Any good temp monitor/fan controller?

Control: management of fans, temp/rpm monitoring via soft/hardware

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halfpower
Posts: 219
Joined: Tue Dec 14, 2004 5:57 am

Any good temp monitor/fan controller?

Post by halfpower » Thu Mar 17, 2005 3:58 pm

Do you know of any temperature monitors with or without fan control and monitoring? Specifically, a controller/monitors that will read RPMs from low speed fans? Is there already a list somewhere that I should look at?

Tibors
Patron of SPCR
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Location: Houten, The Netherlands, Europe

Post by Tibors » Thu Mar 17, 2005 4:37 pm

Are you looking for a software or a hardware solution?

With software solutions, your mobo is what "decides" if low speed fans can be read, not the software itself.

For the most versatile hardware solution you can search the forums for "Tbalancer".

halfpower
Posts: 219
Joined: Tue Dec 14, 2004 5:57 am

Post by halfpower » Fri Mar 18, 2005 5:14 am

I like the hardware solutions. Though it might just be the newbie in me speaking

RonG
Posts: 34
Joined: Sun Feb 27, 2005 9:05 pm
Location: Winnipeg, Canada

Post by RonG » Sat Mar 19, 2005 12:56 am

I've been looking for the same thing. So far I've found these:



Thermaltake Hardcano 12
- 4 fan controllers
- 4 temperature monitors, alarms - trip points every ten degrees
- 4 temp sensors
- displays temp, rpm
- fans controlled in auto or manual mode - switched capacitor PWM
- fans CANNOT be set to less than 50% speed maximum speed (6 to 12 volt range)
- Celsius of Fahrenheit
- thermal tape included
- takes up whole bay
- settings lost when rebooted
- http://www.tweaktown.com/ureview.php?urDocId=606
- http://www.extensiontech.net/reviews/ad ... ardcano12/
- http://www.techniz.co.uk/modules.php?na ... =79&page=1
- http://www.overclockercafe.com/Reviews/ ... rdcano_12/

Thermaltake Hardcano 13
- 4 fan controllers
- 4 temperature monitors, alarms - only 4 temp trip points
- speed of fan varies with temp
- 4 temp sensors
- displays temp, rpm
- fans controlled in auto or manual mode
- fans CANNOT be set to less than 50% speed maximum speed (6 to 12 volt range)
- Celsius of Fahrenheit
- thermal tape included
- 6-in-1 card reader
- takes up whole bay
- two four pin molex to 3 pin adapters
- settings saved - battery
http://www.fastlanehw.com/reviews.php?i=148
http://www.overclockercafe.com/Reviews/ ... rdcano_13/
http://www.phoronix.com/scan.php?page=a ... =124&num=1
http://www.xtremecomputing.co.uk/review.php?id=97
http://www.hardwaremods.com/reviews/fan ... ano13.html

Macpower DigitalDoc5
- voltage displays, alarms (.25 v increments)
- no manual control for fan rpm, no incremental power-up - if temp is hit, fan is turned on.
- two flat thermal probes, two not flat
- displays temp, rpm
- USB, Firewire ports
- fan speed alarm
- 12 W per channel
- only uses front half of bay
http://www.dansdata.com/digitaldoc5.htm
http://www.extremeoverclocking.com/revi ... oc5_1.html
http://www.overclockersclub.com/reviews/digitaldoc5.php

Coolermaster Aerogate 2
- 4 fan controllers (but one fan is laready in the unit)(up to 18 watts/channel))
- can't turn off fans
( I tried this one, and there seemed to be no way to turn down some fans. My 120mm vga fan WOULD NOT run at less than 2000rpm, evne though the temperature was only about 34 Celsius degrees. I ended up returning this one.)
- 4 temperature sensors (flat),monitors, alarms
- displays temp, rpm
http://www.overclockersclub.com/reviews ... gate_2.php
http://www.elitebastards.com/page.php?p ... comments=1
http://www.sysopt.com/reviews/Aerogate2 ... ontroller/


Coolermaster Aerogate 3
- 4 fan controllers
- can turn off fans
- 4 temperature sensors (flat),monitors, alarms
- displays temp, rpm
- only uses front half of bay
http://www.datafuse.net/aerogate3.php
http://www.liquidluxx.de/cms/artikel.ph ... =4&seite=1
http://www.auspcworld.com/articles.php? ... &pagenum=1
http://www.extrememhz.com/aerogate3-p1.shtml


Mcubed T-Balancer
- needs Windows XP, software drivers - that's all I needed to know to reject it.


