Question Kraken Z53 RGB doesn't work ?

[stacheross]

Specs:

• Ryzen 7 3700X
• Nvidia GeForce RTX 3070 Ti
• TUF Gaming X570- Plus
• G.Skill DDR4 8GB (x2)
• Samsung SSD 970 EVO Plus 500GB and 2TB
• Windows 64 bit
• NZXT Kraken Z53

Hello, so I had built my first ever PC from scratch a couple of months ago and everything was working fine. As of a month ago, I bought new extension cables and had to disconnect the USB 2.0 cables from my AIO hub so i could have more clearance. When I reconnected the cable the RGB customization stopped showing up in CAM yet the pump speed, fan speed, and LCD screen work just fine.
Im kind of stumped here because the only thing I did was disconnect the USB 2.0 cable from the hub and reconnected it again and now my RGB is a static white and doesnt show up in the "lighting" option in CAM. I also asked for replacement cables ( Breakout cable set and Micro USB cable), connected it again and its STILL not working.
I also tried disconnecting everything and reconnecting it back again and its still the same. If anyone has had this problem and has been able to solve it let me know, because I feel like this has a very easy and obvious solution and I just cant see it.

Now that I think about it, I never really paid attention to the way these were connected, how does the order in which these cables are connected affect the ability of the RGB functioning? This is the last thing I can think of, because otherwise Im out of ideas.

EDIT: I made sure I connected the first fan connecter to the 4 pin breakout cable and still, nothing. Im starting to think this has to do with the CAM app itself.
This is what it looks like:

And this is what my CAM app shows:

 

[Paperdoc]

What I suggest is based on a hypothesis that the CAM software is confused about on WHICH USB header and port it should expect to find the Kraken system. So un-installing and re-installing may force it to re-find them.

Start with your system running as it does now. Now UN-install the CAM software. Then reboot. Go into Device Manager to your USB ports. Search for one associated with the Kraken system from NZXT. DELETE that USB device. Back out and re-boot. The system should detect that there is a Kraken device on a USB2 port and install its proper driver. Go into Device Manager again and verify that it IS installed and there is no yellow triangle flag on it., then back out. Now RE-install CAM. Hopefully that will cause CAM to search for all the devices it needs and find their current locations.

 

[stacheross]

What I suggest is based on a hypothesis that the CAM software is confused about on WHICH USB header and port it should expect to find the Kraken system. So un-installing and re-installing may force it to re-find them.

Start with your system running as it does now. Now UN-install the CAM software. Then reboot. Go into Device Manager to your USB ports. Search for one associated with the Kraken system from NZXT. DELETE that USB device. Back out and re-boot. The system should detect that there is a Kraken device on a USB2 port and install its proper driver. Go into Device Manager again and verify that it IS installed and there is no yellow triangle flag on it., then back out. Now RE-install CAM. Hopefully that will cause CAM to search for all the devices it needs and find their current locations.

Thank you for replying, literally the first person to do so but sadly your suggestion didn't work for me either. Now I have explored both hardware side possibilities and software, everything is plugged in as it should even with a new set of cables, it only makes me think that the root cause of this problem is the cooler itself that might have become defective. Regardless of what the issue is, ieven if I do find the solution to this, I cannot believe that just by unplugging a cable my whole RGB is unusable and undetectable by CAM.

 

[Paperdoc]

I'm not clear exactly on what RGB lighting devices you have - they are not listed above. However, your first photo appears to show RGB lighting on the two top fans (I presume these are the rad fans) and on three front fans. That's interesting because the Kraken Z53 web page I saw indicates the rad fans supplied do NOT have lights.

Anyway, it appears there are three "groups" of RGB lighting devices: the display on the pump unit, the two rad fans, and three front fans. The PUMP display system is powered within itself and controlled by CAM via its USB2 connection for communication. Your photo of the CAM screen shows that device recognized. When you try to use its controls (like turning its orientation, etc.), do they work? If so, then we know that the CAM software and the USB2 cable connection to the mobo ARE working.

