Case Fan question

[leg bouncer]

Hey guys! I have a doubt about buying some case fans for my system. I'm adding 3 fans and I've already decided what fans to buy, but now I need to know how to hook them up to my motherboard which only has one 4-pin fan header aside from the CPU fan header. My motherboard is the Gigabyte GA B250 DS3H.

 

Do I need a fan hub? how do I hook 'em all up so I can individually control them? I know they need to be PWM fans for that, I just don't know how will I get the 3 of 'em to work.

[yathis]

You need to split the header.

[dany_boy]

A fan hub does not allow you to control each fan individually (Unless it has a special interface through usb), rather it splits the signal so that all fans get a proper connection and power delivery. If you are going to buy PWM fans, then its a good idea to buy a hub so that you can take advantage of the extra control and functionality.

[leg bouncer]

Just now, yathis said:

You need to split the header.

So... how do I split it? I'm sure there are splitters but I don't know which one to get and I wanna make sure I can control each of the fans individually.

[vanished]

You can use a splitter to put multiple fans on one header.  Just don't put on too many (2 is probably fine, 3 maybe... idk) and keep in mind they will show up to the system as one, so you won't be able to control them individually 

[leg bouncer]

1 minute ago, dany_boy said:

A fan hub does not allow you to control each fan individually (Unless it has a special interface through usb), rather it splits the signal so that all fans get a proper connection and power delivery. If you are going to buy PWM fans, then its a good idea to buy a hub so that you can take advantage of the extra control and functionality.

So which is it, a splitter or a hub? haha. I just wanna be able to control them by setting a custom fan curve.

[dany_boy]

1 minute ago, kettu said:

So which is it, a splitter or a hub? haha. I just wanna be able to control them by setting a custom fan curve.

They basically do the same, the devil is in the details. A slitter is simply a piece of wire split into two (hence the name), meaning that you are limited to the power that your mobo fan header can provide. A hub, may have extra electronics in it to properly buffer the signal + additional power capabilities for more fans

[leg bouncer]

1 minute ago, Ryan_Vickers said:

You can use a splitter to put multiple fans on one header.  Just don't put on too many (2 is probably fine, 3 maybe... idk) and keep in mind they will show up to the system as one, so you won't be able to control them individually 

Ok, this is the best answer so far, any suggestions on which splitter to get?

 

Also, I may buy one Thermaltake Riing RGB 120mm fan which comes with a controller that has 3 4-pin fan headers, this one: 

Will it work with other fans that are not the Riing ones? If I buy this one, I could get the single fan and controller and 2 other different fans like the Corsair ML120's for a cheaper price.

[vanished]

1 minute ago, kettu said:

Ok, this is the best answer so far, any suggestions on which splitter to get?

 

Also, I may buy one Thermaltake Riing RGB 120mm fan which comes with a controller that has 3 4-pin fan headers, this one: 

Will it work with other fans that are not the Riing ones? If I buy this one, I could get the single fan and controller and 2 other different fans like the Corsair ML120's for a cheaper price.

Basically just get the cheapest one.  They're very simple things, not a lot of ways a company could mess it up  

Here's an example: https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B005G3010U/

[leg bouncer]

4 minutes ago, Ryan_Vickers said:

Basically just get the cheapest one.  They're very simple things, not a lot of ways a company could mess it up  

Here's an example: https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B005G3010U/

Is this one good? it's cheaper and also easily available in my country thru Amazon https://www.amazon.com.mx/Silverstone-Sleeved-Cable-Divisor-Ventilador/dp/B00HJOJS9O/ref=pd_sbs_147_2?_encoding=UTF8&refRID=F4WHGWAE26D1SY133WTG&th=1

[vanished]

Just now, kettu said:

Is this one good? it's cheaper and also easily available in my country thru Amazon https://www.amazon.com.mx/Silverstone-Sleeved-Cable-Divisor-Ventilador/dp/B00HJOJS9O/ref=pd_sbs_147_2?_encoding=UTF8&refRID=F4WHGWAE26D1SY133WTG&th=1

Looks like it should do the trick nicely.  4 pin, PWM capable, 3 outputs, yeah that's what you need

[leg bouncer]

1 minute ago, Ryan_Vickers said:

Looks like it should do the trick nicely.  4 pin, PWM capable, 3 outputs, yeah that's what you need

Thanks a lot! And thanks everybody else

[AV Techy]

I really which I had seen this sooner.

 

The best way IMO is a fan hub like this:

https://www.overclockers.co.uk/phanteks-pwm-fan-hub-ca-009-pt.html

 

Let me explain:

 

The thing with a splitter is that it only takes the power coming from of the motherboard fan headers, which depending on the Amperage of the fans you are using may not be enough to power all three (although three isn't many so it should be fine).