Aerocool Coolpanel
- 8-in-1 card reader, USB, Firewire,SATA, video, audio
- 2 temperature monitors
- 2 fan controllers
- displays temp, rpm
http://www.cluboverclocker.com/reviews/ ... CoolPanel/

Aerocool Gatewatch
- 2 x 5.25 inch bay (I cna't use it)
- 4 temperature monitors
- 4 fan controllers(up to 1.7 amps/channel)
- can't turn fans off
- system volume monitor,indicator
- battery to save settings
http://www.amdreview.com/reviews.php?rev=gatewatch
http://www.skynet-online.de/artikel/art ... d=82&page=

Matrix Orbital MX412/MX411/MX212/MX211
- displays EVERYTHING: weather,hard drive stats, computer stats, stock market, etc.(more than I wanted)
- software drivers needed, Windows based ( there are Linux programs 'out there')
http://www.cluboverclocker.com/reviews/ ... rs/Matrix/
http://www.pc-arena.net/article.asp?ArticleID=72&Page=1
http://www.tldp.org/linuxfocus/English/ ... e165.shtml
http://www.hexus.co.uk/content/reviews/ ... 9JRD01MDQ=


Xoxide 3.5" Digital Fan Controller
- 3 flat thermal sensors
- displays 3 fan speeds
- alarm warning for over heat and fan failure
- battery(for clock)
- thermal tape
- fan stop alarm
- no manual control
http://www.xoxide.com/digital-fan-controller.html
http://www.hardwaremods.com/reviews/fan ... oller.html


Vantec Nexus NXP101
- USB, Firewire
- 3 temp sensors
- 1 fan controller
- at start-up starts all fans at full speed , then brings them down
- can't turn fan off
http://www.overclockers.com/articles642/
http://www.hexus.co.uk/content/reviews/ ... 9JRD01MDI=
http://www.pcextreme.net/nexus.php

Silverstone Eudemon Fan Controller
- 3 temp sensors, alarms
- clock
- HDD and system power display
- 3 fan controllers, 6 different fan levels depending on temp
- NO manual control
- fan rpms NOT shown
- battery to store settings
http://www.short-media.com/review.php?r=243

Case Master Ultracool II Digital
- Automatically controls the speed of 3 fans (8-12v)
- no manual control
- RPM monitoring of 3 fans
- Detects 3 heating points accurately
- Whole Aluminium chassis and bracket.
- Time and HDD and power indicator icons
http://www.madshrimps.be/?action=getarticle&articID=141


Enermax UC-A5FATR2 Fan Controller
- six fan channels
- 2 temperature probes
- temp, rpm display
- low rpm alarm
- option to mount 2 80mm fans with unit to cool bays above and/or below
http://www.overclockercafe.com/Reviews/ ... ontroller/
http://www.pcabusers.com/reviews/crazyp ... r2/p1.html

Enermax UC-A8FATR4 Fan Controller
- 4 fan controls(1000 - 9000 rpm)
- 10 watts/channel
- 4 temp probes
- low rpm alarm
- temp,rpm display
- no manual control?
http://www.atruereview.com/enermax/index.php
http://www.extremeoverclocking.com/revi ... ler_1.html
http://www.fastlanehw.com/reviews.php?i=99


