Installing Case Fans

[stevenafc]

Hello Everyone,

Heres my new system spec:

Motherboard
EVGA nForce 780i SLI nForce 780i (Socket 775) PCI-Express DDR2 Motherboard
Processor
Intel Core 2 Quad Pro Q6600 "Energy Efficient SLACR 95W Edition" 2.40GHz
Memory
Crucial Ballistix 2GB (2x1GB) DDR2 PC2-Corsair TwinX DDR2 XMS2 Dominator 1066MHz Dual Channel Kit (x2)
Cooler
Zalman CNPS9700-NT nVidia Tritium CPU Cooler
Case
CoolerMaster Stacker 832 - Black Trim (No PSU)
GFX Card
EVGA GeForce 8800 GT 512MB SSC GDDR3 HDTV/Dual DVI (PCI-Express)
Optical Drive
Pioneer DVR-212D 18x18 DVD±RW Serial ATA Dual Layer ReWriter
Network
Belkin F5D7001UK 125Mbps Wireless Desktop PCI Network Adapter
Power Supply
850W Coolermaster Real Power Pro RS-850
HDD
Western Digital Caviar SE16 500GB 5000AAKS SATA-II 16MB Cache

Although im not settled on the HDD. My question is, case fans, ive never ever had to put in additional case fans before, but my new case supports 9!

1) Where does the power come from to support 9 fans?
2) Whats the best way to wire it?
3) Fan controllers typically only control 4 fans, is there a way to control sets of fans?

What I would like to do is get something like the Zalman ZM-MFC2 fan controller:
Fan 1 - The 4 window fans,
Fan 2 - Roof/Floor
Fan 3 - Rear
Fan 4 - Front

Whats the easiest, and most importantly the cleaning way of doing this? Is there any decent articles on how to do this?

Thanks in advance

 

[goodie]

you could always use 4x low rpm fans for side panel & a fan controller for the others

 

[cnumartyr]

It's called a Soldering Iron.

Strip the wires and wire them together and run them off one header on a Rheobus. Each header is rated for 20W and will control the voltage for any fan connected. I use it for 3 of my case fans on a single header. (In theory you can use 5 0.3 Amp Fans per header, but I wouldn't use more than 4).

The power comes from the PSU.. in the case of the Rheobus a 12v Wire from the Universal Molex Connector.

I'm not a big fan of those 4 side fans. It causes turbulence... but if you REALLY want to do it... I'd suggest:

Front: Low RPM Yate Loon (Just HDD Cooling, they don't need much).
Roof

Side: 4 Medium Yate Loons (All Wired Together)

Top/Rear: 2 High Speed Yate Loons (All Wired Together)

Then control the CPU fan off a channel.

What you do:

Get a pin remover (ShopPTS.com) and pull the wires out of the fan connector. Get a seperate wire connector for the Yellow wire (sense) to plug it into the motherboard so you can get a reading. All fans should run +/- 10% of each other at X voltage.

Wire the power wires together and plug them into a header. Done and done.

You can get as snazzy with the wiring or as simple as you want.

 

[stevenafc]

Thanks alot for the replies. The side fans im also unsure about. I think what I may try and do is have intake fans on the front and bottom of the case with exhaust fans at the top, and back of the case.

Thanks for your time again

 

[monste4321]

you dont need to strip or solder anything, get fans with 3 pin connectors, or get 4 pin to 3 pin fans and then just get a 3pin extension wire that splits to 2 or more, ill give links to explain, very easy and no mess

http://www.sidewindercomputers.com/3pinconverter.html
splitter

http://www.sidewindercomputers.com/3to4pinpowad.html
adapter 3 to 4 pin if you cant find 3 pin fans you like

 

[cnumartyr]

you dont need to strip or solder anything, get fans with 3 pin connectors, or get 4 pin to 3 pin fans and then just get a 3pin extension wire that splits to 2 or more, ill give links to explain, very easy and no mess

http://www.sidewindercomputers.com/3pinconverter.html
splitter

http://www.sidewindercomputers.com/3to4pinpowad.html
adapter 3 to 4 pin if you cant find 3 pin fans you like

Good option.

Or just sleeve and solder so it looks good and ends up cleaner since everything is cut to length.

You have your way, I have mine.

 

[monste4321]

lol usually i would say your way is best, but for people who dont understand what your doing, my way is a little bit more user friendly

 

[cnumartyr]

lol usually i would say your way is best, but for people who dont understand what your doing, my way is a little bit more user friendly

Lol.. true I kinda forget about that part. Not everyone has access to that kind of stuff or the desire or knowledge to do it.

 

[monste4321]

so really i guess its for stevenafc to decide which way will work best for him, but both options would work

 

[Evilonigiri]

The side panel has the ability to hold 140mm fans. I suggest you get med speed Yatloon 140mm fans. They cost around $4 each.

 

[gimpy1]

One more tip...I have the same EVGA motherboard (which I am happy with) but the included Nvidia chipset fan is freakin' loud. Far louder than any of my 120mm case fans--even louder than my wife.

While you are doing all of this fan work, I would highly recommend spending the 4 dollars to get a replacement. A 60mm fan is the right size, and it can be zip-tied in place if you go around the cooling pipe. It will make for a much quieter system, plus give you better cooling to boot.


*EDIT*: I didn't mean to resurect this old thread. It was on the homepage's forums sidebar, and I didn't see the date.