Case fans always running 100% ?

[RageValley]

I just got a new HTPC case that came with 3 120mm fans... i've hooked them up to my motherboard and noticed it was quite loud.. I downloaded the MSI CommandCenter for my motherboard and recorded the 3 fans running just below 1200rpm... I've tried to modify this via the app and also by speedfan but it doesn't seem to be making any difference.

Even at the default settings it looks like anything below 40c should be running them at 50%, this would be around 600rpm.

My stock Haswell cooler is also running over 1000rpm mark when idle.

The system seems really cool, i dont have stats with me at the minute but was something like 4 cores combined made up about 27c when idle, this seemed to be recorded as the SYSTEM temperature... speed fan recorded the CPU temperature as 128c and it had a little flame icon next to it... could this be the cause?

The CommandCenter app and BIOS isn't showing anything abnormal with temperatures.

 

[dma0991]

Fans running near 1kRPM shouldn't be that noisy. Assuming that the case fans you've got are ones that goes beyond 2kRPM maximum, 1.2kRPM should be the minimum that it can do. Lower the input voltage and it won't start.

Temperature monitoring applications may not be accurate if it isn't updated with information of the latest CPUs in the market. Try different temperature monitoring applications like Real Temp, Open Hardware Monitor or HWMonitor. If it truly reads 128C, the CPU would've been automatically thermally throttled or immediate shutdown.

If its too noisy for you and the temps are acceptable to you, reduce the number of case fans to one or two.

 

[RageValley]

Three silent 120mm fans included
Right: 2 x 120mm intake fans, 1200rpm, 20dBA
Left: 1 x 120mm intake fan, 1200rpm, 20dBA

That is the spec from case manufacturer website so they are running just below their maximum speed at all times... it's not a bad sound (much better than my previous case), but it's really loud, sounds like wind blowing through a tunnel when it's in my TV unit.

I didn't want to disable the fans just yet as i haven't tested it under load it's a small case with quite a big GPU stuffed in there.

My partner who never picks up on this sort of thing commented that it sounded like it was going to take off, and it wasn't even doing anything.

 

[dma0991]

What GPU do you have there? Blower style GPUs heatsinks tend to be quite noisy compared to 3rd party OEM heatsinks(MSI Twin Frozr II, etc).

 

[RageValley]

VTX3D HD 7950 V3 Boost X-Edition, the cooler is quiet by all accounts but i'll see how it is without the case fans connected.

 

[lehtv]

120mm@1200 rpm would definitely sound noisy to me. I would recommend buying voltage adapter cables or a fan controller

 

[RageValley]

I've been reading about voltage control and it refers to fans with 4 pins, where as the fans in my case only take 3 of the pins... is this the cause of them running full speed?

If thats the case i take it i need new fans? what would be a good replacement thats capable of being silent in operation and can change speed according to system temperature?

Or would fan controller be the better way to go? i noticed most of them have knobs to control, i'd want to avoid this i want something that is automatically adjusted i dont want to be manually controlling fans every day.

 

[jaedaliu]

windows may not be letting speedfan control the fans. It's possible that you need to go to your bios and adjust your fan speed/temperature profile.

Or, for more control in SpeedFan, follow MrK6's directions below.

 

[MrK6]

I recommend giving SpeedFan a go and seeing what it can do with your MB, as you'll have better control and it's free. Setting is up isn't exactly intuitive, here's a post I made about it earlier:
http://forums.anandtech.com/showpost.php?p=33064850&postcount=6

 

[RageValley]

I recommend giving SpeedFan a go and seeing what it can do with your MB, as you'll have better control and it's free. Setting is up isn't exactly intuitive, here's a post I made about it earlier:
http://forums.anandtech.com/showpost.php?p=33064850&postcount=6

Thanks, there is no software controlled option on mine so i went into the BIOS and tried to do it from there... i can alter the CPU fan speed no problem, but moving the sliders has no effect on my 3 case fans... they are constantly running just below 1200rpm no matter what i change the setting to.

I've noticed my cpu takes up 4 of the pins in the mobo where as the the case fans only take up 3.. so i guess its new fans. any suggestions on something reasonably priced and quiet(silent)?

