First time PC building crisis

[McChickenMan]

OK so first time pc builder here and I'm kind of having trouble with fans. so I want to have the 570x rgb case from corsair and it says it comes with 3 sp120 rgb fans. but the problem is I don't know where I plug them in and I'm hearing all this stuff about 4pin connecters are better and 3pin is the old way and I need to do this blah blah. I'm also confused because they sell a controller for the fans and it doesn't say if it comes with it or not. but it seems like the only way to control the lights is with the controller but they are also expensive and I only need 1 more fan so I can have 3 in the front 1 in the back but they only sell the controller with the 3 fans so I would be breaking the roof off my budget and and not even using 2 of the fans. I'm also worried because all of the motherboards I was looking at that were cheaper don't tell me how many fan connecters they come with so now I'm scared that I will buy a motherboard that will not be able to support all my case fans plus my 240mm radiator fans. can I buy splitters that make it so that I can use 4 fans with only 3 4pin connecters but still be able to auto control the rpm of the fourth fan? or do I have to spend a ton of money on a motherboard with a ton of 4pin fan connecters. also do the 2 radiator fans need 4pin connecters to or does it do it all through the cpu pin. please help its driving me crazy, thanks.

[Mira Yurizaki]

The difference between 3-pin and 4-pin fans is merely how they're controlled. 3-pin fans are regulated by the voltage going into them. 4-pin fans are regulated using pulses that either increase or decrease for the fan speed.

 

You can plug a 3-pin fan into a 4-pin fan header and it'll run normally. I believe the same holds true in reverse.

[McChickenMan]

1 minute ago, M.Yurizaki said:

The difference between 3-pin and 4-pin fans is merely how they're controlled. 3-pin fans are regulated by the voltage going into them. 4-pin fans are regulated using pulses that either increase or decrease for the fan speed.

 

You can plug a 3-pin fan into a 4-pin fan header and it'll run normally.

ok so is the only place I can plug 4pin fans in the motherboard?

[CDHoward]

3 minutes ago, McChickenMan said:

OK so first time pc builder here and I'm kind of having trouble with fans. so I want to have the 570x rgb case from corsair and it says it comes with 3 sp120 rgb fans. but the problem is I don't know where I plug them in and I'm hearing all this stuff about 4pin connecters are better and 3pin is the old way and I need to do this blah blah. I'm also confused because they sell a controller for the fans and it doesn't say if it comes with it or not. but it seems like the only way to control the lights is with the controller but they are also expensive and I only need 1 more fan so I can have 3 in the front 1 in the back but they only sell the controller with the 3 fans so I would be breaking the roof off my budget and and not even using 2 of the fans. I'm also worried because all of the motherboards I was looking at that were cheaper don't tell me how many fan connecters they come with so now I'm scared that I will buy a motherboard that will not be able to support all my case fans plus my 240mm radiator fans. can I buy splitters that make it so that I can use 4 fans with only 3 4pin connecters but still be able to auto control the rpm of the third fan? or do I have to spend a ton of money on a motherboard with a ton of 4pin fan connecters. also do the 2 radiator fans need 4pin connecters to or does it do it all through the cpu pin. please help its driving me crazy, thanks.

If you're getting a relatively decent board, you'll have a fair few fan sockets dotted around the board in different places.

 

The 4 pin connectors can simply be fitted over the 3 pin sockets, leaving one little hole empty. They still work.

[Mira Yurizaki]

3 minutes ago, McChickenMan said:

ok so is the only place I can plug 4pin fans in the motherboard?

Actually before I get ahead of myself, there can be two connectors that can be called "4-pin" for fans:

If it's the third connector from left, then yes, they are usually plugged into the motherboard. If it's the right-most connector, then it's a PSU based one.

[McChickenMan]

2 minutes ago, CDHoward said:

If you're getting a relatively decent board, you'll have a fair few fan sockets dotted around the board in different places.

