Need help controlling CPU Fan Speed!

[mrconflicted]

Hi all,

 

I'm new to PC building and was able to build a system from an assortment of used and new parts. I have a Gigabyte GA0970-D3 motherboard and Corsair H100 cooler. With this combo, my CPU temps never get high at all. (Like, I'd be lucky to top 50C with a synthetic benchmark.

The problem is that no matter what, my CPU fans are at 99% PWM as seen in hardware monitor (or other programs). Things I've tried:

• BIOS Smart fan control. Tested both with and without, and see absolutely no difference.
• Changing the H100's fan speed button - no difference
• EasyTune6 from Gigabyte - I get a "driver release to failure" and can't seem to work around it. Probably 10 hours invested in that program alone..
• Installing the factory CPU cooler, same problem, max fan speed.

 

Can I circumvent this with a manual fan controller? It's annoying to have my fans whirring at 2000 RPM all the time. FWIW, using a Phanteks P400S and Corsair SP120 fans.

Thanks in advance!

[MrMarriarty]

1 minute ago, mrconflicted said:

Hi all,

 

I'm new to PC building and was able to build a system from an assortment of used and new parts. I have a Gigabyte GA0970-D3 motherboard and Corsair H100 cooler. With this combo, my CPU temps never get high at all. (Like, I'd be lucky to top 50C with a synthetic benchmark.

The problem is that no matter what, my CPU fans are at 99% PWM as seen in hardware monitor (or other programs). Things I've tried:

• BIOS Smart fan control. Tested both with and without, and see absolutely no difference.
• Changing the H100's fan speed button - no difference
• EasyTune6 from Gigabyte - I get a "driver release to failure" and can't seem to work around it. Probably 10 hours invested in that program alone..
• Installing the factory CPU cooler, same problem, max fan speed.

 

Can I circumvent this with a manual fan controller? It's annoying to have man fans whirring at 2000 RPM all the time. FWIW, using a Phanteks P400S and Corsair SP120 fans.

Thanks in advance!

thats going to be the pump not fan... the pump needs to run ALL THE TIME at the same speed, the fans will ramp up when it gets hot but the pump will move the same volume of water hens 99%

[mrconflicted]

But the actual fans are definitely running at a high RPM, they are quite loud. 

[MrMarriarty]

2 minutes ago, mrconflicted said:

But the actual fans are definitely running at a high RPM, they are quite loud. 

hum

 

ok well if thats the case then the only way i can think of of would be to use a separate fan controller but if you dont turn them up when it gets hot you may cause damage.

 

Try another fan header on the mobo?

[mrconflicted]

Just to confirm, are you suggesting connecting these fans to sys fan headers?

[aisle9]

28 minutes ago, MrMarriarty said:

thats going to be the pump not fan... the pump needs to run ALL THE TIME at the same speed, the fans will ramp up when it gets hot but the pump will move the same volume of water hens 99%

That particular motherboard is a low-end Gigabyte one, and if low-end Gigabyte boards are reliable for one thing, it's that they will reliably start to have serious problems after a couple of years. Even their midrange Ryzen stuff is shiny, colorful garbage. It's very possibly an issue with your mobo. If you have the ability to buy a higher-end AM3+ board on a better chipset from a different manufacturer (ASUS and MSI had some good 990 boards), that's as good a bet as any. Some of the Newegg reviews...ok, lots of the Newegg reviews of that board are absolutely scathing.

[mrconflicted]

6 minutes ago, aisle9 said:

That particular motherboard is a low-end Gigabyte one, and if low-end Gigabyte boards are reliable for one thing, it's that they will reliably start to have serious problems after a couple of years. Even their midrange Ryzen stuff is shiny, colorful garbage. It's very possibly an issue with your mobo. If you have the ability to buy a higher-end AM3+ board on a better chipset from a different manufacturer (ASUS and MSI had some good 990 boards), that's as good a bet as any. Some of the Newegg reviews...ok, lots of the Newegg reviews of that board are absolutely scathing.

I figured, but is it really even worth upgrading an AM3 board? I got,this mobo for free and found the CPU local for $80. 

[aisle9]

1 minute ago, mrconflicted said:

I figured, but is it really even worth upgrading an AM3 board? I got,this mobo for free and found the CPU local for $80. 

Depends. If you're thinking of upgrading in the near future, don't bother. If you're sticking to AM3+ and DDR3 for the time being, a new motherboard might not hurt. A couple more things to consider:

 

• Are the fans, which I believe are three-pin, plugged into a three-pin or four-pin header? If they're plugged into a four-pin, you might have to change control of that port to DC for it to be controllable.
• Have you tried third-party software like SpeedFan? I know SF support on Gigabyte boards is iffy, but it's worth a shot.

[mrconflicted]

Tried Speedfan and wasn't able to get it to work. I'm guessing for similar reasons why EasyTune isn't working.

Good call on the 3 vs 4 pin connectors. 

 

From the Corsair pump/block:

4 pin extensions -> 3 pin fan connector -> radiator fans

[mrconflicted]

Sys fan header did the trick! runs at nice quiet 1200-1400rpm now, still keeps temps at bay. Thanks everyone!