Fan Control Capability on P67 Extreme4

[jimmyw404]

Gentlemen,

I am building a new system and want to use the P67 Extreme4 as the motherboard. It is a watercooled system (2x GPUs and CPU) with quite a few fans. I'd like to make use of the Extreme4's fan control capability but I could not find specifications for it.

Ideally I'd like to have three sets of fans:
1. CPU radiator fans.
2. GPU radiator fans.
3. Case fans.

Each set would have their speed controlled by the temperature of the CPU, GPU and motherboard/ram respectively.

The questions I have are:
1. What are the max number of amps the different fan power sources on the motherboard can output?
2. Does the Extreme4 motherboard have the capability to read the GPU temperature? (Newegg.com - XFX HD-687A-ZDFC Radeon HD 6870 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.1 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card with Eyefinity is what I am planning on getting if it matters)
3. Does the Extreme4 motherboard have the capability to receive temperature sensor input from an outside sensor (Like Temperature Sensor, Flat, 10K Ohm - Water cooling systems, pc liquid cooling kit, cpu, video card, hard drive but it can be any sensor).

If anyone has suggestions or other products I can use like TMS-205 Software Thermal Interface Controller - Water cooling systems, pc liquid cooling kit, cpu, video card, hard drive I'd appreciate any feedback.

Thanks!

[kick]

Re: Fan Control Capability on P67 Extreme4

q1 answer =6x 1..ie go for 6x 1 amp max on fans from the 6 headers. It might do more,but why increase circuit heat.

q2..the motherboard can read the gpu temp.otherwise u wouldnt get a gpu temp from any software.
Will the board control fanspeed thru headers 1-6 based on gpu temp? answer=no
q3.can the board recieve temp input from items such as hd drives,yes.
Can u use such information to control fanspeed in headers 1-6 ans= no.

Header 1-6 fanspeeds,depending on which header u mean, are either
a.full speed(unless the fan is temp probe controlled.yes i do have an 80mm fan with its own temp probe and there are plenty of self regulating fans around.)
b.speed controlled in relation to cpu termp(set a speed ,if cpu exceeds a certain temp u set ,fans will run full speed)
c.speed locked.. ie u set a speed,and thats what fan speed stays at,there is no speed variation with temperature.

As to which header operates with which parameters: check older posts(mine included)

There is no temperature control of fanspeed on the motherboard other than via cpu temp..

I personally have 2 temp probe fanspeed controllers but these work from a single molex power supply,ie the fanspeed is temp related,but not from any motherboard input,purely on probes that came with the units.
2 units,2 probes per unit=4 fans
nb one probre is near the gx card vrms,they get hotter than the gpu..
I also have a temp probe hdd cooler tray with 3 seperate probes,.I really just use the temp probes on this to monitor the memory temps.

[jimmyw404]

Re: Fan Control Capability on P67 Extreme4

Thanks kick, you have clearly and completely answer all my questions, so I'll ask you one more =)

What is the product name of the single molex power supply you use? I've looked for a decent one but couldn't find it.

[allan12345]

Re: Fan Control Capability on P67 Extreme4

Hi,

Sorry to hijack the thread... it's related.

Can any of the 1-6 headers auto-regulate 3-pin fans? Set to Level 4 and the non-PWM fan gets turned down? I'm asking for Noctua fans. Also can those settings be overridden by CPUID HWMonitor Pro?

[kick]

Re: Fan Control Capability on P67 Extreme4

@ Jimmy
Is your Q "which aftermarket fan controller(s) do I use ?"
the answer is
1. Overclocker Cafe - Cremax IcyDock Bodyguard 525


2. and 2 of these

http://bigbruin.com/reviews/enermax-a3fatr2/

Yes these are ancient fan controllers! but I only bought them last year (brand new from old stock).
You can get much more modern controllers that will do the same thing , but you probably wont get them at like $3 each brand new as I did.

@allan
short answer:There is no auto cpu temp/fanspeed regulation for 3 pin fans from the motherboard headers.
long answer:
a.Any headers whose fanspeed output can be varied by cpu temp need a 4 pin connector.
b. There is one exception(kinda) .
If you have a 4 pin fan connected to cou fan 1 header and a 3 pin fan connected to cpu fan 2 header the motherboard will vary the speed of the 3 pin fan connected to cpu fan2 header in accordance with the temp setting u enter in bios(uefi) or axtu.

