Fan Controller Options

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

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DogFace
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Fan Controller Options

Post by DogFace » Fri Jun 29, 2007 8:57 am

I'm building a new system in an Antec Solo case (first time with this case), and I've been researching how to undervolt case fans, and I can't seem to make up my mind.

Option 1) wire up yourself of buy modified power cables to set the power to 5v (or 7v). I've seen some do-it-yourself instructions, and even a pre-built kit for $6.95 with a toggle switch you can mount to set 12v or 5v.
http://www.sidewindercomputers.com/sidrheoskit.html
http://www.sidewindercomputers.com/rheosformc.html

Fairly easy, but not as sexy as...

Option 2) Fan controller in 5.25" bay. I've read a lot of reviews (positive) about the Akasa Fan Control Pro. This controls 4 fans, LCD display, has temperature sensors, adjusts from 6v-12v, and I believe is a DC controller, and not a PWM. The LED light is supposed to not be too bright. I could not find the Akasa controller in the US, I believe that Sun Flower is a re-branded version of the same controller. Sells for $35.95, + <$5 shipping. http://www.sidewindercomputers.com/sufanmasf.html

I'm also considering the Sunbeam Rheobus, for $20. It allows for 0-12v adjustments. I have a toddler, who LOVES computers and has build 3 of them with me - and I don't he could resist playing with these knobs.

I'm going to be adjusting a 120mm rear fan, and 2 92mm front fans. I might also use a 92mm fan on a Thermalright HR-03 VGA heatsink.

Any suggestions? Should I just build/buy a cheap internal cable modifiers, set them to 5v, and be done with it?

bkh
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Post by bkh » Fri Jun 29, 2007 11:19 am

Another possibility is the Zalman FanMate 2. It's cheap, and hides inside your case: you dial in the exact speed you want, then leave it set there, safely hidden away from little child fingers.

DogFace
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Post by DogFace » Fri Jun 29, 2007 11:35 am

Do you know if the fanmate has PWM regulation. I haven't used them, but I thought I read that PWM regulation can cause "pulsing" sounds in your fans.

Das_Saunamies
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Post by Das_Saunamies » Fri Jun 29, 2007 1:21 pm

A panel with four knobs is definitely better than four individual knobs knocking around inside or outside your case. You also get the added bonus of a display for RPM and temperatures if you choose a good model. They're definitely affordable enough, and will make living with fan adjustments much easier.

If you want to go the way of the Zalman, consider their MFC2: http://www.zalman.co.kr/eng/product/vie ... 4&code=017 (3 analog, 1 PWM). Much more functional panel than Akasa's, and comes with more extra goodies for roughly the same price, at least over here. The Akasa is fine -- I have one and am satisfied -- but the Zalman looks like a winner. That control panel you linked to looks exactly like a Fan Control Pro, so it probably is a rebranded one. Word of warning though: my Fan Mate 2 drops my CPU fan's RPM to 1300 while the Akasa manages just 1600+, and that is the difference between quiet and silent.

If you household has a kid infestation, go T-Balancer. Plug in, set up, forget about it.

Also, I'm pretty sure the three pins mean it's not PWM.

spookmineer
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Post by spookmineer » Fri Jun 29, 2007 3:58 pm

Akasa and Super Flower versions are exactly the same, here a review of Tom's Hardware: Akasa fan controller and Super Flower fan controller:
With the exception of the writing on the faceplate, the Superflower Fan Master is identical to the Akasa Fan Controller.
I've had the Akasa for quite a while now, and it does its work very well.

Ofcourse the Zalman would do as good (I suppose) but I can't compare because I don't have one.

You are correct, no PWM, simple rheostat-like (potentio meter).
The light doesn't bother me at all, it's much less bright as compared to some other fan controllers (according to Tom's) but there's always a mod possible, switching off the light - it will be difficult to read the LCD display though.

I like the extra temperature monitoring function, and being able to adjust fan speeds with small increments. Just reach out and touch ;)

As for the toddler... the Akasa doesn't go below 6V which will enable almost all fans to start up correctly.

DogFace
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Post by DogFace » Tue Jul 03, 2007 7:23 am

I ended up purchasing the Sun Flower controller.

Next, I'll research exactly which fans to get (120mm rear and 92mm front), as well as possibly cutting out the grills.

Das_Saunamies
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Post by Das_Saunamies » Tue Jul 03, 2007 8:10 am

Nexus, Noctua, Noiseblocker, Scythe; these are your choices. I personally use and prefer Noiseblockers as they are silent and affordable. 20€ for a case fan is a bit rich for my blood. The extending honeycomb grills Antec has are perhaps the least restrictive, so cutting them out will only pay off in the ultimate system. Also, the rear grill is a pretty good ward against little fingers making their way into the spinning blades.

