Case fans 3 pin, Motherboard 4 pin

[xShadoughx]

Hey, everyone.

I have seen this question asked before, however not with the setup I have. So, some clarification would be much appreciated. (this is my first build, by the way.)

Case: CM Storm Scout 2 Advanced

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119263

Mobo: ASUS Z87-A

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131981

The case has 3 fans, one located in the back and two LED fans in the front. Since all of the chassis fan inputs have 4 pins, what should I do? I've looked in my motherboard manual, more specifically the part about fans, and still I don't know what the heck is going on.

 

[raja@asus]

Plug them into the chassis fan headers on the board. The 4 pin headers accept 3 pin fans - line up the connector properly and it will slide into place. You can then use Fan Xpert to create a profile for your fans based on temps, or set manually in UEFI.

 

[JeauxBleaux]

Hey! Your motherboard has five 4-pin fan connectors. Two of them are for the CPU and three are for the case fans.

4-pin connectors offer the ability to control fan speed via pulse width modulation (PWM).

Since your case fans are only 3-pin, you will not have the ability to control the case fan speeds , the fans will simply run at full speed 24x7.

If you look carefully at your motherboard's 4-pin connectors, you will see a bar or marking that spans three of the four pins. These are the 3 pins you'll want to plug your 3-pin case fans into.

Of course, you could always upgrade the case fans to a 4-pin type so your system will potentially be quieter but the 3-pin case fans will plug right onto the the 4-pin connectors and work fine. Just be sure to use the 3 (of 4 pins) that show the "span". this information is on page 1-34 of your manual.

 

[xShadoughx]

What are the pros and cons of running the fans all the time? I plan on overclocking quite a bit, so I imagine it will get toasty in there.

 

[raja@asus]

What are the pros and cons of running the fans all the time? I plan on overclocking quite a bit, so I imagine it will get toasty in there.

The chassis fan headers control in DC mode NOT PWM so your 3 pin fans will be controlled fine. The poster above assumes the 4 pin chassis headers control in PWM mode, that is not the case. On our boards the 4 pin chassis headers control in DC mode only. Even if you plug in a 4 pin fan it will be controlled, just not in PWM mode.

The CPU headers can be set to control in voltage mode by changing the CPU fan header setting to Advanced in UEFI.

Hope this clears up any confusion.

-Raja

 

[sagmani]

What are the pros and cons of running the fans all the time? I plan on overclocking quite a bit, so I imagine it will get toasty in there.

The chassis fan headers control in DC mode NOT PWM so your 3 pin fans will be controlled fine. The poster above assumes the 4 pin chassis headers control in PWM mode, that is not the case. On our boards the 4 pin chassis headers control in DC mode only. Even if you plug in a 4 pin fan it will be controlled, just not in PWM mode.

The CPU headers can be set to control in voltage mode by changing the CPU fan header setting to Advanced in UEFI.

Hope this clears up any confusion.

-Raja

hi, I didn't understand when you said (On our boards the 4 pin chassis headers control in DC mode only. Even if you plug in a 4 pin fan it will be controlled, just not in PWM mode). So if I have a Noctua NF-A14 140mm 4 pin fan to be installed in the case, and it's a PWN fan, it will not work in PWN mode???? My mobo is Asus Z97-A, thanks.

 

[bbell56]

I am using a Cooler Master HAF XB EVO case, it comes with 2 120mm fans, with space for another 120mm and 2 80mm fans.... All 3 120mm are 4 pin connector, but the 2 80mm are 3 pin connector..... So I am running 5 case fans, plus CPU fan and 2 graphics card fans..... I will have 6 fans plug in on the motherboard.....

 

[Carlos_2]

What are the pros and cons of running the fans all the time? I plan on overclocking quite a bit, so I imagine it will get toasty in there.

The chassis fan headers control in DC mode NOT PWM so your 3 pin fans will be controlled fine. The poster above assumes the 4 pin chassis headers control in PWM mode, that is not the case. On our boards the 4 pin chassis headers control in DC mode only. Even if you plug in a 4 pin fan it will be controlled, just not in PWM mode.

The CPU headers can be set to control in voltage mode by changing the CPU fan header setting to Advanced in UEFI.

Hope this clears up any confusion.

-Raja

hi, I didn't understand when you said (On our boards the 4 pin chassis headers control in DC mode only. Even if you plug in a 4 pin fan it will be controlled, just not in PWM mode). So if I have a Noctua NF-A14 140mm 4 pin fan to be installed in the case, and it's a PWN fan, it will not work in PWN mode???? My mobo is Asus Z97-A, thanks.

I think the point Raja was trying to get across is the difference between what is usually labeled as CPU fans and System fans on motherboards, and the fact that even if both have 4-pin connectors, only the CPU fans are usually set to run in PWM mode, some even exclusively so as a default setting. Three pin fans wouldn't work on these unless the BIOS settings were changed beforehand. In my experience, 4-pin CPU FAN headers are pretty forgiving though and most accept 3-pin fans without having to change a BIOS setting beforehand. At most, this combination can change fan speed based on voltage, instead of the more comprehensive pulse width modulation. Now, SYSTEM FANS on the other hand, these I believe most of these run 100% by default, but they too can run a basic voltage regulating fan speed mode.

 

[james_137]

Hey! Your motherboard has five 4-pin fan connectors. Two of them are for the CPU and three are for the case fans.

4-pin connectors offer the ability to control fan speed via pulse width modulation (PWM).