Will it work with 2, 3 pin fans on cpu 1 and cpu 2 headers?(not for me).
Will it work with 4 pin fan on cpu header 2 and 3 pin fan on cpu header 1 ,dunno havent tried it.

[allan12345]

Re: Fan Control Capability on P67 Extreme4

kick, but have you tried the 3-pin fan on the 4-pin CPU header scenario on the ASRock mainboards?

a. is not a certinty

I'm asking this because right now I'm on an ASUS mainboard with Q-Fan 2 for the 4-pin CPU header. To it I have connected a Zalman 3 pin fan... built-in in an older CNPS7000. Even if the fan has only the classic 3 pins, so non-PWM for certain, Q-Fan regulation is done on the mainboard. In BIOS I set it to auto silent and at boot it does the job as soon as the video post is done, the fan gets silent. As to HWMonitor, I can uncheck auto and set it to a speed like 100% and the fan goes up to 2600rpm from the 1600 rpm it is usually, that is if Q-Fan doesn't want to push the fan higher than 2000 during load and I know the process will take some time and some heat will be made.

That's what I want to know before getting the products, among which is an ASRock mainboard. If it's not possible, then I have some PWM fans as options and I'm done with the problem.


And sorry Jimmy for the hijacking... I had this problem as well once, but the only non-costly solution I found was to use same type PWM fans. All of then, about 8, would be connected to the PSU for power, but only the PWM wires and one of the speed wires to the 4-pin CPU header. Luckily, the proper product for this job is out. Back then the mainboards only had one 4-pin PWM header but the P67 ext4 has two of them so there is the possibility of controlling two sets of fans, CPU and case. For the GPU part you could try to exploit the PWM headers from the graphic cards if you want variable RAD fan speed. Try to find out which is the PWM pin on the card and connect to it the PWM wire, and only that, of a case fan with PWM capability and see if you can regulate it from Catalyst control panel. If that is done, the RAD fans are taken care of, but you also must search on how to edit those Catalyst settings and set proper values to suit your needs. If you give the whole build a wide look, what kick said, with the cheap manual fan controller it sound easier than what you and I have/had in mind.

[kick]

Re: Fan Control Capability on P67 Extreme4



Well yes u could use even just a splitter from a single mbrd header even without any molex connection at all provided the fan amperages werent too high.
To sum up tho

1.There are 2 fan headers cpu fan1 and cpu fan 2 which are controlled by a cpu temp u set in bios.
If you set say lvl 7 and 55C for cpu fan 1and 2(they are linked) then cpu fan1 and cpu fan 2 will only run at 75% speed up to 55c cpu temp.
Above 55C cpu temp the speed will ramp up to full speed (at around 60C).
Only one of the fans needs to be 4 pin for pwm and temp control.

2.The other cpu temp controlled header is chassis fan 1,this needs a 4 pin fan.
There is a seperate cpu temp related adjustment for this header.
You could have it set at level 6 and 50C. ie a fan(or multiple fans with a splitter) connected to this will only operate at 60% speed up to cpu temp of 50C and then ramp up to full speed.

Temperature adustment range for these headers is 45C to 65C in 1 degree increments.

Chassis fan headers 2 and 3 have speed adjustment in bios but it isnt temperature related.Chassis fan 2 header has only 4 speed settings 25%,50%,75% and 100%.

the power fan header is non adjustable ie a fan connected to it will operate at full speed all the time,unless it is self adjustable..
The 3 headers other than cpu 1 cpu 2 and chassis 1 only need 3 pin fans.

There is also the option if you wish of using a molex connector from the psu to supply 5v to a 12vfan ,leaving the fan rotating at a little less than half speed all the time (to reduce noise)
In my case with a 2 pin extractor fan i just invert to molex plug in its socket so power is coming from the red wire rather than the yellow one ,the negative return is still one of the black wires.

Thats the way the headers work on the asrock p67 extreme 4 and 6 boards ,probably the z68 ext 4 and p67 pro 3 boards also.

nb the gigabyte board on the second system in my sig has a motherboard(not cpu temp) temp regulated 3 pin fan header (sys_2 header).Its not terribly effective and only varies the max speed by about 300 rpm but it does operate from a different temp sensor.