Lian PC-TR3A
http://www.performance-pcs.com/catalog/ ... bd112c1622

CaseArts 3.5" Bay Fan Controller
(looks like this one:http://www.logisyscomputer.com/viewsku. ... K&DID=Main)
# 3 thermal sensors monitor CPU, HDD, SYS temperature.
# 3 programmable temperature sensor.
# 3 fan speed (RPM) and function display.
# Time, Power and HDD display.
# The temperature display (Celsius or Fahrenheit).
# The temperature setting is memorize automatically.
# 2 buttons for simple setup.
# Audio alarm warning for over heat and fan failure.
http://shop.store.yahoo.com/directron/cafp35bk.html



Here are some instructions on how to build a digital temperature/fan-control
- OS independent, automatic
- no manual control
http://www.pcreview.co.uk/forums/thread-13039.php
http://www.keiang.de/modules.php?name=PCcool_en

joshd2012
Posts: 92
Joined: Thu Feb 24, 2005 1:24 pm
Location: USA

Post by joshd2012 » Sat Mar 19, 2005 7:39 am

http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDe ... 001&depa=0

Non PWM and runs from 5v-12v. It has gotten pretty good reviews.

halfpower
Posts: 219
Joined: Tue Dec 14, 2004 5:57 am

Post by halfpower » Sat Mar 19, 2005 7:42 am

RonG wrote:I've been looking for the same thing. So far I've found these...
Thanks. That's a nice list. Are all the controllers capable of monitoring fan RPMs under 1000 if not stated otherwise?

RonG
Posts: 34
Joined: Sun Feb 27, 2005 9:05 pm
Location: Winnipeg, Canada

Post by RonG » Sat Mar 19, 2005 11:40 am

halfpower:

I don't know, but I imagine that they would; after all they would still be getting a signal if the fan was turning.


Just in case you might want to know, I've decided to try the Aerogate 3 ( even with my dislike of the previous version ). It permits manual control, turning off of fans ( at least according to what I've read.)

frankgehry
Posts: 1424
Joined: Sun Dec 12, 2004 5:00 am
Location: New York, NY

t-balancer

Post by frankgehry » Sat Mar 19, 2005 3:55 pm

For those that have Windows XP and don't mind installing a driver, the t-balancer can read fan speeds below 1000 rpm, turn fans off and on, either manually or automatically, and allows full manual control. - FG

Would a fan controller with less functionality be satisfactory for most people? Definitely maybe.

nathan_Chan168
Posts: 25
Joined: Fri Mar 04, 2005 7:42 pm

Post by nathan_Chan168 » Thu Mar 24, 2005 10:18 pm

are these fan controllers reliable?

I read a review i searched up on google on the Vantech Nexus 201
The Nexus NXP-201 failed about 3 months after operation. For a while only one potentiometer failed. After that I had to turn the fourth potentiometer to operated the first fan. A few days later the whole device just failed, cutting power to all my fans. While the idea of the Nexus is a good one, I have read many complaints about their high failure rate. I would not recommend buying one do to this
and how do i tell if a fan controller is PMW or not?

thanks
-nathan

edit: i changed PWM to PMW.. typo

frankgehry
Posts: 1424
Joined: Sun Dec 12, 2004 5:00 am
Location: New York, NY

mostly dissapointing

Post by frankgehry » Thu Mar 24, 2005 11:58 pm

N,

My first one, the Hardcano 13, works fine but when I bought it I didn't realize it needed a battery to keep settings in memory. Of course the battery will eventually fail, so I would never run the cpu fan off of it. Most fan controllers are pretty cheap so what can you expect. The only one I would use for the cpu fan is the t-balancer which connects to a usb port. It has a software based interface, that could be better, but it doesn't have any cheap mechanical parts to wear out and it supplies 15w to each channel. I suppose it won't be long before bios based fan controls like silentek and qfan are more sophisticated, but for now the t-balancer is the most trustworthy product and less like an add on box of resistors. - FG

aowen512
Posts: 104
Joined: Mon Jun 20, 2005 6:34 pm

Post by aowen512 » Sun Jun 26, 2005 10:12 pm

RonG :

i was wondering if you had got that aerogate 3 in and if you liked it

im leaning towards getting that so it would be great if you could leave your impression of it



joshd2012 :

the aspire fan master you linked to... isnt that just the superflower fan master rebranded? and if so where did you find that it goes down to 5v? i found in a review it only gets down to the 6v range and i couldnt find anywhere else where it speaks of the voltage


thx!!