HueyCobra
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Post by HueyCobra » Tue Jul 03, 2007 1:28 pm

Das_Saunamies wrote:If you want to go the way of the Zalman, consider their MFC2: http://www.zalman.co.kr/eng/product/vie ... 4&code=017 (3 analog, 1 PWM).
Can anyone speak to the fan speed control range stated by Zalman:
Zalman wrote:Jog Wheel: Used for adjusting Fan RPM. RPM can be set from 1000 to 5940RPM in units of 60RPM.

Das_Saunamies
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Post by Das_Saunamies » Tue Jul 03, 2007 9:13 pm

The site contradicts itself in that statement. Earlier on it's "Fan RPM Control: 60~5940rpm". I'd pay more attention to the actual output voltage, which is stated as 4-11V.

I have no experience using the product, so that's all I can say at this point. Google chucks out this review: http://www.bcchardware.com/index.php?op ... mitstart=0 which doesn't really go into details, but does make the point. The adjustment by RPM doesn't really work, as the device isn't smart enough.

alluringreality
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Post by alluringreality » Wed Jul 04, 2007 4:29 pm

I don't see much point in adjusting intake fans (option 1 would work) considering how in my testing they seemed to be more prone to noise, but you might be able to use your motherboard headers and speedfan for a portion of the control.

Das_Saunamies
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Post by Das_Saunamies » Thu Jul 05, 2007 2:38 am

If the intake fan is a quiet 1000 RPM model then why not. I could leave mine on full blast and it would still be unintrusive, and one is definitely needed in a Sonata II. But if fans are going to get controlled, you might just as well provide the same controls and diagnostics for the whole lot. No need to skimp, most likely you'll never regret investing that extra tenner in a good panel. :P

HueyCobra
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Post by HueyCobra » Thu Jul 05, 2007 1:32 pm

Das_Saunamies wrote:The site contradicts itself in that statement. Earlier on it's "Fan RPM Control: 60~5940rpm". I'd pay more attention to the actual output voltage, which is stated as 4-11V.
That's probably a typo rather than a contradiction, but I agree with you about the output voltage. I asked about the fan speed control range because when I read the BCCHardware preview a couple of months ago, I was instantly suspicious about how the ZM-MFC2 could control fans by RPM - and dubious about the 1000 & 5940RPM range limits.

Having thought a bit more about it, I'm now more confident that the RPM read-out is arbitrary/spurious, and that the speed adjustment method is standard voltage control with no relation to (actual) RPM. However, my knowledge of fan control is about as solid as my D in Physics, so I was hoping (and still hope) one of the experts here would clear everything up :)
Das_Saunamies wrote:Google chucks out this review: http://www.bcchardware.com/index.php?op ... mitstart=0
It also appears at the top of the ZM-MFC2 product page ;)
Das_Saunamies wrote:The adjustment by RPM doesn't really work, as the device isn't smart enough.
If I understand correctly, the RPM signal is provided by the fan itself, by the third pin header(?) featured only on a small range of fans. If so, the ZM-MFC2 would not know the RPM of many fans, let alone be able to control them that way. To my thinking then, the ZM-MFC2's RPM read-out is an arbitrary (or even completely spurious) correlation of voltage against an RPM range.

Even if the ZM-MFC2 has an accurate, independent RPM monitoring method, an RPM control method doesn't seem logical or likely. Why go to the added complexity and cost when standard voltage control works perfectly well?

I can think of reasons why Zalman wanted to present fan control in terms of RPM, but I can't imagine that they actually achieved it. Hopefully someone here can confirm or disprove that :)

Das_Saunamies
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Post by Das_Saunamies » Thu Jul 05, 2007 2:03 pm

Even in that review it's stated that the RPM set and the RPM achieved do not match. Apparently they(Zalman) chose an average fan to get the voltage ranges from, and then tried to match the pre-made RPM settings in the controller to it.

The RPM displayed is indeed the tachometer reading from the fan itself, and isn't interactive with the controller, at least not judging by what I'm seeing in reviews(this is why I said the device wasn't smart enough, it is not in fact data-interactive in the least, only for the alarm functions). And to control an ordinary 3-pin or 2-pin fan you indeed do not need to have the RPM reading available to do so!

It's a marketing ploy to lure in hapless customers who get scared at the complexities of having to account for two factors(RPM and V) in an equasion instead of one. :D
A display that showed voltage and RPMs, and allowed the tweaking of the former while showing the latter would be the ultimate luxury. But voltage monitoring adds to the complexities, and thus to the price, and may remain an unnecessary feature for many.

gmat
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Post by gmat » Sun Jul 08, 2007 6:33 pm

That's too bad they didnt choose to show & adjust the voltage (and just display the rpm). Again a major shortcoming for one of these products...

