Download the Tom's Hardware App from the App Store
The reference for current tech news
Yes No
Tom's Hardware > Forum > Overclocking > Water Cooling > [Solved] QUestion on push & pull fan speed

[Solved] QUestion on push & pull fan speed

Forum Overclocking : Water Cooling [Solved] QUestion on push & pull fan speed

Best answer from rubix_1011.

Word :    Username :           
 

I like to get some answers here & on some other sites about push & pull fan speeds. So I like to ask the experts for some answers...

I have (6) Enermax T.B. Silence Red Lightning non-PWM (3 wire) 120 mm silent fans (rated at 1,200 rpm) that I'm trying to control. I got an Aerocool V12XT touch LCD fan controller. It will only control (4) fans so I decided to control the (2) push & pull non-PWM fans on the radiator to my CPU liquid cooling loop & the other (2) push & pull non-PWM fans on the radiator to my video card liquid cooling loop. This (4) non- PWM (3 wire fans) that are connected to the touch LCD controller are also connected each with special tachometer wires to my CPU (I managed to get this tachometer wires from a special source as Aerocool only provide 1 with tachometer wire). All this fans that I used I can monitor the speeds on the BIOS as will as on Windows including those connected to a special fan controller.

The problem is with the (2) fans, one connected to the 3-pin power fan connector & the other connected to the 3-pin channel fan connector on my motherboard. There must be some reasons why motherboard makers only use 3-pin connectors for power & channel fans but let's say I wanna control this non-PWM fans. There's probably (3) ways for me to control this (2) non-PWM fans.

1) Using a separate fan controller but I don't like to do this.
2) Using a PWM fan (which I have but rather not use hence I like all fan matched).
3) Adding a splitter wire to control each of the (2) push & pull silent fans connected to a single fan controller input thereby leaving me with (2) fan controller inputs to my touch screen LCD fan controller for me to use for my (2) power & channel fans.

If I do the third, each of the push & pull fans will be on same speed as this push & pull fans are connected to a single fan controller input. Will there be a problem having the same push & pull fan speed or it has to be at variable speed to achieve better performance? Is it really necessary to control the power & channel fan speed or keep it at constant speed to achieve better performance? As I said above there must be some reasons why motherboard makers only use 3-pin connectors on power & channel fans.

I want an honest answer on this question. No graphs please.


Message edited by Cheaptrick on 01-28-2012 at 05:51:46 PM
------------------------------ My "Silent Storm" case mod

ASRock Fatal1ty Z68 Pro Gen3 l Core i7 2600K OC @ 4.8 GHz l (2) Crucial M4 128 Gb SSD l (2) Seagate Momentus XT 500GB
Reply to Cheaptrick
Register or log in to remove.

Just splice the extra fans to one of the fans on the controller so you'd have 2 fans on 1 channel. Either that or find some of those molex fan controllers on FrozenCPU and other sites that offer a dial knob for controlling a fan.

You aren't going to get any difference if you run 3 fans a few 100 rpm's different than others. In all honesty, it's kind of a pain in the ass to keep dialing them up and down and trying to get them all to be 'the same'. My KazeMaster fan controller allows me to monitor RPMs, but I never even look at it...I just dial them up and down as I see fit. They are either all the way pegged at 100%, or I just dial them down to whatever sounds low enough for me and still get good temps.

------------------------------ Watercooling Info:
Tom's Hardware Watercooling Sticky
Build Log | Project: Askew
Stuff 4 Sale

Reply to rubix_1011

So it really doesn't make any difference if the 2 fans in a push & pull configuration have same speed settings. I thought that the push fan has to be set a little bet higher than the pull fan hence there's a little resistance on the air being push as it hits the radiator fins.

Would it be best if I just leave the power & channel fans connected to the motherboard & running at constant full speed without having something to control the speed?


Message edited by Cheaptrick on 01-29-2012 at 05:51:52 AM
------------------------------ My "Silent Storm" case mod

ASRock Fatal1ty Z68 Pro Gen3 l Core i7 2600K OC @ 4.8 GHz l (2) Crucial M4 128 Gb SSD l (2) Seagate Momentus XT 500GB
Reply to Cheaptrick
Best answer

If you run push/pull, it helps to have the fans close to the same speeds but even if not, the worst is you'll get some excess noise in some instances.

------------------------------ Watercooling Info:
Tom's Hardware Watercooling Sticky
Build Log | Project: Askew
Stuff 4 Sale

Reply to rubix_1011

Best answer selected by Cheaptrick.

------------------------------ My "Silent Storm" case mod

ASRock Fatal1ty Z68 Pro Gen3 l Core i7 2600K OC @ 4.8 GHz l (2) Crucial M4 128 Gb SSD l (2) Seagate Momentus XT 500GB
Reply to Cheaptrick

Good enough, I'll just keep the push & pull fan on (1) fan speed control pin.

------------------------------ My "Silent Storm" case mod

ASRock Fatal1ty Z68 Pro Gen3 l Core i7 2600K OC @ 4.8 GHz l (2) Crucial M4 128 Gb SSD l (2) Seagate Momentus XT 500GB
Reply to Cheaptrick

This topic has been closed by Mousemonkey

------------------------------ http://img545.imageshack.us/img545/3995/bl11.gif
Reply to Mousemonkey
Register or log in to remove.
Tom's Hardware > Forum > Overclocking > Water Cooling > [Solved] QUestion on push & pull fan speed
Go to:

There are 866 identified and unidentified users. To see the list of identified users, Click here.

  • Ask the community now
  • Publish
Ad
Latest best answer
Keyboard Num Lock turns on/off during startup and shut down
By PhilFrisbie, 15 days ago:

I think you are just noticing the normal Windows behavior. . .

They won a badge
Join us in greeting them
Top experts