4 case fans, but only 2 "SYSFAN" power slots on MB

xboxist

Diamond Member
Jun 25, 2002
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I threw together a new rig last night and two of my case fans are going unused at the moment.

I assume I need some sort of cable connector that allows me to plug 2 fans into it so that they only use one power slot on the MB, but for some reason I'm struggling to find exactly what I need. Does this exist, and would someone kindly link me to one? Most appreciated.
 

xboxist

Diamond Member
Jun 25, 2002
3,017
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Thank you for the links, man.

I have a question though. The power connectors coming from my case fans are all female, and the item in your first link looks like it is also a female connector. Wouldn't I need a molex-to-3 pin male? Or am I misunderstanding the concept?

EDIT: the mb fan header splitter in the 2nd link looks like it will work just fine so I think I'll just go with a pair of those. Thanks much!
 
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jchu14

Senior member
Jul 5, 2001
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Careful when you connect multiple case fans to one mb header. If you're connecting fans that draw a lot of power, it might exceed the maxmium current draw of the header.
 

xboxist

Diamond Member
Jun 25, 2002
3,017
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Good to know, thanks. Makes sense. On that note, I think I'll definitely go with the PSU passthrough adapter.
 

aigomorla

CPU, Cases&Cooling Mod PC Gaming Mod Elite Member
Super Moderator
Sep 28, 2005
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do not split the motherboard header into 2 fans.

You double the amperage draw on a header which isnt meant to pull that much amperage.

Its a good way to kill your board in the future.

Get a fan controller.

But i always tell people not to push more then .25-.3amps max on a mobo header, which is the standard amp draw off a single 120x25mm fan.
 
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JulesMaximus

No Lifer
Jul 3, 2003
74,544
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Why all the fans? Including your video card, cpu, and psu you have at least 7 fans running all the time.

I just bought a Lian Li case and it comes with 2 case fans, a 120mm exhaust fan (1500rpms) and a 140mm intake fan (1000rpms). My PSU has a big 120mm fan as does my cpu cooler. Including the video card I have 5 fans in my system and 4 of them are 120mm or larger, spinning at low rpms.

Big + slow = quiet.