[overclucker]

what fan controller supports the most fans for a cd-rom drive? i have seen a 6 fan controller but is there more? also whats the most they "could" support before the speed of the fans is starting to be effected?

[BokiOverclocker]

it's not how many channels you have it's about how much LOAD can you controll per channel.
But I think store ready is 6 channels most that i know about.

Originally Posted by overclucker

what fan controller supports the most fans for a cd-rom drive? i have seen a 6 fan controller but is there more? also whats the most they "could" support before the speed of the fans is starting to be effected?

[GigaForce310]

What are you trying to ask? How many fans can the controller run total or how many channels you can use?

You will have to look at how many watts the fans will draw. More powerfull fans obviously use more power. The problem isn't the fans bogging down but how much can the controller take before it overheats and shuts down. A good controller will allow you to run multiple fans on one channel such as 2+ intake or exhaust fans. You will control them together which is usually okay. As long as the channel is rated at or higher in wattage than the fan(s) then it's okay.

Another factor is measuring fan speed. If the controller will only accept one fan speed per channel then you won't be able to see the individual fan speeds if more than one fan is used per channel.

[archilochus]

If the controller will only accept one fan speed per channel then you won't be able to see the individual fan speeds if more than one fan is used per channel.

Just monitor 1 of the 2 fans RPMs'...

[overclucker]

yes i am asking how many "channels" one can support?

my main issue is i have about 13 fans in my computer and id like to keep them all running on the 3pin connectors, not the 3 pin to molex connectors, becuase that just takes up more room... so i need something i can plug them into becuase my mobo only has 3 or 4 places to them in.. and im not looking for those Y-connectors becuase i have noticed all they do is cut the power in half for both.... i need a unit that can support 10 to 13 fans without looking voltage

[brickout]

The y-connectors don't cut power in half. I ran 8 fans on a 4-channel Sunbeam Rheobus just fine. They may not have all hit 12v at full for all 8 fans, but they were close. Definitely way more than half...

[overclucker]

hmm well most of the Y-connectors i have used has done that... which ones are you using?

[brickout]

Generic, if memory serves.

I ordered them along with some Zalman multi-connectors, so they might be Zalman.

[squasher]

an easy wire splitter is just to strip the ends of 1 and tie it onto the middle of another.
-----------E
-----/

[BokiOverclocker]

can you post what type fans do you use so we can calculate how many per connection you can use.

[overclucker]

Originally Posted by BokiOverclocker

can you post what type fans do you use so we can calculate how many per connection you can use.

sure.

8 80mm uv fans 40cfm
2 zalman gpu fans
1 panaflo 92mm fan for CPU 60cfm
3 120mm fans 90cfm

[BokiOverclocker]

OK my bad on first post, i will need more info
best if you have fan info stats< how many watts each unit uses etc>.
if not than maybe all info like brand name model etc so i can look up on the web.
reason each fan has different wattage and how many amps it take to run so it's very hard to guess.

Originally Posted by overclucker

sure.

8 80mm uv fans 40cfm
2 zalman gpu fans
1 panaflo 92mm fan for CPU 60cfm
3 120mm fans 90cfm

[overclucker]

Originally Posted by BokiOverclocker

OK my bad on first post, i will need more info
best if you have fan info stats< how many watts each unit uses etc>.
if not than maybe all info like brand name model etc so i can look up on the web.
reason each fan has different wattage and how many amps it take to run so it's very hard to guess.

its ok dude, ill figure it out... thanks though

[gtechie]

Originally Posted by overclucker

hmm well most of the Y-connectors i have used has done that... which ones are you using?

It all depends on how much power you are providing to the fans. To give an example, lets assume that the power supply line you have the fans connected to can only support up to 18w of power and 1 of your fans use it all up. If you use a y-connector to connect another fan, your power supply will split the 18w to 2 of your fans, thus you have 9w only for each. (Note: these are imaginative numbers and do not show an actual representation of real power usages.)

That's basically how power works. With so many fans in your case, how much power does your power supply have? Each line (5v, 12v and so on) in your power supply can only support so much wattage and fans are only connected to the 12v line.

The 12v line is already used to power lots of other areas in your computer besides the fans so you may be using that line to the limit already. Each new fan you add will just drop the power to each thing that uses that line.

[overclucker]

exactly

[gtechie]

So, the only thing you can do if you want to add more fans and provide enough power for them all is to change out your PSU and make sure the 12V line has a much higher Wattage rating than your previous PSU.

Adding a fan controller will not help because you will still have limited power from your PSU. Fan controllers will not boost power, they can only adjust the output power to the fans so you can adjust the RPM. Let's use some numbers again, let's say you have 18w going into the fan controller and 1 fan uses all 18w. Adding another fan to that controller will still split the power to 9w each fan. Also, when you turn down the controllers, you are basically adjusting the output from 0-18w. Well not technically 0 because many fan controllers won't turn off the fan. Then again, I'm just using imaginative numbers as an example anyways.

With that many fans in your case, you need to up the power in your PSU.

[overclucker]

my psu is top of the line

[DvBoard]

you can't run all your fans off the motherboard, it's just too many amps for it to support. if you want to be able to monitor all of them maybe see if you can find a fan bus that will support RPM monitoring? it seems like someone would have one out. And this would most likely be able to support more amp draw so you COULD hook up the Y connection without a loss in power to the fans.