[SOLVED] Question about PC fans compatibility

[darkknightrasil]

I bought my nephew "gim kb-23 rgb case fans" for his new PC. His motherboard has 4pin connectors and the fans are 3 pin 5v. Is there a way to connect them with some attachment?

Amazon.com: GIM KB-23 RGB Case Fans, 3 Pack 120mm Quiet Computer Cooling PC Fans, Music Rhythm 5V ARGB Addressable Motherboard SYNC/RC Controller, Colorful Cooler Speed Adjustable with Fan Control Hub: Industrial & Scientific

Buy GIM KB-23 RGB Case Fans, 3 Pack 120mm Quiet Computer Cooling PC Fans, Music Rhythm 5V ARGB Addressable Motherboard SYNC/RC Controller, Colorful Cooler Speed Adjustable with Fan Control Hub: Case Fans - Amazon.com ✓ FREE DELIVERY possible on eligible purchases

www.amazon.com

 

[jadenwoolworth]

That 3 pin doesn't look like it's required. You can control the fans with the remote thats included as long as you have connected the SATA power to your hub. If you'd like to synchronize the the rgb with onboard components like rgb ram or led strips you will have to connect that 3 pin to the proper RGB out port on your motherboard. You probably just haven't found it yet if you can only find 4 pins.

 

[jadenwoolworth]

That 3 pin doesn't look like it's required. You can control the fans with the remote thats included as long as you have connected the SATA power to your hub. If you'd like to synchronize the the rgb with onboard components like rgb ram or led strips you will have to connect that 3 pin to the proper RGB out port on your motherboard. You probably just haven't found it yet if you can only find 4 pins.

taking another look at the post you may not have used the hub. based on the diagrams on the amazon page, you need to connect all 3 fans with the control hub and then the hub to your sata power. Then you can follow my other instructions if you want to sync with other onboard rgb. For example, ASUS Aura Sync.

 

[jadenwoolworth]

OH
one more thing I was wrong about. you can't hook it up to the asus rgb header because that IS a 4 pin. there's a little diagram of which connectors to look for on the amazon site and it will tell you which motherboard brands as well. Good Luck.

 

[darkknightrasil]

taking another look at the post you may not have used the hub. based on the diagrams on the amazon page, you need to connect all 3 fans with the control hub and then the hub to your sata power. Then you can follow my other instructions if you want to sync with other onboard rgb. For example, ASUS Aura Sync.

I am using the control hub to connect them. I wanted to sync to the motherboard to use control them but cannot connect to the board. He does not have a 3 pin rgb connector (I'm assuming he has a 4 pin). I did not know about this stuff until I built my own PC and one of the fan sets I bought him ran out of the amazon return policy. His PC was just bought so its pretty new.

 

[darkknightrasil]

OH
one more thing I was wrong about. you can't hook it up to the asus rgb header because that IS a 4 pin. there's a little diagram of which connectors to look for on the amazon site and it will tell you which motherboard brands as well. Good Luck.

When I did my PC 2 weeks ago I know I have a 3 pin.

 

[Paperdoc]

Today RGB lighting systems come in two dominant versions, although there are a few others. The plain RGB system uses a 4-pin header that supplies a common +12 VDC line plus three different Ground lines, one for each of the three LED colours (Red, Green, Blue). The more complex Addressible RGB or ADDR RGB or ARGB system uses a 3-pin header (looks like the 4-pin one with one pin missing) that supplies common +5 VDC and Ground lines, and a digital Control Line. The last line carries addressed data packets to the individual node control chips along the light strip. So these two are NOT compatible, and there is no good way to convert one to the other with a simple adapter.

The system you got for your nephew is the ARGB lighting type and has two options. You can simply use the included remote control to set lighting display patterns manually. IF your mobo has a 3-pin ARGB header, you can connect a cable from that to the fans' control box and let that signal drive the fan lights. BUT you believe there is no 3-pin header on his mobo, so you cannot do that at all.

If you want to be sure, get the maker and exact model number of your nephew's mobo and post here so we can look it up. Mobos are sold these days with no lighting headers, with only plain (4-pin) RGB headers, with only ARGB headers, or with both types of headers. What you get depends on which mobo you buy. The mobo maker's NAME for their lighting control utility software does not tell you which type of hardware lighting system they have included in a mobo.

 

[darkknightrasil]

Today RGB lighting systems come in two dominant versions, although there are a few others. The plain RGB system uses a 4-pin header that supplies a common +12 VDC line plus three different Ground lines, one for each of the three LED colours (Red, Green, Blue). The more complex Addressible RGB or ADDR RGB or ARGB system uses a 3-pin header (looks like the 4-pin one with one pin missing) that supplies common +5 VDC and Ground lines, and a digital Control Line. The last line carries addressed data packets to the individual node control chips along the light strip. So these two are NOT compatible, and there is no good way to convert one to the other with a simple adapter.

The system you got for your nephew is the ARGB lighting type and has two options. You can simply use the included remote control to set lighting display patterns manually. IF your mobo has a 3-pin ARGB header, you can connect a cable from that to the fans' control box and let that signal drive the fan lights. BUT you believe there is no 3-pin header on his mobo, so you cannot do that at all.

If you want to be sure, get the maker and exact model number of your nephew's mobo and post here so we can look it up. Mobos are sold these days with no lighting headers, with only plain (4-pin) RGB headers, with only ARGB headers, or with both types of headers. What you get depends on which mobo you buy. The mobo maker's NAME for their lighting control utility software does not tell you which type of hardware lighting system they have included in a mobo.

He has a (Gigabyte x570 UD) motherboard.

 

[Paperdoc]

Thanks for that. It confirms that the mobo has only a plain RGB header (4-pin system). You cannot connect to that for the ARGB lights in the fans, so you can do manual settings using the remote control module.