The Martin Rush MH 6 Wash

A quick look back

The Rush MH 6 wash was a lighting fixture offered by Martin as part of the Rush family of lighting fixtures and effects. It is a compact, LED, moving head wash light with RGBW (Red/ Green/ Blue/ White) colour mixing powered by 12 x 10W RGBW LEDs. With a reputation for being a durable, lightweight and great value fixture, it offered a 1:6 zoom ratio (10° – 60°) and a 2,000 lumen output.

The MH 6 evolved from the Rush Par 2 RGBW Zoom. As the name suggests, this was basically an LED par with a zoom range. The Rush Par 2 RGBW Zoom was popular and was a top seller for the Martin Rush family for a number of years. The MH 6 added pan and tilt capabilities to the Par 2, essentially making the MH 6 a moving LED par with zoom. The pan and tilt range for the MH 6 was very respectable, with a pan range of 540 degrees and a tilt range of 200 degrees.

The Rush range is produced by Martin. Some of Martin’s best-known products include the Encore range, Viper range, the Quantum range, the MAC 101 and the MAC Aura. From their website – ‘Martin Rush series is a range of affordable dynamic lighting and effect fixtures designed to set the scene and enhance your guest experience’. With the Rush range, Martin aims to produce high quality lights and effects while making them affordable too. With that being said, some of the compromises taken to achieve this will often include things such as size, features, general refinement and light output.

The closest comparison in the Martin range for the Rush MH 6 was the Martin MAC Aura. Funnily enough, both lights are made by the same parent company.

The MAC Aura (and MAC Aura XB) are some of the best-selling compact wash lights Martin has ever produced, in fact some of the best- selling lights, period. To this day, the MAC Aura XB is the benchmark for a quality, compact moving head LED wash light.

Both lights are reasonably similar, the one difference that jumps off the page is the fact that the Aura is about three times brighter than the MH 6.

There are no serviceable parts in the MH 6. It does not need to be opened up for service and maintenance like most other moving head fixtures. This helped keep the light as compact as it was. The one thing you had to do was make sure the fans were clean and clear of any dust and debris. Depending on how you used the lights, you would probably only have to do this once or twice a year.

Lights that were often packed in and out of road cases would often see pan and tilt motors wear out faster than lights that lived on venue trusses full time. LED and motherboard issues would also spell a trip to the repair shop. On the whole, they were very reliable fixtures so long as the fans were kept clean and adequate ventilation was allowed for when using them.

The MH 6 was one of the top selling lights from the Rush family when it was on sale. The MH 6 was initially released in late 2015. It has since been discontinued and only second-hand models can be purchased. Superseding it was the Martin Rush MH 7, an all-in-one hybrid light featuring a beam, spot and wash in one.

One drawback to consider when buying an MH 6 is the output. 2,000 lumens, although respectable, is on the lower side. It might be worth considering what you are putting it with to make sure it can keep up. Dropping it amongst the higher end offerings of the Martin line up could see it struggle but it should do just fine with lights in the same price bracket and of the same era. Keep in mind too, that lights are only getting brighter.

The MH 6 had adjustable white balance. It also featured four different dimming curve options. Both were very handy features to have, especially when lighting to camera.

The MH 6 was compatible with both 3 pin and 5 pin DMX. It took a DMX footprint of 14 channels. There was no basic/extended mode. They were powered via powerCON. They have powerCON input and output, meaning you could daisy chain them together if you had the right cabling. They drew 155W, or 0.7A on a 10A 240V circuit meaning that, theoretically speaking, you could fit 15 onto one circuit.

The Rush MH 6 was a good value for money wash light in its day. Although the fixture has now been discontinued, many are still in service. The RGBW colour mixing system, as simple as it was, produced a very impressive array of rich colours. They were small enough to be placed in almost any kind of setting, on a truss or on the floor.

In 2015, if you were after a compact LED moving head wash light and value for money was driving the buying decision, the Martin Rush MH 6 would very likely have been near the top of your list.

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Martin Rush MH 6

• 2,000 lumen output
• 10 – 60 degree zoom range
• 12 x 10W Osram Ostar RGBW LEDs
• 7.1kg
• 155W
• L: 290mm x W: 189mm x H: 360mm
• DMX Channels: 14
• Pan and Tilt range: 540 200

MAC Aura XB

• 6,000 lumen output
• 9 – 59.1 degree zoom range
• 19 x 15W RGBW LEDs
• 6.5kg
• 350W
• L: 302mm x W: 163mm x H: 390mm
• DMX Channels 14, 25
• Pan and Tilt Range: 540 232

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Lumen output of some of the more popular Martin lights from a few years back:

• Martin MAC 101: 2,400 lumens
• Martin MAC Aura XB: 6,000 lumens
• Martin Viper Profile: 26,000 lumens
• Martin Rush MH 7: 3,800 lumens
• Martin Rush Par 2 Zoom: 2,000 lumens