Question about case fans - better to plug directly to PSU or to mobo or does not matter?

[anonymouschris]

My motherboard supports up to 5 fans. Is it okay if I plug all my case fans to my motherboard? or should i plug them directly to the PSU? or does it not really matter?

 

[mechBgon]

What board is this, just curious? If it has five fan headers, the manufacturer probably built it to handle the load, but I would still stop at about 2 watts per header maximum. None of these 8W+ "Smart" Fan II's or anything

 

[Motero]

Some of the new boards can tell you if the fan is spinning and/or how fast...So the board can probably handle a normal case fan.

 

[anonymouschris]

its an abit it7max 2. i'm planning to put 4 80mm NMB case fans and 1 heatsink fan.

 

[corkyg]

My first choice for 3-wire fans is the mobo simply so that they can be monitored. Fans connected to the P/S are outside of the monitor system Most case fans fit that category. I have 5 of the. Of those, two are connected to the mobo and three to the P/S via Molex connectors.

 

[oldfart]

I like to connect them to the mobo so I can use Speedfan to vary the speed based on temp.

 

[Davegod]

i really wouldnt plug in any screamers or tornado's, theyll use too much power. a couple of medium rpm fans no problem. you can plug a 3wire fan into the psu - take the sensor wire out and just connect that to the mobo (easier if you have a spare/cannablised 3pin plug). wont be able to use speed fan or whatever to slow the rpm though.

 

[mechBgon]

If it's those quiet-running low-RPM NMBs, you could even double them up because they draw only... *looks at label on NMB* ... 0.06 amps per fan, which is 0.72 watt per fan. On the other hand, you may not get any RPM readings from these fans, if that matters at all to you. I like them for case ventilation on free-breathing cases, though... glad ThisIsMatt turned me onto them

 

[thraxes]

Tough choice... I like the monitor function of the mobo but running them off the PSU gives me the chance to build a nice fan control panel for my 5,25" bay