Since your case fans are only 3-pin, you will not have the ability to control the case fan speeds , the fans will simply run at full speed 24x7.

If you look carefully at your motherboard's 4-pin connectors, you will see a bar or marking that spans three of the four pins. These are the 3 pins you'll want to plug your 3-pin case fans into.

Of course, you could always upgrade the case fans to a 4-pin type so your system will potentially be quieter but the 3-pin case fans will plug right onto the the 4-pin connectors and work fine. Just be sure to use the 3 (of 4 pins) that show the "span". this information is on page 1-34 of your manual.

 

[james_137]

I can't see a marking or a bar on mine what do I d

 

[pikunsia]

But James, in the manual of your motherboard there appears the wiring diagram for 3 pin and 4 pin male fan headers, so you can compare both ones and connect correctly the 4 pin female header of your PWM fan into the male 3 pin header of your motherboard. Just don't force it. (I think JeauxBleaux is right, though).

 

[Snoopy_62]

Hey! Your motherboard has five 4-pin fan connectors. Two of them are for the CPU and three are for the case fans.

4-pin connectors offer the ability to control fan speed via pulse width modulation (PWM).

Since your case fans are only 3-pin, you will not have the ability to control the case fan speeds , the fans will simply run at full speed 24x7.

If you look carefully at your motherboard's 4-pin connectors, you will see a bar or marking that spans three of the four pins. These are the 3 pins you'll want to plug your 3-pin case fans into.

Of course, you could always upgrade the case fans to a 4-pin type so your system will potentially be quieter but the 3-pin case fans will plug right onto the the 4-pin connectors and work fine. Just be sure to use the 3 (of 4 pins) that show the "span". this information is on page 1-34 of your manual.

 

[Snoopy_62]

What are the pros and cons of running the fans all the time? I plan on overclocking quite a bit, so I imagine it will get toasty in there.

The chassis fan headers control in DC mode NOT PWM so your 3 pin fans will be controlled fine. The poster above assumes the 4 pin chassis headers control in PWM mode, that is not the case. On our boards the 4 pin chassis headers control in DC mode only. Even if you plug in a 4 pin fan it will be controlled, just not in PWM mode.

The CPU headers can be set to control in voltage mode by changing the CPU fan header setting to Advanced in UEFI.

Hope this clears up any confusion.

-Raja

 

[Snoopy_62]

Hmm I have an Asus X99Deluxe II mobo and the fan controller card has four pin fan connections on the edges. So, if all the fans on the case I am using, a Carbide 500R, have three female ends how do I orientate the fans to connect them properly to the four pins on the controller board? the picture in the manual shows four pin connections on the fan extension card???

 

[lelap6666]

How to controll the 4 pin fan after I pluged it onto motherboard (Asus Z270A Prime)??? Do I have to download any program to control it???

 

[julius.allagadan]

Hey! Your motherboard has five 4-pin fan connectors. Two of them are for the CPU and three are for the case fans.

4-pin connectors offer the ability to control fan speed via pulse width modulation (PWM).

Since your case fans are only 3-pin, you will not have the ability to control the case fan speeds , the fans will simply run at full speed 24x7.

If you look carefully at your motherboard's 4-pin connectors, you will see a bar or marking that spans three of the four pins. These are the 3 pins you'll want to plug your 3-pin case fans into.

Of course, you could always upgrade the case fans to a 4-pin type so your system will potentially be quieter but the 3-pin case fans will plug right onto the the 4-pin connectors and work fine. Just be sure to use the 3 (of 4 pins) that show the "span". this information is on page 1-34 of your manual.

You are complete wrong. fan pins is just for power, if your fan has 3 pin it means it consumes less power, if it has complete 4 means it consumes more power to run the fan, it depends on the fan design and wattage. They are both compatible. Even if you put a 3 pin fan into a 4 pin motherboard slot, you still can control fan speed on whatever motherboard you have. Just slide the 3 pin and leave the extra pin. Just don't do it backwards, you will see a guide in the pin socket and the motherboard socket. If you are using Gigabyte board, use fan xpert and run system fan 1 at full speed for maximum cooling or manually set speed of fan as per temperature level.

 

[technohyper755]

Plug them into the chassis fan headers on the board. The 4 pin headers accept 3 pin fans - line up the connector properly and it will slide into place. You can then use Fan Xpert to create a profile for your fans based on temps, or set manually in UEFI.

can i use 3 pin fan on 4 pin connector?

 

[gamestar10]

Yes. I purchased a replacement fan for my CPU (cooler master) and it had a 3-pin while the original had a 4-pin. The fan works fine but I have no way to control the speed of the fan and it runs even while the comp is in sleep mode; and it's loud. I've changed setting in my bios to control the fan but it did nothing. I'll probably have to download software to change it :/

 

[cleverfrog]

You are complete wrong. fan pins is just for power, if your fan has 3 pin it means it consumes less power, if it has complete 4 means it consumes more power to run the fan, it depends on the fan design and wattage.

Incorrect - two pins provide power - one is at12v and the other at 0v.
The third pin is used as feedback - reporting the rpm of the fan to the motherboard.
The fourth pin, if it exists, is used by fans that can use PWM (pulse-width-modulation) and their own internal circuitry to vary the fan speed.

Three-pin fans may always run at full (12v input) or the motherboard may have the ability to alter the voltage to slow the fan as need be.

I'm sure there are exceptions out there - but this is the norm.