Using 3pin Y adaptors to connect fans to motherboard?

NotoriousWES

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Jun 8, 2005
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I am thinking about using SpeedFan to monitor temps and control the fans in my case. However I have 4 case fans and only 2 open 3pin fan headers on my mobo. Would it be safe to use 3pin Y splitters to connect my 4 fans to the 2 headers? I don't want to damage my motherboard in doing so.

Otherwise I might settle on this:
http://www.xoxide.com/vl-system-zephyrus.html

However the zephyrus has gotten mixed reviews. So i think i would rather tried the speedfan option first = much cheaper.
 

JBDan

Platinum Member
Dec 7, 2004
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To answer your ques, on your mobo, with your psu, I dont know. I have NO problems with my A8V board and a 425W pcpc psu and 4 fans (3 120mm's and NV5 fan) connected to headers w/ Y splitter on the mobo. Maybe someone else in here with some more "voltage" knowledge can better answer you. Speed fan rocks IMO and has been extremely stable for me.
 

NotoriousWES

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Jun 8, 2005
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Thanks for the reply. I don't see why it wouldn't... otherwise why make Y splitters in the first place if they will just wreck your stuff.

But yes, if anyone with some electrical knowledge could confirm this it would be appreciated... (Tries to remember back to physics in high school...).
 

JBDan

Platinum Member
Dec 7, 2004
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hmmm..I took biology...wished I had taken physics though lol....Come on mobo gurus out there! Anyone??
 

JEDIYoda

Lifer
Jul 13, 2005
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The only problem with using Y pin connectors on your mobo headers is that sometimes the mobo will NOT allow the fans to draw enough power to run 2 fans off a Y connector!!
 

charlietee

Golden Member
Jul 27, 2001
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I personally would not use any of the motherboard fan connectors expcept for the northbrige and cpu fans.

Even then if the cpu fan is a big high, rpm fan that draws a bunch of amps I use a adapter that allows me to connect the rpm sensor to the motherboard and power the fan from a molex connector.



 

Pabster

Lifer
Apr 15, 2001
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I always power the fans from a Molex. Never trust the 3-pin for juice. For RPM monitoring, fine.
 

charlietee

Golden Member
Jul 27, 2001
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I totally agree with Pabster...Using your motherboard fan headers to power your case fans is a receipt for disaster.

Do yourself a favor and please take our advice...Nothing like having a cooked motherboard...NOT !!!!!
 

NotoriousWES

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Jun 8, 2005
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Thanks guys, I never realy thought of that. So if I would use the Y splitters to just connect the RPM wire to the board I would be ok then?
 

Operandi

Diamond Member
Oct 9, 1999
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Originally posted by: charlietee
I totally agree with Pabster...Using your motherboard fan headers to power your case fans is a receipt for disaster.

Do yourself a favor and please take our advice...Nothing like having a cooked motherboard...NOT !!!!!

I use the MB fan headers for every system I build, it's hardly a receipt for disaster. They are all dynamically controlled based on system temps just like the OP wants to do. As long as you don't use high powered fans which are pointless for case cooling anyway your fine, this includes the use of Y splitters.
 

JBDan

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Dec 7, 2004
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ORIGINALLY POSTED BY CHARLITEE
I totally agree with Pabster...Using your motherboard fan headers to power your case fans is a receipt for disaster.

Do yourself a favor and please take our advice...Nothing like having a cooked motherboard...NOT !!!!!
END QUOTE

This statement confuses me....disaster? Have you run into this? I have never (knock on wood) had any problemo's with mobo headers powering my fans and using SF to control them. Always has worked for me (and other members here) and Y splitters are made just for this purpose. G-Luck Wes whatever you go with. ;)
 

Navid

Diamond Member
Jul 26, 2004
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Originally posted by: NotoriousWES
So if I would use the Y splitters to just connect the RPM wire to the board I would be ok then?

No, you should not do that!
The third wire is for a signal to go from the fan to the motherboard to report the RPM. If you use a Y connector, you will be shorting the RPM signal of two fans! That is not good for the fans. It may also produce a voltage that reports an incorrect RPM. You should connect only one of the fan RPM wires to the motherboard.

No matter how many fans you have, the motherboard determines how many RPM feedback signals it can accept.
 

Navid

Diamond Member
Jul 26, 2004
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Originally posted by: JBDan
ORIGINALLY POSTED BY CHARLITEE
I totally agree with Pabster...Using your motherboard fan headers to power your case fans is a receipt for disaster.