For all the FANS, each has TWO cables. One ends in a standard fan connector with four holes. The ones like this from the two RAD FANS must be plugged into the fan output cable part of the multi-headed assembly plugged into the PUMP unit. You are right to ensure the one of those is plugged into the very first of these output sockets, and that is the only rad fan whose speed can be shown in CAM. I assume you CAN see a rad fan speed there, AND that CAM is controlling those rad fan speeds as always. For the three front fans I assume their motor cables are connected somehow to mobo CHA_FAN headers. NOTE that how motor cables of all these fans are plugged in has NO impact on the LIGHTS in the fans. Lights are separate "devices" mounted in the fan frames.

For ALL those fans, each will also have a cable ending in a wider female connector with FOUR holes. These are the RGB lighting cables. I'm pretty sure that the ones from the two RAD FAN cables have different (locking design) connectors IF they were supplied by NZXT with your Kraken system, and somehow the two were connected to the RGB lighting output from that pump multi-headed cable device. I believe there's only one way to plug those in. And HOW can you connect two rad fans' lighting cables to one output connector from the pump? HOWEVER, if these two fans' lighting cables are NOT connected to that pump output cable, where ARE they plugged in? I note that the CAM screen photo does NOT show anything plugged into that output arm from the pump.

For the three front fans, each also should have a second cable ending in a 4-hole connector wider than the fan motor connector. On these NOTE that the hole on one END will have a mark of come kind, indicating that this is the 12 VDC power supply line. At EACH place where you connect cables, these MUST be lined up with the matching marker on the male connector, whether that is a cable-end connector or a male mobo header or a lighting hub socket. If these three fans were originally plugged into the mobo RGB headers somehow, they will operate independently of the Kraken system and their lighting displays will NOT be synchronized with the rad fans. Lights in the front fans supplied from a mobo RGB header will be controlled by the mobo's Aura Sync software utility, not from CAM. So, is that how they worked before? Are the lights on the front three fans still working as before?

 

[stacheross]

I'm not clear exactly on what RGB lighting devices you have - they are not listed above. However, your first photo appears to show RGB lighting on the two top fans (I presume these are the rad fans) and on three front fans. That's interesting because the Kraken Z53 web page I saw indicates the rad fans supplied do NOT have lights.

Anyway, it appears there are three "groups" of RGB lighting devices: the display on the pump unit, the two rad fans, and three front fans. The PUMP display system is powered within itself and controlled by CAM via its USB2 connection for communication. Your photo of the CAM screen shows that device recognized. When you try to use its controls (like turning its orientation, etc.), do they work? If so, then we know that the CAM software and the USB2 cable connection to the mobo ARE working.

For all the FANS, each has TWO cables. One ends in a standard fan connector with four holes. The ones like this from the two RAD FANS must be plugged into the fan output cable part of the multi-headed assembly plugged into the PUMP unit. You are right to ensure the one of those is plugged into the very first of these output sockets, and that is the only rad fan whose speed can be shown in CAM. I assume you CAN see a rad fan speed there, AND that CAM is controlling those rad fan speeds as always. For the three front fans I assume their motor cables are connected somehow to mobo CHA_FAN headers. NOTE that how motor cables of all these fans are plugged in has NO impact on the LIGHTS in the fans. Lights are separate "devices" mounted in the fan frames.

For ALL those fans, each will also have a cable ending in a wider female connector with FOUR holes. These are the RGB lighting cables. I'm pretty sure that the ones from the two RAD FAN cables have different (locking design) connectors IF they were supplied by NZXT with your Kraken system, and somehow the two were connected to the RGB lighting output from that pump multi-headed cable device. I believe there's only one way to plug those in. And HOW can you connect two rad fans' lighting cables to one output connector from the pump? HOWEVER, if these two fans' lighting cables are NOT connected to that pump output cable, where ARE they plugged in? I note that the CAM screen photo does NOT show anything plugged into that output arm from the pump.

For the three front fans, each also should have a second cable ending in a 4-hole connector wider than the fan motor connector. On these NOTE that the hole on one END will have a mark of come kind, indicating that this is the 12 VDC power supply line. At EACH place where you connect cables, these MUST be lined up with the matching marker on the male connector, whether that is a cable-end connector or a male mobo header or a lighting hub socket. If these three fans were originally plugged into the mobo RGB headers somehow, they will operate independently of the Kraken system and their lighting displays will NOT be synchronized with the rad fans. Lights in the front fans supplied from a mobo RGB header will be controlled by the mobo's Aura Sync software utility, not from CAM. So, is that how they worked before? Are the lights on the front three fans still working as before?

