i'm planning on replacing the stock 120mm exhaust fan in my sonata, adding another 120mm fan in the front, possibly adding a 80mm blowhole to the top of the case and maybe another fan on the side if i do a window mod. anyways, what is the simplest easiest way to power the fans? do i just simply connect them to a molex connector? also what is the function of a fan controller other than controlling speeds?
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fan/fan controller noob questions
- Thread starter o0akoni0o
- Start date
what is the simplest easiest way to power the fans?
Yes just connecting them to a spare molex is imo the simplest and easiest, just ensure when you order the fans they have a molex connector on the fan. If you have unused 3 pin fan connectors on your mother board they could be used for the side and top 80mm fans it might reduce the wiring mess somewhat.
With molex connectors there is also the ability to do the very easy 7 volt modification if you wish to reduce the speed of a fan at basically zero cost. Do a google on "7 volt fan mod the cost is basically nothing to a maybe a buck 50 for crimp type butt connectors if you dont solder.
Some fan controllers also monitor fan rpm and can alert you of a failing fan. This is very useful for people who buy crap fans and never clean the dust out of them and dont know they can be and should be oiled occasionally. The other very useful function of a fan controller is the pretty lights now common on them which, in conjunction with the knobs can give hours of "tweaking" entertainment especially when under the influence of your favor mood altering substance. A smaller but still significant function is the, "Wow look at all the knobs and lights on his computer! He must know what he is doing and have lots of money.", effect a fan controller can have on people who know little about computers and proper cooling. This can be a real plus if the other person is of the other sex. However I must caution you, most females that respond this way will typically be much more interested in your computer than you. This must of course be balanced by the "Wow look at all the crap he shoved in there! He must be an idiot." effect they have on other people who know too much about computers and cooling.
Yes just connecting them to a spare molex is imo the simplest and easiest, just ensure when you order the fans they have a molex connector on the fan. If you have unused 3 pin fan connectors on your mother board they could be used for the side and top 80mm fans it might reduce the wiring mess somewhat.
With molex connectors there is also the ability to do the very easy 7 volt modification if you wish to reduce the speed of a fan at basically zero cost. Do a google on "7 volt fan mod the cost is basically nothing to a maybe a buck 50 for crimp type butt connectors if you dont solder.
Some fan controllers also monitor fan rpm and can alert you of a failing fan. This is very useful for people who buy crap fans and never clean the dust out of them and dont know they can be and should be oiled occasionally. The other very useful function of a fan controller is the pretty lights now common on them which, in conjunction with the knobs can give hours of "tweaking" entertainment especially when under the influence of your favor mood altering substance. A smaller but still significant function is the, "Wow look at all the knobs and lights on his computer! He must know what he is doing and have lots of money.", effect a fan controller can have on people who know little about computers and proper cooling. This can be a real plus if the other person is of the other sex. However I must caution you, most females that respond this way will typically be much more interested in your computer than you. This must of course be balanced by the "Wow look at all the crap he shoved in there! He must be an idiot." effect they have on other people who know too much about computers and cooling.
by connecting them through the motherboard, would this mean that i'm powering them through the motherboard? would this be ok for the motherboard and stuff? and i figure that the bigger fans are better left powered directly to the power supply. oh and how are fan controllers actually wired in (do the fans connect to them and then the fan controller to the mobo to detect rpm) ? i've been looking at this specific one, http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16813999502wwparrish said:what is the simplest easiest way to power the fans?
Yes just connecting them to a spare molex is imo the simplest and easiest, just ensure when you order the fans they have a molex connector on the fan. If you have unused 3 pin fan connectors on your mother board they could be used for the side and top 80mm fans it might reduce the wiring mess somewhat.
i figure that the bigger fans are better left powered directly to the power supply.
I agree completely, even if you do get a motherboard manuf to quote you the wattage/amperage specs on the motherboard fan connectors, my expericence is that some jug head looks up the current carring capacity of the header pins or the total power for all fan headers etc. The proper way is to look at the current carring capacity of the copper traces on the motherboard going to each header as that usually is where the current limitation would be. The width of the trace and the weight (thickness) of the copper used would determine the current capacity. Finding someone who will verify that they have actually looked at that before spitting out some numbers is difficult.
Of course there is just practical experimentation, someone might have hooked up some big Panaflows etc. to your board and if they havent fried the board in 6 weeks they probally wont. But in general I agree with you when talking big or high power fans, keep them off the motherboard. Also these days you want as much of the +12 sent to the board to be availble for the cpu.
