are fan splitters ok?

[kaitlin4599]

so i currently have an asrock B650E taichi lite and about 12 fans in my phanteks enthoo primo case. to better cable manage my fans i was gonna use a 4 way splitter similar to the one in the photo below is this safe? the manual doesnt exactly state how many case fans/aio fans can be hooked up to a single connector on the motherboard   the plan is to use these splitters so i can sun the fan cables befind the case/mobo rather then having all the cables be visible inside the front of the case blocking the vide of the mobo  

[ChrisLoudon]

Just now, kaitlin4599 said:

so i currently have an asrock B650E taichi lite and about 12 fans in my phanteks enthoo primo case. to better cable manage my fans i was gonna use a 4 way splitter similar to the one in the photo below is this safe? the manual doesnt exactly state how many case fans/aio fans can be hooked up to a single connector on the motherboard   the plan is to use these splitters so i can sun the fan cables befind the case/mobo rather then having all the cables be visible inside the front of the case blocking the vide of the mobo  

Yeh, I use them all the time due to me liking ITX mobos as they only have 2 or 3 at the most headers.

 

Just be mindful of the max current draw for each mobo header which is usually 1A. That means 4 x 0.25A fans for each header. If the fans you are using draw more or less amps then you need to factor that in.

 

You can negate that limitation buy getting a Molex or Sata powered splitter but to be honest, I've never managed to get one working properly. Got a 1 to 6 sata powered splitter in my box of goodies and no matter what happens, all fans spin at full-whack and I have nor PWM control....

[Netm_10]

It depends on how powerful your fans are. It probably won't cause any damage but your fans might not perform as they should if you are using 4 high powered fans through a single connector.

How about a powered fan hub? Would that not fit your use case?

[PDifolco]

1 hour ago, kaitlin4599 said:

so i currently have an asrock B650E taichi lite and about 12 fans in my phanteks enthoo primo case. to better cable manage my fans i was gonna use a 4 way splitter similar to the one in the photo below is this safe? the manual doesnt exactly state how many case fans/aio fans can be hooked up to a single connector on the motherboard   the plan is to use these splitters so i can sun the fan cables befind the case/mobo rather then having all the cables be visible inside the front of the case blocking the vide of the mobo  

Yes sure it'll work, but a cheap fan hub will be better for cable management and overall looks

[tkitch]

Absolutely fine.  

Most fan headers are rated for 1A @ 12V (Check your mobo manual to see if they're higher.)

Fans will list their max Amperage on them.  (Most are in the 0.1 - 0.2 range, unless they're really heavy duty)

 

You can connect up to 0.9A worth of fans and always stay well under the limits for the headers.  

[kaitlin4599]

@Netm_10 what hub on amazon would you recommend that wont cost an arm and a leg and is also sata powered since i dont use molex at all

[tkitch]

9 hours ago, kaitlin4599 said:

@Netm_10 what hub on amazon would you recommend that wont cost an arm and a leg and is also sata powered since i dont use molex at all

splitters are better than hubs, they're more reliable.

[thrasher_565]

20 hours ago, ChrisLoudon said:

Yeh, I use them all the time due to me liking ITX mobos as they only have 2 or 3 at the most headers.

 

Just be mindful of the max current draw for each mobo header which is usually 1A. That means 4 x 0.25A fans for each header. If the fans you are using draw more or less amps then you need to factor that in.

 

You can negate that limitation buy getting a Molex or Sata powered splitter but to be honest, I've never managed to get one working properly. Got a 1 to 6 sata powered splitter in my box of goodies and no matter what happens, all fans spin at full-whack and I have nor PWM control....

pwm is what controls the fan rpm so no pwm no control. normally the hub has one port on it for the pwm fan that will tell the other fans to follow. if you have different fans and rpms then say a 200mm fan running 50% like 400 rpm vs a 120mm fan running at say 1000 rpm when its 2000rpm fan. the 200mm fan probably can run full all the time.

 

the hub is for like all the same fan rpm or close too.

Edited June 27, 2025 by thrasher_565

[Netm_10]

On 6/27/2025 at 9:13 AM, kaitlin4599 said:

@Netm_10 what hub on amazon would you recommend that wont cost an arm and a leg and is also sata powered since i dont use molex at all

Arctic is a pretty reputable brand. Should be able to get one for around $10.

'ARCTIC Case Fan Hub - 10-fold PWM Fan Distributor with SATA Power':

https://a.co/d/cN0Zg45