 

[dma0991]

I've noticed my cpu takes up 4 of the pins in the mobo where as the the case fans only take up 3.. so i guess its new fans. any suggestions on something reasonably priced and quiet(silent)?

There's no correlation between the number of pins to how fast its spinning. 3 pin or 4 pin PWM, they both do the same thing with PWM being marketed as a better alternative.

You should get some voltage adapters instead of new fans. It would reduce the fan speed and keep it at a constant low speed <1kRPM. Some fans sold by Noctua and Aerocool come with a voltage adapter included.

 

[MrK6]

Thanks, there is no software controlled option on mine so i went into the BIOS and tried to do it from there... i can alter the CPU fan speed no problem, but moving the sliders has no effect on my 3 case fans... they are constantly running just below 1200rpm no matter what i change the setting to.

I've noticed my cpu takes up 4 of the pins in the mobo where as the the case fans only take up 3.. so i guess its new fans. any suggestions on something reasonably priced and quiet(silent)?

See if any other headers on your motherboard have 4-pins and hook your case fans into that. Many motherboards I've worked on only attach control chips to PWM (4-pin) headers, while 3-pins are simply powered and Speed Fan cannot do much with that. For example, my motherboard has 4-pins for the CPU and System_1, but System_2 is only 3-pin and SpeedFan can't do jack with it. You can also check the amperage on your fans and hook all 4 into the CPU header and control them from there. Generally you want to keep maximum current draw <1A, but check your mobo manual to be sure.

 

[RageValley]

See if any other headers on your motherboard have 4-pins and hook your case fans into that. Many motherboards I've worked on only attach control chips to PWM (4-pin) headers, while 3-pins are simply powered and Speed Fan cannot do much with that. For example, my motherboard has 4-pins for the CPU and System_1, but System_2 is only 3-pin and SpeedFan can't do jack with it. You can also check the amperage on your fans and hook all 4 into the CPU header and control them from there. Generally you want to keep maximum current draw <1A, but check your mobo manual to be sure.

Yes i think this is my issue.. my motherboard has 3 headers (1 CPU and 2 SYS) .. all 3 of the headers have 4 pins, yet the fans only have 3... i guess the 4th pin needs to be in use for speedfan to be able to alter the speed? therefore i do need new fans that utilize the 4th pin and therefore being able to alter the fans.

I come to this conclusion because the CPU fan has 4 pins and i can control this as normal.

The fans are disconnected for now because it was just too damn loud.

So i need a good fan for pulling in air and a good exhaust both vertical. 120mm x 120mm x 25mm

 

[monkeydelmagico]

I picked up a couple GELID Solutions FN-SX12-10 recently. They spin at 1000rpm. Compared to the Cooler Master fans my case came with that spin at 1200rpm there is a noticable difference. If your case fans spin at even higher RPM then I think you would be happy with something that spins slower.

FWIW, under load your GPU is probably going to be the loudest thing in the box.

 

[RageValley]

I'm happy with noise under load.. i'd only expect this to happen when gaming as i don't use it for anything else but media server stuff... my last build was only loud when gaming but was still quieter than my fat xbox.

I could probably replace my stock cooler so that it has a 120mm fan to make it even quieter.

 

[MrK6]

Yes i think this is my issue.. my motherboard has 3 headers (1 CPU and 2 SYS) .. all 3 of the headers have 4 pins, yet the fans only have 3... i guess the 4th pin needs to be in use for speedfan to be able to alter the speed? therefore i do need new fans that utilize the 4th pin and therefore being able to alter the fans.

I come to this conclusion because the CPU fan has 4 pins and i can control this as normal.

The fans are disconnected for now because it was just too damn loud.

So i need a good fan for pulling in air and a good exhaust both vertical. 120mm x 120mm x 25mm

See if your motherboard has a "legacy" option to use voltage control instead of PWM. Generally SpeedFan will use voltage to control non-PWM fans on PWM headers (providing they're connected properly). Check all of your settings and see if you're controlling the right speeds/channels. If not, it might just be an odd one out.

 

[Alan G]

If you have a spare PCI slot, you can install a fan controller like THIS one. This will allow you to dial back the fan speed.

