Product review (4 stars): Good Filter
I bought 4 of these filters since the price was so good.  When I first used the first one, I too had an issue with the smell that blew out of my humidifier the first day.  With the second one, I tried rinsing it in running water for a minute or two before putting it in the humidifier and it worked great- no smell!  One possible negative- the packaging does not actually say "holmes" anywhere on it, so I suspect these are not the name brand; however they seem to work fine.  I would buy these again.