Replace 2-bay fan controller - mine is going out

[tRidiot]

So I have an older NZXT Sentry LX. It looks like this:

View attachment 212460

It is going out, alarming all the time, I can't get it to stop, have tried setting fan speeds, etc., I just need to replace it, I guess.

But it seems this kind of thing has gone out of vogue, can't really find much. Certainly no 2-bay controllers, and I don't really want a single-bay as my case has special black metal mesh plates for the 5.25" bays and I think I've lost them. I would go with one of the internal software controlled versions, I guess, and I could just leave this blank dead screen in there (I've unplugged it now).

So I haven't found a lot of nice(r) non-cheesy looking 2-bay controllers. Looked for the Aerocool Touch 2100, can't really find any anywhere. I like the idea of a touchscreen, but it's not imperative.

Are you guys all using internal PWM multi-controllers with software control or what?



<edit> I see Performance-PCs says they have the Touch 2100 in stock (22 of them actually) for $50. I'm not too familiar with this company, are they legit? I'd rather have something that can auto-control rather than just manual, too. I realize the internal ones are good for this, and the Silverstone looks like a good bet, but the big empty hole in my case is an issue.

 

[dejo]

this is a piece that will control 10 fans, but all will run the same speed if they are the same fans. https://www.amazon.com/Timack-Chass...words=pwm+fan+controller&qid=1609205364&sr=8-

 

[tRidiot]

Yeah I see lots of options for internal control, just would like to find something like my NZXT so I can replace that 2-bay slot in my tower with something working and aesthetically pleasant.


Maybe I just need a new case anyways, eh, like that Lian Li?

 

[Zerileous]

Here are a couple options, no personal experience with them, just a quick search https://www.performance-pcs.com/fans-accessories/fan-control.html?bay_size=385

 

[tRidiot]

Here are a couple options, no personal experience with them, just a quick search https://www.performance-pcs.com/fans-accessories/fan-control.html?bay_size=385

Yeah, that's the website and model I mentioned in my first post. I may try that one, it just doesn't do any automatic control, so I don't know. I may just look into getting a new case, or see if I can dig through my parts bin and see if I do still have the 5.25" bay screens to cover those holes if I remove the current unit.


Although my son's new Lian Li case is gorgeous and has me drooling...

 

[Zerileous]

Sorry about that! I know it's not a 2-bay solution but I use the aquacomputer quadro for automatic control. It's technically USB based but it still works really well. I know the aquaero from aquacomputer is supposed to have more automatic control and be less based on a windows program, and I believe it has internal and single bay options.

I had the idea that you could replace with an internal or single bay and then use a Bay cover. It took me a while to find some that can actually be bought, but here they are https://www.mountainmods.com/index.php?cPath=21_34_67

 

[tRidiot]

Well that's an option I hadn't considered yet. Thanks!

 

[JLK03F150]

Here's a 5.25 two bay insert with a mesh grill and an 80mm intake fan. This is to fill the hole if you go with internal automatic fan control. I'm considering this because I can't buy matching mesh bay covers for my case.

 

[freeagent]

Here's a 5.25 two bay insert with a mesh grill and an 80mm intake fan. This is to fill the hole if you go with internal automatic fan control. I'm considering this because I can't buy matching mesh bay covers for my case.

That is pretty slick. I like that..

 

[Zerileous]

nice!

 

[tRidiot]

So I've since decided I'm building a whole new PC - based on a Lian Li O11-Dynamic XL. So, no front drives or components at all.

 

[JLK03F150]

I think I'm going to get the two bay mesh HDD enclosure. I've decided to keep my Rocketfish ~Lian Li PC-A71 and just update all the 3 wire fans to PWM fans. I still have a few rogue fans I need to figure out once I remove my single bay fan controller. I have a 70x10mm blowing on the back of the CPU socket because this box had my FX8320 in it. Not needed now, but I might keep a fan there anyway since temperature is so important to being able to maintain boost speeds.
Congrats on your new case & pending super high-end build tRidiot!

 

[Zerileous]

One important factor when switching to PWM is to consider what temperatures the fan speeds can ramp based on, using the motherboard's controller. You could set fixed percentage in hardware (whatever is a comfortable volume) and if that provides adequate cooling than great. If not, my motherboard can only provide PWM curves based on a "motherboard" temp or CPU temp. Setting case fans on CPU temp will cause them all to ramp up and down in an annoying fashion. Meanwhile the motherboard temp may not correlate to your actual cooling needs. So before dedicating yourself to that route, I would suggest looking at the options available in your board and seeing if any of it's temp sensors correlate well to your needs (i.e. GPU temperature). Also consider that many motherboards offer voltage based fan control, so you many not need to scrap every fan for PWM.

If you do decide that you want more control, something like the QUADRO from Aquacomputer gives you a temp sensor that you can stick anywhere, and a lot of options to base a curve on that temperature (as well as a bunch of other temps available in software and works with HWiNFO64). You can also set how aggressive or responsive the curve is, to curb annoying ramping up and down behavior. (Well apparently this too is suffering from everything being out of stock, but it's still a great option when available).

 

[JLK03F150]

I want to put my radiator fans on the CPU header & keep the rigged VRM fan (think FX8320, old habits die hard - lol) to the Opt_CPU header. There are two Sys_Fan headers & I confirmed they are both PWM. Read that not all 4 pin headers are PWM on some motherboards. I already have half my 3 wire case fans on those headers. I think I can make curves in BIOS that should work at least as good as my manual fan controller. Hopefully better.
Only fan without a plan is the back-of-socket 70x10mm. It has to have some sort of control because it's obnoxious at 100%.

 

[Zerileous]

Is it molex or 3 pin? Could always do the 7v mod. Please note the "4 pin" fans in this article are molex, not PWM, as the article predates PWM. Essentially (IIRC, please reference the article as I haven't done this in like a decade) you swap the ground with the 5v wire on the molex connector, which leads the fan to run at 7v instead. Or you could just remove it.,