lamptron fan controller not working

[bartvb2000]

I bought the lamptron fc5-v2 fan controller to controll my case fans, but this fan controller doesnot work with my 3-pin case fans from sharkoon. I can confirm that the fan controller does work, it will spin up my 4-pin cpu fan if connected. I bought it to controll 3-pin fans and it should be made for 3 pin fans



some relevant info:

case: sharkoon DG7000 (red)

fan controller: Lamptron fc5-v2

case fans: 3 stock scharkoon 3-pin LED case fans

cpu fan: 4-pin coolermaster fan (no LED)



The main problem is that I cant spin up my case fans, once connected and powered up, I can only controll the intensity of the LED's but the fan blades wont spin up, not even at 12volts. I tried spinning the blades up by hand but that also doesnt work. The fan controller can support 30watts per channel and the fans are just 0,25 Amps so that means 3 watt per fan, that should not be a problem. If the case fans are connected via a molex to the psu, they do spin up and work propperly. The fan controller is made for 3-pin fans, but also works for 4-pin fans.



I want to know if this is a compatibility issue, and if it would help to buy other fans, or if there is a way to use these fans with this fan controller?

Any other sollution to my problem would also be apriciated.





Thank you in advance,

Bart van Buuren

 

[Paperdoc]

I suspect you're talking about a LAMPTRON (not lampoon) controller.

From what I can see on the Sharkoon website, the fans are 3-pin design, with both the fan's motor and the LED's included powered from the same supply lines. Now, all fans MUST have a certain minimum voltage to start up, typically over 5 VDC, often over 8 VDC. However, the LED's WILL usually light up at lower voltages. So, are you sure that the controller is set to output full voltage when you try to start up? Do not try to start with the controller set to reduced speeds.

I note that you say the fans cannot start even when they are fed 12 VDC. And yet, when you connect them directly to a PSU Molex output using an adapter, they do spin. So, when they don't spin while "connected to 12 VDC", how do you now they are getting 12 VDC?

Take a close look at the output connectors of the Lamptron unit and at the connectors on the ends of the fans' wires. The controller has four 3-pin fan male output connectors, each with a "tongue" sticking up beside the pins. The fan female connector has 3 (or 4) holes, and grooves on one side. When fitting them together, the grooves on the female connector slip over the tongue on the male so there is only one way to plug them together. In the case of a 4-pin female fan connector, the fourth hole simply does not mate with a (missing) Pin #4.

You were able to get a 4-pin fan to work when plugged into the controller, and that is what should happen. When you plug a 4-pin fan into a 3-pin header, the method of control in use makes the 4-pin fan behave exactly like a 3-pin fan. So, in your test, the controller DOES work as a 3-pin fan controller when a 4-pin fan is plugged into it. That certainly prompts the question, how did you plug in a 3-pin fan so that it did NOT work?

Have you tried plugging any of those 3-pin fans into another fan header? For example, plug one into any mobo SYS_FAN header. If the header uses 4-pin PWM Mode for control, that fan should run full speed all the time. If the header uses the older 3-pin Voltage Control Mode, its speed should be controlled by the mobo header. But either way, the fan should start up and run. If it does, then the fan is OK.

 

[bartvb2000]

I suspect you're talking about a LAMPTRON (not lampoon) controller.

From what I can see on the Sharkoon website, the fans are 3-pin design, with both the fan's motor and the LED's included powered from the same supply lines. Now, all fans MUST have a certain minimum voltage to start up, typically over 5 VDC, often over 8 VDC. However, the LED's WILL usually light up at lower voltages. So, are you sure that the controller is set to output full voltage when you try to start up? Do not try to start with the controller set to reduced speeds.

I note that you say the fans cannot start even when they are fed 12 VDC. And yet, when you connect them directly to a PSU Molex output using an adapter, they do spin. So, when they don't spin while "connected to 12 VDC", how do you now they are getting 12 VDC?

