Connecting case fans

[mihai.gioaba]

Hi, I bought a second hand Zalman Z3 plus, with three fans that are different brands. I think only one of them is the original fan that was included in the case. They have different connectors and I also have the fan controller connectors coming from the front of the case and tbh I'm not sure how to connect them and where exactly (psu or motherboard).
I will include some links with photos - 1. Fan controller 2,3,4. Fans

https://i.imgur.com/Qx8Fsgm.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/EQR8Xer.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/S9NwpYc.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/D4DH8wH.jpg

Your help will be appreciated since this is supposed to be my first computer build and I got stuck right where I wasn't really expecting...fans :|
Thank you in advance!

 

[R0GG]

Only the Fan in the third picture = it's Molex 4 pin (12 V) connector doesn't allow control over your fan speed, you can use a molex to 3pin fan converter tp make it connectable to your motherboard and it's speed adjustable through it ( but without feedback on it's speed since it's missing the 3rd pin yellow wire). But if it runs at decent RPMs with efficient air flow and not much noise you don't have to upgrade it's connector or the fan itself right away.
All the other 3 fans have 3pin fan connector layout with adjustable speed when connected to your motherboard 3pin or even 4pin fan header directly if enough motherboards fan headers or through a 3 pin fan splitter cable or even through a fan hub.(for the 4 pin you have to set your fan header working in DC mode instead of the PWM mode to gain control over your fan speed)
Could you upload another picture at different angle of the first fan connector the one with 1 molex 4 pin and 2 x 3pin fan connectors (black color) ?

 

[mihai.gioaba]

I uploaded two more pictures for the first connector (this should be the fan controller because I can see the cables are connected to the front I/0). Basically it has a molex connector and 2x2 pins connectors.

https://i.imgur.com/GiI2smP.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/M2B7oyu.jpg

That's what got me confused because all the three case fans have different connectors. The intake one in the front has got one molex and 1x3 pin connectors, the one on top 1x3 pin connector(white one), and the rear fan has got just one molex connector.
I do not know if it is relevant, but my motherboard is a asrock ab350 pro4.

 

[R0GG]

-Thanks for the update.
- the first fan connector is just a molex with 2x3pin splitter layout but with only 2 pin present, so it will run the fans connected to it at full speed except if the front I/O has a nob to adjust fans speed.
- Newer motherboards have more 3pin and 4 pin fan headers and even high amperage fan headers for connecting more than one fan to the same mobo fan header. It's always best to use 3pin or better 4pin PWM fans from a brand name (allowing much fan lower RPMs) rated for case airflow connected to the motherboard allowing their RPM adjustment through motherboard software and bios.
- Your motherboard has - 1 x CPU Fan Connector (4-pin) and 3 x Chassis Fan Connectors (4-pin) (Smart Fan Speed Control with CHA_FAN2 and CHA_FAN3 can auto detect if 3-pin or 4-pin fan is in use.
- If your front I/O allows Fans RPM adjustment it could be useful, but software solution is best because it has the advantage of automatically adapting fans RPM with system temperature.

 

[mihai.gioaba]

Yes, the front I/O has a knob for fan speed adjusting.
I will buy some decent 4pin fans that I will connect to the motherboard soon, but for the moment I have to go with these fans that I've got.
So, basically the fan that has just that molex connector and no control over the speed should go in the 4pin molex of the fan controller molex (going at full speed all the time), the one with 3pin white connector should go in one of the 2pin connector and the one with 3pin and molex should go in both the 2pin connector and the molex of the fan controller, or just the 2pin connector leaving the molex out?
Also, is there any way to connect everything to the motherboard? If I connect to psu I will lose control over fan speed,right?

 

[R0GG]

- I would attach all 3 pin fans to the motherboard and use it's fan control utility through windows or bios to adjust their speed in DC mode (they do not support Pulse Width Modulation PWM: your motherboard has 2X 4PIN fan headers that automatically detect 3pin fans and switch to DC mode, the third one you can switch it manually in the bios)
Then the molex fan you can either attach it directly to your front I/o molex to 2xpin splitter and adjust it;'s speed or attach it straight to the PSU molex if it's not very noisy and don't need to adjust it
You can combine these scenarios in the way that achieves good performance and noise level of your fans, in instance if you have a bad quality "rebel" 3 pin fan with difficulty adjusting it to specific optimal Lower RPM, you can just hook it up to your front I/O and let the knob do it's magic.

 

[mihai.gioaba]

Thank you very much for all your help. Now I can carry on without a major headache. Cheers!

 

[R0GG]

You are kindly welcome.