vahagn
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Location: Melbourne, Australia
Contact:

Post by vahagn » Sun Jun 26, 2005 11:45 pm

Just wanted to add that i have a LianLi TR-3 3.5" lcd thermometer & fan controller ... Problem is that it's an "auto" fan controller, which the reviews i read before getting it neglected to mention, grr. Anyway this thing isn't that great, it did make the 92mm evercool aluminium fan(s) i was using quieter, and would speed them up/down when temperatures changed (which isn't so good because you notice it more than a constant hum). I have also found that it's temp readings aren't the same as the mobo readings, being about 10° out isn't acceptable in my opinion...

It fits into my shuttle really nice, tells me approx. how fast the 2 fans i have connected to it are going and illuminates the cdtray (when it pops out) in sweet blue light which is like yay, that's so cool looking. But for it's intended purpose this thing doesn't cut it at all.

Redo
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Location: Chicago

Post by Redo » Mon Jun 27, 2005 8:44 am

I have an Enermax UC-A8FATR4 Fan Controller, but I don't use it anymore. The fan readings and temp readings were very reliable, and all fans run fully manual. You can basically crank the fans all the way down to no voltage if you desire. However, the alarm always goes off below 1000rpm, and it gets quite annoying. The only solution is to mod the unit to disconnect the mini speaker, which I never got around to. I just use the Zalman multi controller now, which stops around 5volts.

BrianE
Posts: 667
Joined: Tue Mar 29, 2005 7:39 pm
Location: Vancouver, BC, Canada

Post by BrianE » Mon Jun 27, 2005 9:14 am

aowen512 wrote: the aspire fan master you linked to... isnt that just the superflower fan master rebranded? and if so where did you find that it goes down to 5v? i found in a review it only gets down to the 6v range and i couldnt find anywhere else where it speaks of the voltage
Hi, I'm not Josh, but I recently read a really good mini-review by a user over at the Anandtech forums, and I believe that is where 5V is mentioned. Do a search for "superflower" in the Cases and Cooling forum and you should find it. If not I can supply a link later in the day. There is a lot of great info in that review, including some stuff that all the other reviews don't mention, like how the alarms really function.

I am looking at the Fan Master or the Enermax A07FATR2 mainly because I was looking for the 4 temp monitors more than multiple fan control, really. One thing I like about the Enermax over the Super Flower is that it has USB, IEEE, and audio ports on the front panel, but I imagine it probably costs more...

Alarms seem to be a big deal. Some controllers like the CM Aerogate series sound like they don't let you adjust the alarm settings. I'll have to look more carefully into that Enermax one too.

aowen512
Posts: 104
Joined: Mon Jun 20, 2005 6:34 pm

Post by aowen512 » Mon Jun 27, 2005 8:38 pm

thx briane

i was wondering if you could still post the link, i went there and read up quiet a bit about different fan controllers but i want to be sure i read the one you were speaking of

popupsquad
Posts: 20
Joined: Thu Jun 16, 2005 3:06 pm

Post by popupsquad » Mon Jun 27, 2005 9:38 pm

Redo wrote:I have an Enermax UC-A8FATR4 Fan Controller, but I don't use it anymore. The fan readings and temp readings were very reliable, and all fans run fully manual. You can basically crank the fans all the way down to no voltage if you desire. However, the alarm always goes off below 1000rpm, and it gets quite annoying. The only solution is to mod the unit to disconnect the mini speaker, which I never got around to. I just use the Zalman multi controller now, which stops around 5volts.
Is it actually possible to disconnect the speaker on the UC-A8FATR4? And if so, will it display sub-1000 rpm speeds?