Sorry, I wasn't clear enough. My Kraken RGB (LCD screen and 2 radiator fans work independently from the 3 frontal fans, which are connected to a fan hub plus the lightstrip you see in the image work with ASUS Aura and are all synced. NZXT started supplying RGB Rad Fans about 2 years ago if I am not mistaken, hence this is the RGB series of the Kraken z53.

Everything works as it should, the LCD screen can read and display temps correctly, I can control the fan speed and the pump speed in the "Cooling" section of CAM, I have no issues with the performance of the AIO. I may have mixed up the names, the cable I am having trouble with is the multithreaded cable that is connected to the hub/lcd screen.

I did as the instructions say to connect the 500 mm fan connection cable to the "IN" header of the fan and the "OUT" into the RGB LED connector on the breakout cable and it still doesn't show up on CAM. These 2 are connected by the 50mm fan-to-fan cable. And these are the new replacement cables are ordered, so it leaves me thinking that some sort of failure occured within the hub and the RGB function won't work anymore, because everything is plugged in as it should, yet the RGB function isn't even detected on CAM even if everything is connected the way it should be.

 

[Paperdoc]

I think you have the fan lighting cables reversed. The fan MOTOR cables are both connected to the fan outputs from that breakout cable, right? Then the cable from that breakout's lighting output should go to the INPUT socket on rad fan #1. The fan-to-fan cable stays between them. There is NO cable from the OUTPUT of the second rad fan to anywhere!

 

[stacheross]

I think you have the fan lighting cables reversed. The fan MOTOR cables are both connected to the fan outputs from that breakout cable, right? Then the cable from that breakout's lighting output should go to the INPUT socket on rad fan #1. The fan-to-fan cable stays between them. There is NO cable from the OUTPUT of the second rad fan to anywhere!

Yes, precisely, I have both fan motor cables plugged into the fan outputs from the breakout cable, ensuring that I connect at least one to the 4pin output. The 500mm fan connection cable is connected to the INPUT socket of rad fan #1, fan to fan cable is in between, so there only avaliable output left is in radiator fan #2. The Input cable from rad fan #1 is connected to the cable that supposedly allows for RGB control, which is 4 pinned.

I know that the cables aren't installed the wrong way because there is only one way the 500mm cable can be plugged in, which is into the INPUT socket on rad fan #1 and into the breakout's lighting output. The cable itself is labeled with "IN" and "OUT" tags. The "IN" is plugged into the rad fan and the "OUT" is plugged into the breakout's lighting cable like the manual says in section 3.9. No way I messed up the orientation because there is only one way those two cables can be connected to each other.

 

[stacheross]

Yes, precisely, I have both fan motor cables plugged into the fan outputs from the breakout cable, ensuring that I connect at least one to the 4pin output. The 500mm fan connection cable is connected to the INPUT socket of rad fan #1, fan to fan cable is in between, so there only avaliable output left is in radiator fan #2. The Input cable from rad fan #1 is connected to the cable that supposedly allows for RGB control, which is 4 pinned.

I know that the cables aren't installed the wrong way because there is only one way the 500mm cable can be plugged in, which is into the INPUT socket on rad fan #1 and into the breakout's lighting output. The cable itself is labeled with "IN" and "OUT" tags. The "IN" is plugged into the rad fan and the "OUT" is plugged into the breakout's lighting cable like the manual says in section 3.9. No way I messed up the orientation because there is only one way those two cables can be connected to each other.

I made an observation last night. I looked at the spare breakout cable I have and noticed that the cable from the breakout cabls lighting output is wired to the middle section of the other end of the multithread cable that goes into the pump. I noticed how before, when it worked just fine, the cable was basically buried inside the pump, but now it's not. It is a possiblity that it's somehow not fully making contact? I'm kinda scared about how hard you should plug things into a computer, but i'll try forcing it and see what happens.