[SOLVED] Connecting ARGB fans directly to the motherboard

[D0wnb3at]

Hi,

I have a Steel Legend B450M motherboard. In the specifications of the board, regarding the PWM and addressable RGB headers, the following is stated:

• Chassis headers: 2A - 24W,
• RGB addressable: up to 5V / 3A - 15W in total.

My case is a Macube 310. It has a hub that makes it possible to connect up to 4 fans. In the case of the PWM connection I understand that I can connect up to 4 fans, and based on information from ASRock, the 4 fans cannot exceed 2A and 24W.

In other words, I understand that I can connect 4 fans of a maximum of 0.5A and 6W each.

In the case of the ARGB connection, each fan cannot exceed 0.75A and 3.75W.

That's right? Is the calculation correct?

Grateful.

 

[Paperdoc]

Yes, you got those right. It's good you recognized that fan load and lighting load are done separately. One point, though. Those limits apply to EACH header separately. Many mobos have more than one CHA_FAN or SYS_FAN header for case ventilation, and EACH has those fan limits - check details on mobo manual - so total fan power can be more if you have several headers. Similar argument for ARGB headers IF you have more than one.

Most often you will find no problem with your plan. Typical case fans now with ARGB lights in their frames use at max 0.10 to 0.25 A per motor, and the lights use 0.3 to 0.5 A per fan frame. But certainly check the fans' specs. That can be hard sometimes because too many makers do not tell you the specs for the two electrical loads separately - some simply do not bother to tell you lighting loads. For LIGHTS, if you can't find the specs, a good "rule of thumb" is the LED units consume max 20 mA (0.020 A) per LED unit. So of the fan says its frame has "16 LED's", that's probably 0.32 A max load.

 

[D0wnb3at]

Thanks for the answer, Paperdoc, I had a hard time finding this type of information and it is not a seemingly very popular topic on the hardware forums.

You gave me very valuable information. The single consumption tip of a single led was very good.

I was unsure, based on my rudimentary knowledge of electronics, whether the total amperage and power calculation was a simple sum.

Thank you very much.

 

[Paperdoc]

You're welcome, and good luck.