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Do 3 pin fans always run at 100% speed or do they alternate there speed?

Edddddd
By Edddddd
in Cooling
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3-pin fans can run at different speeds based on the voltage sent through it. But because the motor needs a minimum amount of voltage, they have a limited range of speeds compared to a PWM.

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Unless there's a hardware controller attached to the fan, control is down to the header you power the fan off of and not the fan. Basically, all fans can potentially be controlled. 

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12 minutes ago, CUDAcores89 said:

If you plug 3 pin fans into 4 pin headers yes, they will run at full speed.

 

3 pin fans use DC fan control, meaning the fans spins slower when we lower the voltage. Not every motherboard can do DC fan control, but nearly every mitherboard for DIY PCs can do that.

 

One thing i really like about DC fan control is you can program the fans to turn completely off while very few PWM fans can do that.

Many motherboards have 4 pin headers that can work in both DC or PWM mode.

 

Also, PWM fans can work in DC mode.

 

Also, it is not uncommon for PWM fans to turn off with a 0v PWM signal, some can and some can't.

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33 minutes ago, CUDAcores89 said:

If you plug 3 pin fans into 4 pin headers yes, they will run at full speed.

 

3 pin fans use DC fan control, meaning the fans spins slower when we lower the voltage. Not every motherboard can do DC fan control, but nearly every mitherboard for DIY PCs can do that.

 

One thing i really like about DC fan control is you can program the fans to turn completely off while very few PWM fans can do that.

My motherboard specification says MSI fan headers automatically detect fans running in DC.

 

How does this relate to my question.....??

is it easy to lower the voltage?

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1 minute ago, Edddddd said:

My motherboard specification says MSI fan headers automatically detect fans running in DC.

 

How does this relate to my question.....??

is it easy to lower the voltage?

It means you can do fan control whether the fans have 3 or 4 pins. There'll just be a wider RPM range with 4-pin fans.

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