Aside from the pulse width modulated/non pulse width modulated aspect of fan control on the asrock board(s) there is only one temp regulation source,the cpu.

If you are using a water cooling solution especially ,components that arent directly water cooled might get even hotter than in an air cooled system and the only way of detecting that and varying the speed of your air cooling fans is to use temperature probes (2 wire thermocouples ) measuring the component temps directly.Software solutions like speedfan are very bios dependent and I dont know if its even compatible with p67 yet + the motherboard cant read temps off memory heatsinks for example !.
Besides it looks cooler and more techie to have flashing digital and direct reading fan speed readouts when you open your pc front panel door

[-InteL-]

Re: Fan Control Capability on P67 Extreme4

Well yes u could use even just a splitter from a single mbrd header even without any molex connection at all provided the fan amperages werent too high.
To sum up tho

1.There are 2 fan headers cpu fan1 and cpu fan 2 which are controlled by a cpu temp u set in bios.
If you set say lvl 7 and 55C for cpu fan 1and 2(they are linked) then cpu fan1 and cpu fan 2 will only run at 75% speed up to 55c cpu temp.
Above 55C cpu temp the speed will ramp up to full speed (at around 60C).
Only one of the fans needs to be 4 pin for pwm and temp control.

2.The other cpu temp controlled header is chassis fan 1,this needs a 4 pin fan.
There is a seperate cpu temp related adjustment for this header.
You could have it set at level 6 and 50C. ie a fan(or multiple fans with a splitter) connected to this will only operate at 60% speed up to cpu temp of 50C and then ramp up to full speed.

Temperature adustment range for these headers is 45C to 65C in 1 degree increments.

hai kick,

I have another question regarding your explanation number 1, in this case i'm using 890gx pro3 motherboard.
MY PWM fan are connected to CPU_FAN1 with automatic setting in BIOS, target of 45 degree with fan speed level 3. My processor temperature idle at 41-42degree with fan speed level 3. But when I load (game L4D2 for example), my processor temperature raised up until 50 degree but the fan speed still on speed level 3.

Is there another way to set PWM?

btw I used newest bios 1.30 for my 890GX Pro3.

[kick]

Re: Fan Control Capability on P67 Extreme4

hey Intel,

I dont know much about other asrock baords as this is the first one ive owned but what I can tell you is the fanspeed increase if i set mine at 45C doesnt go up right away .. or much at all really ,I think there is a relationship with cpu power draw also.
It goes something like this .
threshold set at 45C
45-50 the speed doesnt increase at all or very slightly.
52-58,around there it gets up to full speed,especially if the cpu temp is increasing rapidly.

threshold set at 65C.nothing much happens between
65-68c,if the cpu temp stays there (65-68), which will depend on which cpu overclock im trying then fanspeed doesnt change much its only in the next 5 degrees or so that the fan speed increases to full.
if the cpu temp reaches about 75c and I then stop testing/gaming whatever , the fans dont come off full speed until its safe ie the cpu temp goes down fairly rapidly but the fanspeed may not go down to its set lvl for 30 sec or so even tho cpu temp may be at idle temps,like 35c.

Another possibility is that your fan itself is speed limited,but im sure you would know if it was by now.It does go faster if u set the lvl higher?

Your cpu seems cool and you have plenty of headroom try a more intense cpu test ,or turn your fan down to lvl 1 and see if the full speed begins to start when you are reaching 50-55.

[-InteL-]

Re: Fan Control Capability on P67 Extreme4

threshold set at 45C45-50 the speed doesnt increase at all or very slightly.52-58,around there it gets up to full speed,especially if the cpu temp is increasing rapidly.Another possibility is that your fan itself is speed limited,but im sure you would know if it was by now.It does go faster if u set the lvl higher?Your cpu seems cool and you have plenty of headroom try a more intense cpu test ,or turn your fan down to lvl 1 and see if the full speed begins to start when you are reaching 50-55.

Hai kick,Thanks for your explanation.I tried and it worked perfectly. I set target of 45C with fan speed level 1, when it reach 50C, fan spped slightly increase. The increased speed was not too significant, but I'm 100% sure that the fan speed increase, because when I closed all programs then the temprature slowly back to idle, I saw the fan speed also decrease. Maybe for make sure, I will use software to stress my CPU.Overall, your explanation is perfect. I really appreciate and thanks for it.