How do I control fan speeds on my new build?

warm pancake

Reputable
Dec 29, 2014
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Here she is, the case comes tomorrow and I commence building! Only thing left to figure out is fan speeds. I've read a lot about air pressure and all that, but I'm not even sure my mobo would let me do that. Can you guys tell me what I need? I'm going to have 5 case fans in total, this list doesn't include an AF-15 I'm adding on. I'm putting an IPPC 2000 Noctua fan on the U14S. That means 6 fans. Can my mobo even support that many, or do I need some sort of fan hub? I want to keep dust OUT of the my case.

PCPartPicker part list /
Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel - Core i5-8600K 3.6GHz 6-Core Processor ($256.89 @ Amazon)
CPU Cooler: Noctua - NH-U14S 55.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($63.69 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: ASRock - Z370 Killer SLI/ac ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($141.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: Corsair - Vengeance LPX 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-3000 Memory ($204.99 @ Best Buy)
Storage: Samsung - 850 EVO-Series 500GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($139.99 @ B&H)
Storage: Seagate - FireCuda 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Hybrid Internal Hard Drive ($99.89 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: Asus - GeForce GTX 1080 Ti 11GB STRIX GAMING Video Card ($1099.89 @ OutletPC)
Case: Phanteks - Enthoo Pro M Acrylic ATX Mid Tower Case
Power Supply: EVGA - SuperNOVA G2 750W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($129.99 @ ModMyMods)
Case Fan: Noctua - NF-A14 PWM 82.5 CFM 140mm Fan ($21.31 @ Newegg)
Case Fan: Noctua - NF-A14 PWM 82.5 CFM 140mm Fan ($21.31 @ Newegg)
Case Fan: Noctua - NF-A14 PWM 82.5 CFM 140mm Fan ($21.31 @ Newegg)
Case Fan: Noctua - NF-A14 PWM 82.5 CFM 140mm Fan ($21.31 @ Newegg)
Monitor: Dell - S2417DG 23.8" 2560x1440 165Hz Monitor ($399.89 @ OutletPC)
Total: $2622.44
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2018-01-22 19:53 EST-0500
 
Solution
From ASRock:

- 1 x CPU Fan Connector (4-pin)**
- 2 x Chassis Fan Connectors (4-pin) (Smart Fan Speed Control)
- 1 x Chassis Optional/Water Pump Fan Connector (4-pin)***

**The CPU Fan Connector supports the CPU fan of maximum 1A (12W) fan power.

***The Chassis Optional/Water Pump Fan supports the water cooler fan of maximum 1.5A (18W) fan power.

Just use the Water Pump fan header and use a Y-Splitter to connect 2 identical fans. Or just get a fan hub.

The way you can controll the fans is several in fact. But the easy way for you is to use the program what comes with the motherboard called A-Tuning
From ASRock:

- 1 x CPU Fan Connector (4-pin)**
- 2 x Chassis Fan Connectors (4-pin) (Smart Fan Speed Control)
- 1 x Chassis Optional/Water Pump Fan Connector (4-pin)***

**The CPU Fan Connector supports the CPU fan of maximum 1A (12W) fan power.

***The Chassis Optional/Water Pump Fan supports the water cooler fan of maximum 1.5A (18W) fan power.

Just use the Water Pump fan header and use a Y-Splitter to connect 2 identical fans. Or just get a fan hub.

The way you can controll the fans is several in fact. But the easy way for you is to use the program what comes with the motherboard called A-Tuning
 
Solution

warm pancake

Reputable
Dec 29, 2014
73
0
4,630


Correct me if I'm wrong, but my motherboard only supports three case fans not inlcuding the CPU cooler? Yikes. That won't do. I want 5 case fans. Can you help me pick a fan hub? At least with basic controls for low/medium/high speed?

If I get a fan hub, do I plug everything into that? Or can I plug some into the mobo, and the ones that don't fit into the hub?
 

Paperdoc

Polypheme
Ambassador
I can suggest three options, all of which will do what you want.

1. Buy a 4-pin fan HUB like this

https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16882422018&cm_re=coboc_fan_splitter-_-82-422-018-_-Product

It looks like a circuit board with 8 output ports, but its labels suggest it should be used with up to 5 fans - fills your needs - although I suspect you could use all eight. Other Hubs may look like just wire arms (below) or like a box with ports. The key factor for a 4-pin HUB is that all power for the fans is taken from a 4-pin Molex power output connector from your PSU; this avoids overloading the mobo fan header. The PWM control signal for all the fans (they all share the SAME signal) is taken from one mobo fan header that is using PWM Mode. As with ALL Hubs and Splitters, the speed of only ONE of the fans will be sent to the mobo port for display - the header can only deal with one speed signal - and speed of others will be ignored. With this device, all five of your case fans can be controlled identically from ONE mobo CHA_FAN header.

2. Less expensive, buy this type of HUB

https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16812423166&cm_re=coboc_fan_splitter-_-12-423-166-_-Product

It looks like just a group of wire arms, but it works exactly as the circuit board type does. This one has 5 output arms.

3. Buy two SPLITTERS like this

https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16812423162&cm_re=coboc_fan_splitter-_-12-423-162-_-Product

This is a different device. It does NOT get any power from the PSU. All fan power is drawn from the mobo header is plugs into. But each such header can supply up to 1.0 A total, and your fans draw at max 0.13 A, so having three of them per header is no trouble. Cost is comparable to option 2. The only advantage of doing this is that you can group your fans onto smaller groups - 2 or 3 per header - so you can "see" the speed of more of the fans (one per header) and MAYBE customize the control details of each group IF you want to. Using two of these Splitters, you could group two fans each on the CHA_FAN 1 and 2 headers, and plug the last fan into the CHA_FAN3 / PUMP header. OR, you could skip that last header and plug three fans onto one of the other headers.

Whichever you choose, configure the fan headers you use in BIOS Setup this way. See your manual, pp. 83-84.
(a) Set the "CPU Fan 1 Setting" to "Standard" or something similar that will use the automatic control system to adjust fan speed according to a temperature sensor built into the CPU chip itself. For now, I do not advise setting up a custom control curve until you know more about that and decide you need something special.
(b) For EACH CHA_FAN header you are using, set it to "Standard" also. Set its Temperature Source to use the sensor on the motherboard, not the one inside the CPU chip. IF you are using the CHA_FAN3 / PUMP header, set it operate in fan mode, not pump mode. Ensure it is set to PWM Mode, not DC Mode. And again, set it to use the motherboard temperature sensor.

When you have made all your changes in BIOS Setup, remember to use the F10 key (or click on the Exit icon at upper right) to get to the Exit menu, then SAVE and EXIT to save all your new settings.

Whichever route you choose, this will put all of your fans (CPU and case vent) under automatic control. This means that, based on actual measured temperatures (inside the CPU chip for the CPU cooler, and on the mobo for the case fans), the mobo will constantly adjust the speed of each fan group according to cooling needs as workload changes.
 
warm pancake
That is why you always read up on what you are buying :)

But there is no reason for me to answer a question that Paperdoc has answered :)

I will say tho that I have no experience with the fan hub he posted so dunno about the quality but I dont think he would post something that would break in 1 week :)