Do yourself a favor and please take our advice...Nothing like having a cooked motherboard...NOT !!!!!
END QUOTE

This statement confuses me....disaster? Have you run into this? I have never (knock on wood) had any problemo's with mobo headers powering my fans and using SF to control them. Always has worked for me (and other members here) and Y splitters are made just for this purpose. G-Luck Wes whatever you go with. ;)

You are right that Y splitters are made for this. But, that does not mean that it is safe no matter what! I have no experience with any problems with this. It has to do with how much current the motherboard can deliver on one header (and the tracks on the motherboard printed circuit board leading to it). Your motherboard may be able to handle 10Amps! I don't know. It is your responsibility to make sure that it can handle what you load it with.

But, don't say that there is definitely no problem with it! Someone else may have a motherboard that can only handle one fan! What then if they hook up 2 to it? The tracks on the board can burn!
 

NotoriousWES

Member
Jun 8, 2005
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Ok then, this info has been more than enough to convince me that it is not worth trying. I am already working on upgrading my pc, and if I would wreck my mobo I might as well start over.

Do you think that Zephyrus System controler would be a good option then?
http://www.xoxide.com/vl-system-zephyrus.html

It looks pretty much like speed fan, however it runs off its own dedicated "PCI card" (actually connected using usb). Reviews report a few issues with it, but nothing I wouldn't be able to live with. Maybe someone knows of something like this that would be a better solution.

I guess, my problem is that I cannot find a decent drive bay fan controller to my liking. It would have to be digital, because I would be afraid that the nobs from an analog one would interfere with my case door. I have looked very closely at the Thermaltake Hardcano 13 and the Aerocool Gatewatch, but I have seen mixed reviews of each and are unsure if they are worth it.
 

Navid

Diamond Member
Jul 26, 2004
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If you have to have a control system, I have no suggestions.
The cooling system is not a complicated one. You can easily control it to your liking (cooling performance and noise) by an open-loop system like this.
http://www.svc.com/ald-v01-u1-19.html
Or you can complicate it as much as you want!

I have the controller on the link and I have a Super LanBoy case, which has a door. I was able to install this a little bit inside so that the door closes with no interference.
But, you have to make sure that it will fit in your case.
I just adjust the RPMs with this controller to the minimum noise and my system is cool enough. I don't need SpeedFan to control my fans!
 

NotoriousWES

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Jun 8, 2005
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All I really want it to quiet the fans down... temp monitoring would be nice, but not needed. I was just going to replace all the fans (since they seem to put out about 30db), but I have been hard pressed to find a good Red LED fan that has a good cfm/db ratio.
 

Navid

Diamond Member
Jul 26, 2004
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Originally posted by: NotoriousWES
All I really want it to quiet the fans down... temp monitoring would be nice, but not needed. I was just going to replace all the fans (since they seem to put out about 30db), but I have been hard pressed to find a good Red LED fan that has a good cfm/db ratio.

This is a different topic, but is related and you brought it up!
I see references made to "cfm/dBa ratio" all the time even on reputable web sites like Silent PC Review.

CFM/dBa is a meaningless ratio!
CFM is a unit measured on a linear scale (double the CFM to double the amount of air moved).
dBa is a unit measured on a logarithmic scale (add 6dB to double the amplitude of noise or add 3dB to double the power of noise).

The ratio is meaningless. If you have a fan with a 30CFM and a 30dBa noise level and you have another fan with a 60CFM and 60dBa noise level, they both have a 1/1 CFM/dBa ratio. The second fan moves twice the air compared to the first. But, it is much much louder than just twice the first!
 

NotoriousWES

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Jun 8, 2005
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Thanks for the info! I guess right now I just have to decide what is the best route to take: replace the fans with quieter ones or quiet the ones I already have with a controller.

If only I could find some decently quiet red led fans to use. I was going to get some Thermaltake thunderblades, but I read a topic in here saying how thermaltake reports the db ratings lower than they really are.
 

Operandi

Diamond Member
Oct 9, 1999
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Originally posted by: Navid
Originally posted by: JBDan
ORIGINALLY POSTED BY CHARLITEE
I totally agree with Pabster...Using your motherboard fan headers to power your case fans is a receipt for disaster.