 

[monkeydelmagico]

I'm happy with noise under load.. i'd only expect this to happen when gaming as i don't use it for anything else but media server stuff... my last build was only loud when gaming but was still quieter than my fat xbox.

I could probably replace my stock cooler so that it has a 120mm fan to make it even quieter.

Yes, stock cooler is also going to be a bit louder than an aftermarket unit

 

[RageValley]

I'm leaning towards the Noctua NF-S12A PWM, though they are quite expensive, I don't mind paying it just want to double check it's a good deal? Silence is most important at the minute, I don't need faster as they'll mainly be running low anyway.

For CPU the Noctua NH-L9i seems to have best acoustics while offering improved performance over the stock cooler.

 

[monkeydelmagico]

hard to go wrong with noctura gear. Pretty much the best in the business when it comes to fans.

 

[RageValley]

I've updated the firmware and the fans are still full speed, the system is cool without them running so if some control is available, they shouldn't be running at full speed.. i tried manually altering from the BIOS and got no change in speed in either direction. I once again tried to alter the CPU fan which was altered as expected so i dont think there is an over all issue with the motherboard.

I'm going to test gaming without the fans but with no internal airflow i think things are going to get nasty.

If people are adamant that 3 pin fans can be controlled i'm a little worried about spending nearly £50 on those 3 noctua's if i may get the same results.

Is it possible that the fans dont support it? I read a review of the case and it says:

The fans are fairly smooth sounding and efficient, though at this price-point, we were expecting some kind of fan control option. Still, given the ubiquity of motherboard-embedded fan control systems these days, this is not much of a minus.

..although, i'm not sure if this is simply referring to an integrated fan controller.

 

[Teizo]

Noctua and other high quality fans usually come with a low speed adapter or will run just fine with one. Fractal Design's Silent R2 series are great for 3 pin, and come with a low speed adapter. But, as others have said...Noctua is really the best, although Corsair's SP Quiet Editions are nice as well. All models I mentioned come with low speed adapters.

If you have plenty of fans and good air flow in your case, you won't need to run them on high. You can also get 3 pin fan splitters to connect two fans to one low speed adapter connected to the motherboard.

So, with two 3 pin MB connectors, you can run four fans. That is all you will need.

 

[Carson Dyle]

A 4-pin fan is a PWM (pulse-width modulation) controlled fan. CPU fans are usually PWM and the CPU fan headers on motherboards are most often 4-pin.

A 3-pin fan's speed can _only_ be controlled by altering the voltage to the fan. If you have 3-pin headers on your motherboard, then the motherboard would have to support voltage control of that fan header to be able to speed control a 3-pin fan. Voltage control of fan headers through the motherboard is much less common and something to check in your motherboard documentation. It's not a matter of capabilities of the fan. If you supply it with less that the usual 12V, it will run slower. Period. If your motherboard does not support voltage control of the fan header, then your only option is to use a fan controller or some other means of altering the voltage between the header and the fan.

If you have 4-pin case fan headers on the motherboard, then most likely the motherboard supports PWM control of the fan speed on those headers. But you would need 4-pin PWM fans to do it.

A given 4-pin fan header may also support both PWM and voltage control, in which case you can attach a 3-pin fan and control it through the motherboard. Again, consult the motherboard manufacturer.

My guess is that you have 4-pin headers on your motherboard (what's the model number?) and that they only support PWM control, in which case to take advantage of any speed control software or BIOS settings, you would need 4-pin PWM case fans. Or, if you want to keep the existing 3-pin fans, you would need a fan controller to be able to adjust the voltage.

 

[RageValley]

Thanks for the explanation, i haven't looked in the manual but i can't see anything re: voltage controls for fan headers but all of them are 4 pins so i can safely assume it doesn't support voltage control, i'm running a MSI H87M-G43.

I'm going to go ahead and order 3 x Noctua NF-S12A PWM today.. i done a bit of gaming last night and the GPU was screaming like a bitch with the case fans disconnected.

 

[Carson Dyle]

This is from the manual, p. 1-23:

These connectors support Smart Fan Control with liner mode. The Command Center utility can be installed to automatically control the fan speeds according to the CPU&#8217;s and system&#8217;s temperature.

So it looks like if you use PWM fans that you'll be able to configure them using that utility and then have automatic speed control according to the system temps.