Yep that controller would get them off the motherboard. Basically the controller plugs into the PS and the fans plug into the controller. You would loose rpm monitoring for fans connected up to it. Not a huge deal, make sure your bios options for shutdown if fans rpm falls below x. is turned off, if you have it. You can also do a work around and connect JUST the fans rpm sensor wire to the motherboard fan header pin (see your manual for the correct pin, or just look at the connectors, its usually the blue wire or the wire that is NOT red or NOT black) and still get rpm readings in the bios or in motherboard monitor but you end up with wires everywhere. As mentioned in earlier post I personally think rpm monitoring is a bit over the top and not needed but it is kinda cool and I understand people who like to keep tabs on it.
I agree completely, even if you do get a motherboard manuf to quote you the wattage/amperage specs on the motherboard fan connectors, my expericence is that some jug head looks up the current carring capacity of the header pins or the total power for all fan headers etc. The proper way is to look at the current carring capacity of the copper traces on the motherboard going to each header as that usually is where the current limitation would be. The width of the trace and the weight (thickness) of the copper used would determine the current capacity. Finding someone who will verify that they have actually looked at that before spitting out some numbers is difficult.
Of course there is just practical experimentation, someone might have hooked up some big Panaflows etc. to your board and if they havent fried the board in 6 weeks they probally wont. But in general I agree with you when talking big or high power fans, keep them off the motherboard. Also these days you want as much of the +12 sent to the board to be availble for the cpu.
Yep that controller would get them off the motherboard. Basically the controller plugs into the PS and the fans plug into the controller. You would loose rpm monitoring for fans connected up to it. Not a huge deal, make sure your bios options for shutdown if fans rpm falls below x. is turned off, if you have it. You can also do a work around and connect JUST the fans rpm sensor wire to the motherboard fan header pin (see your manual for the correct pin, or just look at the connectors, its usually the blue wire or the wire that is NOT red or NOT black) and still get rpm readings in the bios or in motherboard monitor but you end up with wires everywhere. As mentioned in earlier post I personally think rpm monitoring is a bit over the top and not needed but it is kinda cool and I understand people who like to keep tabs on it.
- Joined
- Apr 28, 2005
- Messages
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so would using a controller supply sufficient power for all the fans? and are there any other cooling solutions a noob like me should look into?wwparrish said:Yep that controller would get them off the motherboard. Basically the controller plugs into the PS and the fans plug into the controller. You would loose rpm monitoring for fans connected up to it. Not a huge deal, make sure your bios options for shutdown if fans rpm falls below x. is turned off, if you have it. You can also do a work around and connect JUST the fans rpm sensor wire to the motherboard fan header pin (see your manual for the correct pin, or just look at the connectors, its usually the blue wire or the wire that is NOT red or NOT black) and still get rpm readings in the bios or in motherboard monitor but you end up with wires everywhere. As mentioned in earlier post I personally think rpm monitoring is a bit over the top and not needed but it is kinda cool and I understand people who like to keep tabs on it.
hmm the controller pulls its power from the main computer power supply so you have to remember to include the fans in the calculations to determine what size power supply you install in the computer. Or just get a good 500+ watt power supply and figure you have enough power there for most normal things you would do. (Dual core cpu, Tec cooling device, etc. not included).
If I understand your question correctly, yes, with a decent power supply in the computer the fan controller you are looking at should handle 4 (or more if you chain them together) of any fan you would want in your case.
Just want to say, if you can handle the noise, just plugging them into the molex from the power supply is the easiset, cheapest solution. You can allways go back and get a fan controller later. as its all plug and go its costs nothing to try them wired directly to the power supply and if too loud then try a fan speed controller.
Also look at the Fan Mate 2, it would quiet down 2 loud fans and is a lot cheaper. Its not nearly as fancy wizz bang etc. but thats up to you and what you want.
If I understand your question correctly, yes, with a decent power supply in the computer the fan controller you are looking at should handle 4 (or more if you chain them together) of any fan you would want in your case.
Just want to say, if you can handle the noise, just plugging them into the molex from the power supply is the easiset, cheapest solution. You can allways go back and get a fan controller later. as its all plug and go its costs nothing to try them wired directly to the power supply and if too loud then try a fan speed controller.
Also look at the Fan Mate 2, it would quiet down 2 loud fans and is a lot cheaper. Its not nearly as fancy wizz bang etc. but thats up to you and what you want.