Question Arctic p14 fans

[Adraganov]

Hi guys, just building my first PC. And I am stuck with the case fans. I have Arctic p14 3 pin fans and I am wondering do I need a fan controller for them?

 

[Darkbreeze]

What motherboard are you connecting them to?

 

[Aeacus]

MoBo make and model is?

Since you should be able to connect all 3x fans to MoBo, for software (BIOS) control, without the need for fan hub or fan controller.

 

[Darkbreeze]

Right, but that's why I ask because there ARE some boards from a few gens ago that had 4 pin headers that you could NOT use 3 pin fans on without them simply running at full speed. We still get people here occasionally with boards that have that configuration so I always like to be sure before I say yes it will work.

 

[Adraganov]

What motherboard are you connecting them to?

I am using the Asus x670e gene.

 

[Aeacus]

We still get people here occasionally with boards that have that configuration so I always like to be sure before I say yes it will work.

Didn't say "it will work". Did say "it should work, based on MoBo". There's a diff.

I am using the Asus x670e gene.

Dig out holy bible of PCs (aka your MoBo manual) and read page 1-8. It shows all fan headers your MoBo has. And while all of them are 4-pin and support 4-pin PWM fans, they also support 3-pin DC fans.

Connection goes as seen on bottom-right image:

So, you can connect your fans to CPU_OPT and CHA_FANP headers. But since you have 3x fans but only 2x headers, you'll also need to buy Y-splitter and connect two fans into single header. E.g this Noctua Y-splitter,
amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Noctua-NA-SYC1-Accessory-4-pin-Y-Cables/dp/B00KG8K5CY

 

[Adraganov]

Didn't say "it will work". Did say "it should work, based on MoBo". There's a diff.



Dig out holy bible of PCs (aka your MoBo manual) and read page 1-8. It shows all fan headers your MoBo has. And while all of them are 4-pin and support 4-pin PWM fans, they also support 3-pin DC fans.

Connection goes as seen on bottom-right image:

So, you can connect your fans to CPU_OPT and CHA_FANP headers. But since you have 3x fans but only 2x headers, you'll also need to buy Y-splitter and connect two fans into single header. E.g this Noctua Y-splitter,
amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Noctua-NA-SYC1-Accessory-4-pin-Y-Cables/dp/B00KG8K5CY

Thanks I’ll have a look. How about the fan noise? Ive seen that some people say fans are noisier than when using controller.

 

[Aeacus]

How about the fan noise?

Arctic Cooling fans are known as one of the quietest fans out there (i've used several myself), and your P14 is no different,
specs: https://www.arctic.de/en/P14/ACFAN00123A

It has audible noise up to 0.3 Sone, which = 10.64 dB(A). <- That's extremely quiet, about half of whisper level, ~17dB(A).
In the fan world, anything below 20 dB(A) is considered as silent. 20 - 30 dB(A) is audible, 30 - 40 dB(A) is loud and anything over 40 dB(A) is very loud.

Those Arctic Cooling fans that i used, F12, i literally had to check if the fan is spinning after installation, since i couldn't hear it at all.
Nowadays, i'm using Corsair ML Pro LED series fans, for better performance, far longer lifespan and nicer eyecandy, where my fans, have audible level of 16-37 dB(A). But i'm keeping them ~1100 RPM, making them borderline of audible level.

Now, what makes the most audible noise, besides the fan itself, is airflow through restrictions (radiator, case grille). And for that, it doesn't matter which fan you use.

fans are noisier than when using controller.

Fan controller is a device that gives you manual (analog) control over fan RPM. And it also gives you control of individual fans. Same can be achieved when you plug your fans into MoBo, where from BIOS, you also have manual (but digital) control over each fan header.

Most people are fine with BIOS control over the fans, since they can put in the custom fan curve (based on PC temps) and BIOS takes care the rest. But other folks (like me), prefer to have more direct control over the fans, and thus, get a fan controller (here, do not mix up fan hub with fan controller, those are different devices).