I'm having a hell of a time finding a fan controller that suits my needs. I want exactly four things:

1. 3 or more knobs going from 5V or less to 12V
2. 3 or more temperature sensors
3. Temperature and RPM display in an LCD
4. Works correctly with low RPM 120mm fans

The closest I've found are:

1. Enermax UC-A8FATR4 - has the stupid low rpm alarm

2. Aspire/Super Flower Fan Master - claims 5V-12V, but every review says 7V-12V


So if the UC-A8FATR4 could be modded to eliminate the stupid alarm and it will show correct RPMs below 1000, it'd be perfect. Otherwise I'm going to have to go for the Fan Master and live with 7V, unless there's another option I don't know about.

Redo
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Joined: Sun Jun 26, 2005 5:40 am
Location: Chicago

Post by Redo » Tue Jun 28, 2005 8:38 am

Unfortunatly, I can't take the UC-A8FATR4 out again (It's in a box, waiting for the move). I've only 'heard' you can disconnect the speaker. When I looked to do it, it didn't look like an easy task at all. I'm completely sure it is possible, but I wasn't up for the task for it when I looked at it.

If I remember correctly, it does display very low RPM's correctly. My old Thermaltake UFO fan would be very touchy to voltage reductions, and slowly increase or decrease RPM's. I remember constantly getting the fan around 1000rpm, and within a few minutes it would drop to 800rpm with the fan alarm going off. It never did this with any other fans, only with my Thermaltake fan (go figure, ty for another good product TT)

Besides the alarm problem, my other other beef was it only displaying the first two numbers of the RPM. For example, 1650rpm would just be 1600, 1225rpm would just be 1200, or 775 rpm would just be 700. Not a big problem, because you are using analog controls to reduce the voltage.

It does get those voltages nice and low!!! All my case fans would never start if I turned the knobs more then half way down. I could basically shut off any fan with that controller.

In the end, it was the alarm and the lack of need for temp readings that helped me make my decision for my Zalman controller panel. If you can find a way to mod out the speaker, the Enermax would be a great panel.

BrianE
Posts: 667
Joined: Tue Mar 29, 2005 7:39 pm
Location: Vancouver, BC, Canada

Post by BrianE » Tue Jun 28, 2005 9:15 am

aowen512 wrote:thx briane

i was wondering if you could still post the link, i went there and read up quiet a bit about different fan controllers but i want to be sure i read the one you were speaking of
Hi, sorry I was busy last night.

It's the one titled "mini review...." by naruto (?) http://forums.anandtech.com/messageview ... y&arctab=y


One bummer for me: While the Enermax website makes it sound like the A07FATR2 has four temp sensors, it really only seems to have TWO. :( I guess there's no such thing as a perfect controller after all... I doubt I'll be able to find a panel that has four sensors AND USB/IEEE/audio ports like that - at least not in this price range.

aowen512
Posts: 104
Joined: Mon Jun 20, 2005 6:34 pm

Post by aowen512 » Tue Jun 28, 2005 9:22 am

ok i just read that review where it says it goes down to 5v

i dont have the link at the moment, ill post when i find it again, but someone did a review and took a multimeter to the connections and came out with 11.78 ~ 6.58 or something like that as being max ~ min output voltage of each of the controllers

my question would be.... if this is the case could you wire in some inline resistors and lower the voltage on a couple of the lines so that you would have voltage from say 10-5 ?? if so how hard would that be?

popupsquad
Posts: 20
Joined: Thu Jun 16, 2005 3:06 pm

Post by popupsquad » Tue Jun 28, 2005 5:24 pm

Redo wrote:Unfortunatly, I can't take the UC-A8FATR4 out again (It's in a box, waiting for the move). I've only 'heard' you can disconnect the speaker. When I looked to do it, it didn't look like an easy task at all. I'm completely sure it is possible, but I wasn't up for the task for it when I looked at it.