Do yourself a favor and please take our advice...Nothing like having a cooked motherboard...NOT !!!!!
END QUOTE

This statement confuses me....disaster? Have you run into this? I have never (knock on wood) had any problemo's with mobo headers powering my fans and using SF to control them. Always has worked for me (and other members here) and Y splitters are made just for this purpose. G-Luck Wes whatever you go with. ;)

You are right that Y splitters are made for this. But, that does not mean that it is safe no matter what! I have no experience with any problems with this. It has to do with how much current the motherboard can deliver on one header (and the tracks on the motherboard printed circuit board leading to it). Your motherboard may be able to handle 10Amps! I don't know. It is your responsibility to make sure that it can handle what you load it with.

But, don't say that there is definitely no problem with it! Someone else may have a motherboard that can only handle one fan! What then if they hook up 2 to it? The tracks on the board can burn!

If you have any common sense at all it is safe. Just don't try to use high powered fans and it's fine, most of which have 4 pin connectors anyway. I've built many machines this way (too many to keep track of), there are fan headers there for a reason after all.
 

Navid

Diamond Member
Jul 26, 2004
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Originally posted by: Operandi
If you have any common sense at all it is safe. Just don't try to use high powered fans and it's fine, most of which have 4 pin connectors anyway. I've built many machines this way (too many to keep track of), there are fan headers there for a reason after all.

Which fan RPM is reported then if both fans provide an RPM signal and they are not identical fans? The splitter shorts the two fan RPM signals together, doesn't it?
 

Operandi

Diamond Member
Oct 9, 1999
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Originally posted by: Navid
Originally posted by: Operandi
If you have any common sense at all it is safe. Just don't try to use high powered fans and it's fine, most of which have 4 pin connectors anyway. I've built many machines this way (too many to keep track of), there are fan headers there for a reason after all.

Which fan RPM is reported then if both fans provide an RPM signal and they are not identical fans? The splitter will short the two fan RPM signals together, doesn't it?

Yeah the two signals will be combined and you'll get some weird meaningless reading. If both fans use have RPM outs you'll just have to remove one of the wires on the Y splitter, no big deal.
 

JBDan

Platinum Member
Dec 7, 2004
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Originally posted by: Navid
Originally posted by: JBDan
ORIGINALLY POSTED BY CHARLITEE
I totally agree with Pabster...Using your motherboard fan headers to power your case fans is a receipt for disaster.

Do yourself a favor and please take our advice...Nothing like having a cooked motherboard...NOT !!!!!
END QUOTE

This statement confuses me....disaster? Have you run into this? I have never (knock on wood) had any problemo's with mobo headers powering my fans and using SF to control them. Always has worked for me (and other members here) and Y splitters are made just for this purpose. G-Luck Wes whatever you go with. ;)

You are right that Y splitters are made for this. But, that does not mean that it is safe no matter what! I have no experience with any problems with this. It has to do with how much current the motherboard can deliver on one header (and the tracks on the motherboard printed circuit board leading to it). Your motherboard may be able to handle 10Amps! I don't know. It is your responsibility to make sure that it can handle what you load it with.

But, don't say that there is definitely no problem with it! Someone else may have a motherboard that can only handle one fan! What then if they hook up 2 to it? The tracks on the board can burn!

1st off I never said it was "safe no matter what." Maybe if you read this whole post you would see this....maybe not lol. 2nd, I didn't say that "there is definitely no problem with it!" I stated that "I" have had no problems hooking my fans to my mobo hdrs w/ Y's. OP that controller looks pretty sweet. Have you looked at the Nexus or Vantec's? They get good comments from what I have seen here on Anand.
 

JBDan

Platinum Member
Dec 7, 2004
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Originally posted by: NotoriousWES
Thanks for the info! I guess right now I just have to decide what is the best route to take: replace the fans with quieter ones or quiet the ones I already have with a controller.

If only I could find some decently quiet red led fans to use. I was going to get some Thermaltake thunderblades, but I read a topic in here saying how thermaltake reports the db ratings lower than they really are.

I use this>>http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16811999061 atop my xp120. Not red though :(. Maybe they have one in red check their site. They are cheap & very quiet IMO, although you may opt for more cfm's.
 

CrimsonCutie

Senior member
Jul 8, 2005
244
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Originally posted by: charlietee
I personally would not use any of the motherboard fan connectors expcept for the northbrige and cpu fans.

Even then if the cpu fan is a big high, rpm fan that draws a bunch of amps I use a adapter that allows me to connect the rpm sensor to the motherboard and power the fan from a molex connector.

The only thing your mobo should power is the northbridge... and maybe cpu fan. You are putting un-needed strain on the board makeing it pull case fans.