I need help with fans from AeroCool Trinity Mini-G-BK-V3

Pawulon404 · April 1, 2021

Hi, I bought these cases https://aerocool.io/product/trinity-mini/
V3 version with three argb fans. It's cheap so fans are loud and I can't connect them to my motherboard, I have a msi b550m bazooka. I can only connect more fans through a 4pin connector.
I wish they would run quieter. Can I buy an external speed controller or hub for them?
Thank you

Temporal · August 15, 2021

Those 4 Pin connectors are proprietary.

They are in other Aerocool cases with RGB fans too, where you don't get an extra controller that connects to the motherboard.

I have a strong suspicion that this connector is a DC fan header (3 Pin) fused with an ARGB header (3 Pin VDG), but without tachometric signal.

My reasoning is simple. The LEDs on the fans are adressable like those on ARGB fans, which means that there must be a digital signal. Also, they have a fixed speed, and there is no need for a tachometric signal since they don't connect to the motherboard anyway.

That leaves 12V, 5V, Digital, and Ground. Notice how the SATA connector (which powers the entire thing) has 3 wires going to the open fan header and from there to the rest of the construct? I am willing to bet that these are 12V, 5V and Ground.

Now if that's the case, all there is to do is to take a Molex to SATA adapter and rewire the 12V line from the Molex to a standard fan header, and then control the speed through voltage, or in other words DC mode.

I am actually going to get a Trinity Mini v3 myself, and when I do I will get to the bottom of this. Will report back.

Temporal · August 19, 2021

Disclaimer: I assume no liability of any kind for any damages to any person(s), devices, or other property by following, or otherwise using any information contained in this post, be it inaccurate information or otherwise.

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Update:

So I got my Trinity Mini v3, and expectedly the fans are loud and obnoxious. They rattle slightly and the motor makes a humming noise. They spin quite fast, if I had to guess I'd say that it's around 1200 rpm.

However, I can confirm that the proprietary connector is indeed what I suspected it to be.

Here are the pinouts:

The RGB controller and the LEDs are supplied by 5V and the fan motors are supplied by 12V. They operate completely independent of each other. In fact, you can make the fans stop (0db mode hahah) and still retain RGB functionality and vice versa. To my pleasant surprise, the fans have a low startup voltage (around 3.5V) and a broad rpm range. They can go as low as 500rpm, thus being virtually inaudible.

The entire thing is powered by a single SATA power connector. Probably the easiest, cheapest and most non-invasive way to get speed control is to buy a MOLEX to SATA adapter (around $1-2) and modify the MOLEX, e.g. by soldering the 12V line to a 3 pin fan connector and use DC mode in the BIOS to control the fans with the motherboard. Here is my take on this (I did solder on an extra fan header which can power another 12V device, e.g. a DC fan controller).

Tanatcu · March 23, 2023

On 8/19/2021 at 8:51 PM, Temporal said:

Disclaimer: I assume no liability of any kind for any damages to any person(s), devices, or other property by following, or otherwise using any information contained in this post, be it inaccurate information or otherwise.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Update:

So I got my Trinity Mini v3, and expectedly the fans are loud and obnoxious. They rattle slightly and the motor makes a humming noise. They spin quite fast, if I had to guess I'd say that it's around 1200 rpm.

However, I can confirm that the proprietary connector is indeed what I suspected it to be.

Here are the pinouts:

The RGB controller and the LEDs are supplied by 5V and the fan motors are supplied by 12V. They operate completely independent of each other. In fact, you can make the fans stop (0db mode hahah) and still retain RGB functionality and vice versa. To my pleasant surprise, the fans have a low startup voltage (around 3.5V) and a broad rpm range. They can go as low as 500rpm, thus being virtually inaudible.

The entire thing is powered by a single SATA power connector. Probably the easiest, cheapest and most non-invasive way to get speed control is to buy a MOLEX to SATA adapter (around $1-2) and modify the MOLEX, e.g. by soldering the 12V line to a 3 pin fan connector and use DC mode in the BIOS to control the fans with the motherboard. Here is my take on this (I did solder on an extra fan header which can power another 12V device, e.g. a DC fan controller).

Hi @Temporal Thanks for your solution and detailed explanation.
Could you clarify a couple of additional things:
1. is it possible to make RGB controllable via any kind of software or it still works via the case modes only?

2. Could you provide a schema of soldering?

Thanks beforehand!