If I remember correctly, it does display very low RPM's correctly. My old Thermaltake UFO fan would be very touchy to voltage reductions, and slowly increase or decrease RPM's. I remember constantly getting the fan around 1000rpm, and within a few minutes it would drop to 800rpm with the fan alarm going off. It never did this with any other fans, only with my Thermaltake fan (go figure, ty for another good product TT)

Besides the alarm problem, my other other beef was it only displaying the first two numbers of the RPM. For example, 1650rpm would just be 1600, 1225rpm would just be 1200, or 775 rpm would just be 700. Not a big problem, because you are using analog controls to reduce the voltage.
Thanks for the info. That RPM thing sounds a little annoying and kind of silly. I wonder why they did that.

I spent about half an hour trying to google for someone mentioning that they'd been able to disable the speaker on it, but couldn't find anything at all :( If I knew that at least one person had been successful I'd be more confident, but I don't want to attempt it and end up breaking it because it can't be done.

So I think I'm going to just go with the Fan Master. If the 7V( or 6.58V as the post below says ) isn't enough, I can just return it. If I make modifications to the UC-A8FATR4 and either fail to disable the speaker or break the unit, I won't be able to do that.

aowen512
Posts: 104
Joined: Mon Jun 20, 2005 6:34 pm

Post by aowen512 » Tue Jun 28, 2005 6:54 pm

ok i found the review that states the outputs of the fan master controller

here is the review

http://www.fanbus.com/reviews/fanmaster ... _Cliff.htm



and here is where it states the voltage outputs

http://www.fanbus.com/reviews/fanmaster ... output.JPG


this review was done by the creator of www.fanbus.com so i think its pretty well done/trusted

aowen512
Posts: 104
Joined: Mon Jun 20, 2005 6:34 pm

Post by aowen512 » Wed Jun 29, 2005 11:57 am

im wondering why you are not considering the aerogate 3

:arrow: 1. 3 or more knobs going from 5V or less to 12V (has 4)
:arrow: 2. 3 or more temperature sensors (has 4)
:arrow: 3. Temperature and RPM display in an LCD
not sure 4. Works correctly with low RPM 120mm fans

popupsquad
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Joined: Thu Jun 16, 2005 3:06 pm

Post by popupsquad » Wed Jun 29, 2005 6:26 pm

aowen512 wrote:im wondering why you are not considering the aerogate 3

:arrow: 1. 3 or more knobs going from 5V or less to 12V (has 4)
:arrow: 2. 3 or more temperature sensors (has 4)
:arrow: 3. Temperature and RPM display in an LCD
not sure 4. Works correctly with low RPM 120mm fans
I did read some reviews about it. The thing I didn't like about it was that it can only show one piece of information at a time, RPM or temperature. I should've been more clear about #3, but I want to be able to see both RPM and temperature at the same time.

Also, when you haven't pushed the buttons recently it will begin scrolling. It may be possible to disable that, I'm not sure. But if not, I would find that annoying. I stopped looking into it due to the LCD issue before finding whether it would work well with low RPM 120mm fans, so that's still up in the air.

Thanks for mentioning it though, because there's a very real chance that there's a unit out there that fits the requirements that I haven't seen before.

BTW, your sig doesn't mention it but is this the fan controller you use? If so, how does what I said above stack up against reality? One of the side effects of relying on reviews is sometimes being completely wrong about things.

L3thal
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Location: Ohio,USA

Post by L3thal » Wed Jun 29, 2005 7:31 pm

I think this is one of the better looking ones. They also have a cheaper LCD one that looks almost as good. It has automatic and manual controls and works with MBM.

aowen512
Posts: 104
Joined: Mon Jun 20, 2005 6:34 pm

Post by aowen512 » Wed Jun 29, 2005 9:31 pm

yes while that lis2 indicator may be alot better, i just purchased the aerogate shipped for 19.04. on that review it says retails around 98. for 80 bucks more its awesome, but the reason i get amd over intel is bang for buck and aerogate smokes that lis 2 for me... but thats just me

its up to you though

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