Take a close look at the output connectors of the Lamptron unit and at the connectors on the ends of the fans' wires. The controller has four 3-pin fan male output connectors, each with a "tongue" sticking up beside the pins. The fan female connector has 3 (or 4) holes, and grooves on one side. When fitting them together, the grooves on the female connector slip over the tongue on the male so there is only one way to plug them together. In the case of a 4-pin female fan connector, the fourth hole simply does not mate with a (missing) Pin #4.

You were able to get a 4-pin fan to work when plugged into the controller, and that is what should happen. When you plug a 4-pin fan into a 3-pin header, the method of control in use makes the 4-pin fan behave exactly like a 3-pin fan. So, in your test, the controller DOES work as a 3-pin fan controller when a 4-pin fan is plugged into it. That certainly prompts the question, how did you plug in a 3-pin fan so that it did NOT work?

Have you tried plugging any of those 3-pin fans into another fan header? For example, plug one into any mobo SYS_FAN header. If the header uses 4-pin PWM Mode for control, that fan should run full speed all the time. If the header uses the older 3-pin Voltage Control Mode, its speed should be controlled by the mobo header. But either way, the fan should start up and run. If it does, then the fan is OK.

You are right, i mean Lamptron not lampoon, my fault.

I was not certain about the 12 volts, so I got an electricity measurement device from a friend and I measured the voltage coming from the fan controller on full power: 11.49 Volts. Then I measured the power coming from the molex: 11,49 Volts. Another thing to note is that it seems like the fans want to spin up but just can't, even at 11,49 Volts. Helping the fans spin up by hand doesnt work, it didn't even work when I tried spinning them up with a vacuum cleaner on one side. I can safely come to the conclusion that volts are not the issue, the only problem I can think off is a lack of amps, which would be strange considering the fans are 3 watts while the controller can put out 30 watts per channel

I am sure that all the connectors are connected in the proper way.

I plugged one off the 3 pin fans into the motherboard CPUFAN2, it spinned up to about 900 rpm, but I was not able to control the rpm’s in the bios.

I hope you can help me further with my problem.
Bart van Buuren

 

[Paperdoc]

This makes no sense to me so far, so let me ask for you to check a couple of things.

Your original post says the case 3-pin fans will not start up when connected to the Lamptron controller's outputs, but do run when plugged into a PSU Molex output. I'd like you to check details of the connections. Also, since you have a volt meter available, I'd like you to take readings at particular test points.

Look at this diagram of the female (with holes) connector on the end of a 3-pin fan's wires.

http://www.overclock.net/photopost/data/1249403/a/ae/aef6b553_3pin-molex2.jpeg

In the upper one, note the ridges on one side of the connector. These fit around the plastic tongue beside the pins of the male power output connector, so there's only one way to plug it in. Now note the colors and pin numbers. Pin #1 is Black, and it is the Ground connection. Pin #2 is red, and it's the +VDC supply, varying from 5 to 12 VDC to control speed. Pin #3 is Yellow, and it only takes the speed pulse signal from the fan motor back to the male header.

So, when you measure voltages on the fan during tests, ensure that your + probe goes to the RED wire coming out of the connector, and the - probe goes to the BLACK wire. Depending on what the probes are, this may be difficult to get contact with those wires just outside the connector body. For this I can make two suggestions. One is to use a sharp knife to remove a small patch of insulation from the Red and Black wires where you can reach it with the probes. It may be easier to do this close to the fan motor, rather than at the connector. You can put tape over those spots later if you like. The other thing I've done is to get a couple of small straight sharp pins, like sewers or dressmakers use, and push one each into the back of the connector where the red and black wires come out, enough to contact the wires inside where they are already bare. Then use the probes on the pins.

Next, set up to compare the two power sources. One is the Lamptron outputs. Plug a fan into there and see what the actual voltages are on the wires leading into a fan. When you do this, make SURE that the fan connector's ridges face the Lamptron unit's port's tongue, and slide on either side of it. Then, on to the PSU Molex output. Its female 4-hole connector has 4 wires, and there SHOULD be a color mis-match here. The FAN's BLACK lead should connect to the Molex's BLACK. But the FAN's RED lead should connect to the Molex's YELLOW lead because that is the 12 VDC supply there.