 

The thing with a hub (like the one I linked) is they also have a SATA power connector (directly from the PSU) which means they will be able to power as many fans as you like (up to the upper limit of the available connectors). The one I have linked can support a total of 6 with no issue.

 

A little into how PWM works on a hub:

PWM as you may know is splitting a straight signal into bursts like so:

 

When you split a PWM line with a hub, the speed (or pulse durations) will be set buy the first device in the link. The hub will take the PWM pulse issued by the first fan and dish it out to the rest on the circuit. This effectively means all fans but the first will operate like a DC fan, not a PWM fan - which also means that all fans but the first one don't need to be PWM compliant, just DC.

 

It is optimal to have all the fans the same (as they will have similar/identical initial motor resistance values) when interfaced with a splitter or hub, but it is not essential. You can for example have a 2200rpm and a 2000rpm fan on the same splitter or hub, which I have done and logically and practically doesn't cause any problems.

 

 

 

The main issue with splitting the Amperage of the motherboard fan header is like I mentioned before, the 1 Amp output will be split between the fans 'evenly'. 

So a Corsair AF120 Quiet Edition LED at full amperage draw of 0.4A, three of which will draw 1.2A. So these fans would not be able to run at full speed off one header, but they'd get close.

A Noctua NF-F12 has a full amperage draw of 0.05A, which in theory means you could connect 20 to one fan splitter with no extra power required. One of the perks of some premium fans, but not the full story...

 

For your specific use case you may be fine with a 3 fan splitter, however it leaves you no room for expansion, and if you get more powerful fans in the future (not that I'd recommend really fast fans) you may have a bottleneck. A hub is generally more diverse in how you can use it and offers more expansion in the future (power and fan count).

 

Any way I've rambled on for long enough now. Either options will serve you well for now, but a hub gives you more room fro the future. Best of luck with your fans, and sorry this turned out so long...

[LogicalDrm]

Only way to get individual control for more fans than what mobo supports is to get hardware based controller. So Grid+ or Commander Mini and use included software. Gigabyte is worst on the market for controlling fans. Period. You can get only true PWM control from CPU header. Rest are DC headers with 4pins. You can control those headers, but with extra software only (aka Speedfan).

[leg bouncer]

On 15/6/2017 at 8:06 AM, Aloe Vera said:

I really which I had seen this sooner.

 

The best way IMO is a fan hub like this:

https://www.overclockers.co.uk/phanteks-pwm-fan-hub-ca-009-pt.html

 

Let me explain:

 

The thing with a splitter is that it only takes the power coming from of the motherboard fan headers, which depending on the Amperage of the fans you are using may not be enough to power all three (although three isn't many so it should be fine).

 

The thing with a hub (like the one I linked) is they also have a SATA power connector (directly from the PSU) which means they will be able to power as many fans as you like (up to the upper limit of the available connectors). The one I have linked can support a total of 6 with no issue.

 

A little into how PWM works on a hub:

PWM as you may know is splitting a straight signal into bursts like so:

 

When you split a PWM line with a hub, the speed (or pulse durations) will be set buy the first device in the link. The hub will take the PWM pulse issued by the first fan and dish it out to the rest on the circuit. This effectively means all fans but the first will operate like a DC fan, not a PWM fan - which also means that all fans but the first one don't need to be PWM compliant, just DC.

 

It is optimal to have all the fans the same (as they will have similar/identical initial motor resistance values) when interfaced with a splitter or hub, but it is not essential. You can for example have a 2200rpm and a 2000rpm fan on the same splitter or hub, which I have done and logically and practically doesn't cause any problems.

 

 

 

The main issue with splitting the Amperage of the motherboard fan header is like I mentioned before, the 1 Amp output will be split between the fans 'evenly'. 

So a Corsair AF120 Quiet Edition LED at full amperage draw of 0.4A, three of which will draw 1.2A. So these fans would not be able to run at full speed off one header, but they'd get close.

A Noctua NF-F12 has a full amperage draw of 0.05A, which in theory means you could connect 20 to one fan splitter with no extra power required. One of the perks of some premium fans, but not the full story...

 

For your specific use case you may be fine with a 3 fan splitter, however it leaves you no room for expansion, and if you get more powerful fans in the future (not that I'd recommend really fast fans) you may have a bottleneck. A hub is generally more diverse in how you can use it and offers more expansion in the future (power and fan count).

 

Any way I've rambled on for long enough now. Either options will serve you well for now, but a hub gives you more room fro the future. Best of luck with your fans, and sorry this turned out so long...

 No, thank you, this is awesome!