Fan hub is a device that expands single fan header into multiple ones, where all fans run in sync and individual fan control is impossible. E.g Deepcool FH-10 (specs).

Fan controllers that i have in use in my builds, from left to right;
Skylake - Thermaltake Commander F6 RGB (6 fan support)
Haswell - NZXT Sentry 3 (5 fan support)
AMD - Aerocool X-Vision (5 fan support)
(PCs full specs + more pics in my sig)

Fan controller is a neat piece of hardware.

 

[Adraganov]

Arctic Cooling fans are known as one of the quietest fans out there (i've used several myself), and your P14 is no different,
specs: https://www.arctic.de/en/P14/ACFAN00123A

It has audible noise up to 0.3 Sone, which = 10.64 dB(A). <- That's extremely quiet, about half of whisper level, ~17dB(A).
In the fan world, anything below 20 dB(A) is considered as silent. 20 - 30 dB(A) is audible, 30 - 40 dB(A) is loud and anything over 40 dB(A) is very loud.

Those Arctic Cooling fans that i used, F12, i literally had to check if the fan is spinning after installation, since i couldn't hear it at all.
Nowadays, i'm using Corsair ML Pro LED series fans, for better performance, far longer lifespan and nicer eyecandy, where my fans, have audible level of 16-37 dB(A). But i'm keeping them ~1100 RPM, making them borderline of audible level.

Now, what makes the most audible noise, besides the fan itself, is airflow through restrictions (radiator, case grille). And for that, it doesn't matter which fan you use.



Fan controller is a device that gives you manual (analog) control over fan RPM. And it also gives you control of individual fans. Same can be achieved when you plug your fans into MoBo, where from BIOS, you also have manual (but digital) control over each fan header.

Most people are fine with BIOS control over the fans, since they can put in the custom fan curve (based on PC temps) and BIOS takes care the rest. But other folks (like me), prefer to have more direct control over the fans, and thus, get a fan controller (here, do not mix up fan hub with fan controller, those are different devices).

Fan hub is a device that expands single fan header into multiple ones, where all fans run in sync and individual fan control is impossible. E.g Deepcool FH-10 (specs).

Fan controllers that i have in use in my builds, from left to right;
Skylake - Thermaltake Commander F6 RGB (6 fan support)
Haswell - NZXT Sentry 3 (5 fan support)
AMD - Aerocool X-Vision (5 fan support)
(PCs full specs + more pics in my sig)

Fan controller is a neat piece of hardware.

Thanks mate. Appreciate your support. I don’t know if this section of the forum is the right but I’ll ask here, when comes to the PSU (modular) it came with a lot of cables. Do I need to plug them all in? I won’t be using any hard disks for now, I will be using PCIe Gen4 SSD.

 

[Aeacus]

Do I need to plug them all in?

The beauty of fully-modular PSU is, that you only need to plug in the cables that you need, keeping the rest off the PSU and thus, reducing cable clutter.

E.g here's the image and connected cables of my Seasonic PRIME 650 80+ Titanium [SSR-650TD] PSU:

Since upper image is PSU fan upwards, but in my build, fan faces downwards and gives a neat look of all cables plugged in. While in actuality, 3 ports are free, but due to my cable management, free ports aren't visible.

 

[Darkbreeze]

Didn't say "it will work". Did say "it should work, based on MoBo". There's a diff.

I didn't say you, I said me.

 

[Darkbreeze]

There is no difference in fan noise whether using a suitable controller or using the motherboard headers and controller EXCEPT when that type of fan (3 pin DC or 4 pin PWM) is not supported on a specific header and it runs full speed. Those headers are all able to be designated as DC or PWM controlled so you do not have that problem. It also has PLENTY of fan headers so no problems there even if you add additional fans.

Basically, this is a non-issue for you and you are totally fine using the motherboard for your fan controls, which is what I would recommend doing anyhow whenever possible.

 

[Aeacus]

I didn't say you, I said me.

While this is true, you did imply it to me. Posting just after my reply.

But all is good. OP issue is solved and follow-up questions are also answered.