PCIe fan controller?

[GreatEmerald]

Is such a thing like a PCI Express fan controller produced anywhere? I have searched around a bit, but I can't find anything like this. And yet it would be extremely useful to a lot of people, I suppose. Essentially have a Super I/O chip (or a few) on a card that connects to the motherboard via PCIe (1x would be enough, I assume) and that has several (8 or so) 3-pin or 4-pin fan headers. Maybe a temperature sensor on it as well. That way you could connect all the case fans you would ever need to it, and still retain the ability to monitor and control all of them, individually and dynamically via software (SpeedFan/lm_sensors). It could also provide some additional temperature measurements at the card, reflecting the air inside the case better.

After all, a lot of motherboards come with very few fan headers, and even then only a subset of the provided fan headers have the ability to control fans to begin with. And nowadays, especially since the PCI interface is starting to be phased out, motherboards usually supply a lot more PCIe slots than are normally utilised. Other fan control methods are often far inferior - either you have to change fan speeds manually (which is extremely suboptimal compared to automatic software-based control), or utilise an existing controlled fan header (which makes all fans run at the same relative speed, or half of it if using a simple Y-splitter). So I don't see how there would be no interest in a solution like that.

I don't suppose such a thing already exists, but it doesn't hurt to ask. Maybe there are similar solutions?

 

[DiaSin]

I dont think it exists, but there are plent of fan controllers out there that fit in a 5.25" bay on the front of the case, with a molex connector for power and multiple fan headers, some have temperature gauges you can place in your case wherever you want. I was looking at this one awhile back before I decided to go with a case that uses less fans.. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811992005 and if you really wanted to go all out there are ones like this: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811999198

Edit: There are a couple of mini-controllers that fit in the expansion slots on a case, but they dont plug into any software and they only control 1-2 fans.

 

[GreatEmerald]

Yea, I have seen those. But they are not software-controlled, so they can't make use of the internal CPU readings, which are the most important. Plus, those are for full height 5.25" bays that are also being phased out, now that ODDs are getting less and less useful, there are half-height alternatives, and since there is normally for no need of more than 1 external 5.25" bay to begin with.