So, from those two tests, please confirm what the fan did in each case, and what the voltage readings were in each case.

 

[bartvb2000]

This makes no sense to me so far, so let me ask for you to check a couple of things.

Your original post says the case 3-pin fans will not start up when connected to the Lamptron controller's outputs, but do run when plugged into a PSU Molex output. I'd like you to check details of the connections. Also, since you have a volt meter available, I'd like you to take readings at particular test points.

Look at this diagram of the female (with holes) connector on the end of a 3-pin fan's wires.

http://www.overclock.net/photopost/data/1249403/a/ae/aef6b553_3pin-molex2.jpeg

In the upper one, note the ridges on one side of the connector. These fit around the plastic tongue beside the pins of the male power output connector, so there's only one way to plug it in. Now note the colors and pin numbers. Pin #1 is Black, and it is the Ground connection. Pin #2 is red, and it's the +VDC supply, varying from 5 to 12 VDC to control speed. Pin #3 is Yellow, and it only takes the speed pulse signal from the fan motor back to the male header.

So, when you measure voltages on the fan during tests, ensure that your + probe goes to the RED wire coming out of the connector, and the - probe goes to the BLACK wire. Depending on what the probes are, this may be difficult to get contact with those wires just outside the connector body. For this I can make two suggestions. One is to use a sharp knife to remove a small patch of insulation from the Red and Black wires where you can reach it with the probes. It may be easier to do this close to the fan motor, rather than at the connector. You can put tape over those spots later if you like. The other thing I've done is to get a couple of small straight sharp pins, like sewers or dressmakers use, and push one each into the back of the connector where the red and black wires come out, enough to contact the wires inside where they are already bare. Then use the probes on the pins.

Next, set up to compare the two power sources. One is the Lamptron outputs. Plug a fan into there and see what the actual voltages are on the wires leading into a fan. When you do this, make SURE that the fan connector's ridges face the Lamptron unit's port's tongue, and slide on either side of it. Then, on to the PSU Molex output. Its female 4-hole connector has 4 wires, and there SHOULD be a color mis-match here. The FAN's BLACK lead should connect to the Molex's BLACK. But the FAN's RED lead should connect to the Molex's YELLOW lead because that is the 12 VDC supply there.

So, from those two tests, please confirm what the fan did in each case, and what the voltage readings were in each case.

I have not had the time to do the full test you were talking about.

I still had my 3-pin fan plugged into the mobo and running on full power, I unplugged the pin and quickly connected the 3-pin fan into the controller, then turned up the voltage to 12 volts and it just started spinning while connected to the fan controller! I don't know to which degree heat influences an brushless DC motor, I suspect the issue might be caused by the fan using far over 30 watts to spin up.

I will measure the amps used by the fan when connected to a molex connector, to ensure it doesn't use over 30 watts. I will also measure the amps used by the fan at full voltage when connected to the fan controller.

 

[Paperdoc]

I would not worry too much about the amps consumed. When it's specified to consume 3W (that's 0.25A at 12 VDC), that is a common (maybe even slightly higher than common) value, and it certainly will NOT use vastly more than that to start up. By the way, I'm surprised to read that your fan controller module is rated for 30W PER CHANNEL. 30W TOTAL is a more common rating for a controller.

Anyway, your last post said something important. You wrote, "then turned up the voltage to 12 volts and it just started spinning while connected to the fan controller!" I should have caught that before. ANY fan must have a certain minimum voltage supplied to it to start up. Computer 12 VDC fans typically need at least 7 or 8 VDC for start-up when they are new and in good condition. Most are in danger of stalling if they are fed less than 5 VDC when they are already running. For this reason, the automatic fan speed control systems used on mobo ports normally feed every fan the full 12 VDC at start-up time, then proceed to complete all their other POST tasks. A few seconds later when that is finished and the software has time to check the temperature sensors in use, THEN it gets around to reducing each fan's voltage (or, for PWM fans, the PWM signal) to achieve the reduced cooling needed for that temperature condition. Moreover, such systems are set never to feed less than some minimum (typically, 5 VDC) to any fan. Further, most such systems monitor each fan's speed signal for failure indicating it has stalled, and will respond to a stall by raising the voltage to full 12 VDC for a short time to re-start, then lowering it again. In other words, the mobo makers know that you always give a fan full voltage to start it reliably.

