AC hum, and found the presets needed little tweaking.
Sound On Sound (Mike Thornton, 2007 shootout) said it "just works straight out of the box" and matched Sony Oxford's results, but lacked frequency tracking.
MusicRadar (2007) found it surprisingly useful for such a simple tool.
Bonus use: Tape Op also found it works as a creative filter for sound design.

Where to buy

KVR Marketplace: $39
PluginFox: $39

Tutorials and reviews

Similar plugins

Oxford DeBuzzer by Sonnox · Hum and buzz remover
X-Hum by Waves · Hum removal · $32.93
Debuzz by CEDAR · Buzz and hum remover · $131.15
Restoration Suite 2 by Acon Digital · Restoration plugin bundle · $99
NF575 Noise Filter by McDSP · Noise filter · $79
CEDAR Studio by CEDAR · Pro restoration suite

All restoration & repair