Das_Saunamies
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Post by Das_Saunamies » Mon Jul 09, 2007 2:38 am

Yeah. All the controllers follow pretty much the same standard principles of showing RPM and tweaking a knob blind, probably out of financial necessity. Some luxury models with voltage monitoring would be appreciated, even if they came at a price... but they would probably fail as profitable products.

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Post by DogFace » Tue Jul 10, 2007 12:15 pm

Could anyone clarify this before I pull the trigger?

I'd like to clarify if the Superflower Fan Master will integrate correctly with the GlobalWin 120mm fan CS1202512L http://www.svc.com/1202512l.html. The fan is listed as: This fan comes with a 3 pin connector and is RPM sensing.

If the fan only has a 3 pin connector, will I be able to control the fan and avoid any PVM noise, or should I get a 120mm fan that has a 4 pin power and a 3 pin MB connector?

BTW, I'm impressed with the build quality of the Superflower controller. The instructions are minimal - especially for a newb like me.

Das_Saunamies
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Post by Das_Saunamies » Tue Jul 10, 2007 4:51 pm

It's nice for its price, but nothing special quality-wise. The Jr. model has awful, brittle plastic, and the knobs on my Pro stick. :P

Anyway, it'll work great with any and all 3-pin fans. If you peer at the back panel you will find it only features 3-pin connectors. PWM fans would essentially go to waste, and this way no worries about any PWM squealing!

Traditional, wood-stove panels like this only use basic voltage regulation, simple as that. There's an adjustable resistor that will drop the voltage in the power feed, the fan will slow down and that's it. Simple, reliable, can't go wrong. You'd only need two leads in fact, power and ground, to make it work. The third RPM-sensing lead is there for user comfort. 8)

So go ahead already!

dhanson865
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Post by dhanson865 » Tue Jul 10, 2007 4:53 pm

Das_Saunamies wrote:Nexus, Noctua, Noiseblocker, Scythe; these are your choices. I personally use and prefer Noiseblockers as they are silent and affordable. 20€ for a case fan is a bit rich for my blood. The extending honeycomb grills Antec has are perhaps the least restrictive, so cutting them out will only pay off in the ultimate system. Also, the rear grill is a pretty good ward against little fingers making their way into the spinning blades.
The original poster is in the US, you left out Yate Loon which over here can be had for less than half the cost of a Nexus and is my eyes a better value because of that.

For US buyers I might suggest jab-tech. I bought a few scythe and yate loon fans to go in a solo not too long ago...

Das_Saunamies
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Post by Das_Saunamies » Tue Jul 10, 2007 4:58 pm

Oh yeah, I always forget to mention the Loonies. And of course the NCB fans are now in and so on... time to update my list, thanks for the notice.

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Post by hybrid2d4x4 » Tue Sep 04, 2007 10:13 am

Das_Saunamies wrote: re: Zalman MFC2 fan controller

I have no experience using the product, so that's all I can say at this point. Google chucks out this review: http://www.bcchardware.com/index.php?op ... mitstart=0 which doesn't really go into details, but does make the point. The adjustment by RPM doesn't really work, as the device isn't smart enough.
I've googled that controller and read about 7 different reviews- there were 2 that claimed that the rpm sensing function does not actually work according to the rpm signal cable (but as you said, they did not go into any detail as to how they arrived at that conclusion), but instead uses the operating RPM range as it was a % of the power it outputs, where you get the minimum 4v when you set the fan to 60rpm, and the maximum 12V when you set it to 5940rpm, and the values in between are spread out over the range in between the said extremes. There were 2 or 3 reviews that said that it worked according to the rpm reading, but they were quick to point out the obvious shortcoming of using lower speed fans (ie: a 1200rpm fan will never exceed its max rpm no matter what fan setting you set it to, so only a small range of the rpm setting spectrum on the controller will ever be used in most cases). The remaining reviews said nothing about how it actually functions and just focused on the aesthetics, functions, etc.

By far the most useful review that i found is linked below. They actually tested the monitoring and controlling capabilities of this controller in great detail with full method transparency. If you are going to read just one review on this controller, I strongly recommend this one:

http://www.pcper.com/article.php?aid=43 ... pert&pid=5

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Post by cpemma » Wed Sep 05, 2007 2:26 pm

spookmineer wrote:Akasa and Super Flower versions are exactly the same...You are correct, no PWM, simple rheostat-like (potentiometer).
When a controller with no heatsinking on the transistors is claiming 17W per channel, I smell PWM control. And in this case, not the new 4-pin fan high-frequency PWM control, but the old-fashioned style with the risk of noise.

A linear controller for anything over a couple of watts of fan per channel needs heatsinks like this Sunbeam. :wink:

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