Users of third-party manual fan controller modules need to understand this and follow the same rules. Always start up your system with all of the fans' speed controls set to max, then reduce them to your desired setting. And do your own periodic checks for a stalled fan that needs to be re-started.

 

[bartvb2000]

I would not worry too much about the amps consumed. When it's specified to consume 3W (that's 0.25A at 12 VDC), that is a common (maybe even slightly higher than common) value, and it certainly will NOT use vastly more than that to start up. By the way, I'm surprised to read that your fan controller module is rated for 30W PER CHANNEL. 30W TOTAL is a more common rating for a controller.

Anyway, your last post said something important. You wrote, "then turned up the voltage to 12 volts and it just started spinning while connected to the fan controller!" I should have caught that before. ANY fan must have a certain minimum voltage supplied to it to start up. Computer 12 VDC fans typically need at least 7 or 8 VDC for start-up when they are new and in good condition. Most are in danger of stalling if they are fed less than 5 VDC when they are already running. For this reason, the automatic fan speed control systems used on mobo ports normally feed every fan the full 12 VDC at start-up time, then proceed to complete all their other POST tasks. A few seconds later when that is finished and the software has time to check the temperature sensors in use, THEN it gets around to reducing each fan's voltage (or, for PWM fans, the PWM signal) to achieve the reduced cooling needed for that temperature condition. Moreover, such systems are set never to feed less than some minimum (typically, 5 VDC) to any fan. Further, most such systems monitor each fan's speed signal for failure indicating it has stalled, and will respond to a stall by raising the voltage to full 12 VDC for a short time to re-start, then lowering it again. In other words, the mobo makers know that you always give a fan full voltage to start it reliably.

Users of third-party manual fan controller modules need to understand this and follow the same rules. Always start up your system with all of the fans' speed controls set to max, then reduce them to your desired setting. And do your own periodic checks for a stalled fan that needs to be re-started.

I do not believe it either but it says 30W per channel on the box.

Anyway, I think you didn't quite understand me completely. The fan ONLY works in combination with the fan controller if it has been 'warmed up' by the mobo before. The fans wont start if I turn the voltage up to 12 volts normally.

 

[Paperdoc]

OK, so we're back to the questions I was asking Feb 27. To me it makes little sense for the fan to work perfectly when fed 12 VDC from one source, and then to fail completely when fed that SAME voltage from another source. That is why I asked that you rig ways to measure the actual voltage at the fan with a voltmeter to verify the info.

 

[bartvb2000]

OK, so we're back to the questions I was asking Feb 27. To me it makes little sense for the fan to work perfectly when fed 12 VDC from one source, and then to fail completely when fed that SAME voltage from another source. That is why I asked that you rig ways to measure the actual voltage at the fan with a voltmeter to verify the info.

Yes, I can confirm the voltage is the same from the fan controller as from the psu, also when a fan is connected to the fan controller.

 

[Paperdoc]

So, you're sure that the voltage actually reaching the fans is always 12 VDC, no matter what it is plugged into? And yet, the fan does NOT start up when plugged into the Controller module, but works OK when plugged into either the mobo fan header or the PSU output connector?

 

[bartvb2000]

So, you're sure that the voltage actually reaching the fans is always 12 VDC, no matter what it is plugged into? And yet, the fan does NOT start up when plugged into the Controller module, but works OK when plugged into either the mobo fan header or the PSU output connector?

Yes (said that more than twice already)
I ordered new case fans, thanks for nothing