 

The 4 pin connectors can simply be fitted over the 3 pin sockets, leaving one little hole empty. They still work.

well I wasn't planning on buying a really nice motherboard as I won't be overclocking but it seems like I will unless I can buy spliters since I need 4 4pin fan connecters

[Mira Yurizaki]

Just now, McChickenMan said:

well I wasn't planning on buying a really nice motherboard as I won't be overclocking but it seems like I will unless I can buy spliters since I need 4 4pin fan connecters

You can buy splitters: https://www.amazon.com/SilverStone-Technology-Sleeved-Splitter-CPF01/dp/B00B46XKKQ

[McChickenMan]

1 minute ago, M.Yurizaki said:

Actually before I get ahead of myself, there can be two connectors that can be called "4-pin" for fans:

If it's the third connector from left, then yes, they are usually plugged into the motherboard. If it's the right-most connector, then it's a PSU based one.

its the third one from the left 

[Mira Yurizaki]

9 minutes ago, McChickenMan said:

its the third one from the left 

Okay, so here's what you can do.

• Most motherboards come with at least two fan headers, one for the CPU and one for the case. They should list how many headers there are in the specifications. If not, a glance at the board itself (if they have a picture of it) will tell you.
• If you have more fans than headers, you can buy splitters. But I would recommend only one splitter per fan header on the motherboard for power draw reasons.
• Even if you buy splitters and you don't have enough, consider a fan controller.
• You can plug in 4-pin fan headers into 3-pin fan headers. I'm pretty sure they can still be voltage controlled.

[mark_cameron]

5 hours ago, McChickenMan said:

OK so first time pc builder here and I'm kind of having trouble with fans. so I want to have the 570x rgb case from corsair and it says it comes with 3 sp120 rgb fans. but the problem is I don't know where I plug them in and I'm hearing all this stuff about 4pin connecters are better and 3pin is the old way and I need to do this blah blah. I'm also confused because they sell a controller for the fans and it doesn't say if it comes with it or not. but it seems like the only way to control the lights is with the controller but they are also expensive and I only need 1 more fan so I can have 3 in the front 1 in the back but they only sell the controller with the 3 fans so I would be breaking the roof off my budget and and not even using 2 of the fans. I'm also worried because all of the motherboards I was looking at that were cheaper don't tell me how many fan connecters they come with so now I'm scared that I will buy a motherboard that will not be able to support all my case fans plus my 240mm radiator fans. can I buy splitters that make it so that I can use 4 fans with only 3 4pin connecters but still be able to auto control the rpm of the fourth fan? or do I have to spend a ton of money on a motherboard with a ton of 4pin fan connecters. also do the 2 radiator fans need 4pin connecters to or does it do it all through the cpu pin. please help its driving me crazy, thanks.

mate.

Just relax. Make yourself a cup of tea.

Don't panic. Relax.

Lots of help on LTT.

 

Get a piece of paper and plan your build. I use a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet when I'm building.

 

list and research the parts.

 

Never rush a work of art.

 

Your mother board should be all 4 pin. That is 'pwm' fan headers.

 

You can plug 3 pin fans into them they just won't be variable speed like the 4 pin.

 

Fan header extender cards are good. But research them.

 

When you are listing your potential build.

 

Start with

1. case

2. MOBO + cpu

3. Psu

4. Gpu

5. Cooling

6. Other ancillaries

 

Don't stress. Enjoy the planning of your new computer and paste what parts your planning on here.

 

People will love to help.

 

[WoodenMarker]

2 hours ago, mark_cameron said:

Your mother board should be all 4 pin. That is 'pwm' fan headers.

You can plug 3 pin fans into them they just won't be variable speed like the 4 pin.

Not all 4pin fan headers on the motherboard provide pwm. Some headers have the 4th pin just for show or as a low voltage 5v.

3pin fans can sometimes have variable fan speed on 4pin headers.

 

@McChickenMan 

PWM and DC are just different ways of powering a fan. Either can have their speed controlled if your header supports it. 

The most appropriate method of control will depend on what fans you want to power. 3pin and 4pin headers are backwards compatible for at least basic functionality.