Is it impossible to slow the CPU fan on my computer?

[bovinda]

My CPU fan never slows, though both its website and the manual on my mobo's website say it should. Here are the parts:

Zerotherm BTF90 CPU fan
Foxconn P35A mobo
Intel E2180 CPU

The BIOS shows it constantly running at around ~2500 RPM, and I don't think the BIOS settings are affecting it, as far as I can tell.

Any suggestions? Do the BIOS settings changes only take effect if you restart the computer? I can't figure out the settings anyway, and the manual isn't that useful in that it only says what the options are, and not really what they mean.

Any help is greatly, greatly appreciated!

Probably better of in cases & cooling,
General Hardware Moderator -- MarcVenice

 

[MarcVenice]

Do you have speedstep and eist enabled ? How did you plug in the fan ? Did you plug it into the right header on the mobo ?

 

[Zepper]

Since fan controlling is a function of mobos, then the mobo section would be more appropriate. As mark wrote, the CPU fan has to be connected to the specifically marked CPU fan header on the mobo and the mobo's control function has to be enabled. Since I have no idea what particular setting to look for in the Foxconn's BIOS setup, perhaps mark is correct. Check the FAQ for your mobo on the Foxconn web site and/or the forums if they have one for their mobos.

.bh.

 

[manimal]

enable the correct pin count in the hardware monitor and set the threshold you want the fan to speed up at.

 

[meatguy2006]

I used to have a BTF 90. Mine also ran on high all of the time. It was very annoying. It also tarnished in the first month, and turned out to be a loud piece of junk that didn't cool very well. I recommend you get a Zalman b/c they come with a fan controller and are quieter.

 

[DerwenArtos12]

make sure that your motherboard supports non-pwm or voltage regulation fan control as the fan on the BTF-90's fan is a voltage regulated motor and not a pulse width modulation motor.

 

[Binky]

Are you using the "Fox One" utility detailed on pages 48-59 of the manual you linked?

I also see the "Hardware health configure" shown on page 42 of the manual.

Try something like this for bios settings for HTPC use (quiet>cool):

Auto Fan by RPM
Temp 1 limit of high 60
Temp 1 limit of sec 50
Temp 1 limit of sec 45
Temp 1 limit of sec 40
Fan 1 highest 70
Fan 1 second 60
Fan 1 third 50
Fan 1 30

The first four numbers above are temp triggers. The last four are percentages for the fan. Many fans get much louder above 80% or so, and 30% is usually around the low limit for various fans.

The 4 pin fan MUST be connected to the 4 pin connecter labled "CPU." Don't assume that it's ok if it successfully plugged in - those plugs are designed to also plug into a 3 pin connector. If you plug it into a 3 pin header, it will always run at max speed.

I must be really bored to have looked all of this up....

 

[RallyMaster]

Uh...get a passive sink?