How to Remove Hum From Audio
Updated October 2026
Mains hum is a steady tone at 50 Hz (most of the world) or 60 Hz (North America and parts of Asia), with its harmonics. It usually comes from a cable, a power supply or a lamp dimmer near the mic.
The short version
- Look at the spectrum: hum is a comb of narrow spikes at 50 or 60 Hz and multiples of it.
- A notch filter at each spike removes it with little harm to the voice.
- Fix the cause too: move cables away from power, use a balanced mic cable, check the grounding.
- Do not notch harmonics you cannot see; check the result on the spectrum.
Is it mains hum?
A hum has a steady pitch that never moves. Mains hum sits at exactly 50 or 60 Hz and its harmonics at 100 or 120, 150 or 180 Hz, and so on. A spectrum view in any audio editor shows it as a row of narrow lines. Broadband hiss and fan noise look like a smear, not lines.
Remove it with a notch filter
A notch filter removes a very narrow band of frequency. In a free editor, apply a notch at the fundamental first, then at each harmonic you can see, and listen after each one. Keep the notches narrow (high Q) so the voice around them is untouched.
Fix the cause too
Moving the cable that carries the hum is faster than any filter. Keep mic cables away from power cables and lamp dimmers. A balanced XLR mic cable is more resistant than an unbalanced one. A ground loop, where two devices are connected through two different earth paths, is a common hidden cause: try a different power socket or a ground-lift adapter with care.
Tunedzy
Tunedzy's Repair tool measures hum, finds the fundamental and its harmonics, and notches them, then reports what it removed. It works on files at any sample rate. It will not remove a hum that changes pitch, and it will not notch a sound that only looks like hum.
Notch the hum, keep the voice
Tunedzy’s Repair tool finds the hum, notches the fundamental and its harmonics, and tells you what it removed.
Free tools for this
Frequently asked questions
Is the hum 50 or 60 Hz?
It depends on the mains in your country. Europe, Asia and Africa mostly use 50 Hz, the Americas mostly 60 Hz. Measure it on the spectrum rather than guessing.
Will a notch filter thin my voice?
A narrow notch affects only a tiny band. Wide notches or too many of them do thin the voice, so keep them as narrow as the hum allows.
Can I remove hum from a video?
Yes, from the audio track. Tunedzy can repair the sound and put it back into the video with the picture unchanged.
Keep going
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How to Fix Clipped, Distorted Audio
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