Quick bit of advice (extending a fan cable)

moggsy

moggsy

moggsy

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11 Dec 2006
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223
Happy new year everyone....

Haven't got a clue regarding anything electrical really so just want some quick advice on how to extend the length of a rear exhaust fan, as described in the pic of my Antec case below...



Basically, I've overclocked my Q8400 cpu to 3.2Ghz (from the standard 2.6) and it's been stable for the last 3 weeks or so since...

However, I have the rear exhaust set to it's slowest (almost) silent speed for general usage, where it idles at around 36-38C! When I'm encoding video overnight though, it goes right up to about 65-66C - a bit too close to the chips max of 72C for my liking!

If I crank up the speed (and noise) via the controller/resistor at the back though, it brings the temps down to around the 60C mark at full load - BUT it means I have to get down on my (dodgy) knees and reach around the back for the little switch that controls it. I then go off to bed and let it do it's thing, quite happy with that temp.

In the morning though, I like to get it back to it's usual quiet self and have to get on my hands and knees again to set it back to it's 'normal' setting, not an ideal scenario!

Can I just get ANY similar thickness 2-core wire and cut the existing short cable and splice in the required 18 inches or so by just twisting together the ends and covering them up with insulation tape, to get the switch to where I want it at the top/front of the case, or does it have to be a certain ampage/rating type of thing?

Thx for any advice :)
 
The wires running to the switch are pretty thin as far as I remember. Just cut the cable and add in your extension to each wire in there. Avoid mixing up the connection though as that would mess up the speed settings.

Another option is to convert the Molex power connector to a fan connector and plug into a proper fan controller and even maybe an auto fan controller like the Recon which will adjust the speed in the fly for you. It's also possible to convert these fans into PWM control by using a converter.
 
Tealc said:
The wires running to the switch are pretty thin as far as I remember. Just cut the cable and add in your extension to each wire in there. Avoid mixing up the connection though as that would mess up the speed settings.

Another option is to convert the Molex power connector to a fan connector and plug into a proper fan controller and even maybe an auto fan controller like the Recon which will adjust the speed in the fly for you. It's also possible to convert these fans into PWM control by using a converter.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the reply Tealc....I'm thinking it might be a bit too fiddly to do what I suggested now tbh, I just want a cheap solution though, as I don't do that much video encoding really, so don't wanna spend a lot on fancy controllers so I was thinking about THIS.

I've just had another closer look at the pic above of my case (which was just screen grab from a review of my case from elsewhere on t'internet) and I noticed what looks like another 3/4 pin cable attached to the fan (but is tied up out of the way by the looks of things...) I can't remember whether or not mine has that too - it should do though - but even if it hasn't, I could get one of those molex-3pin converters you mentioned. If I was to use the Zalman controller though, do you think I'd need to put the existing reistor (I'm currently using) onto it's MAX setting, and then throttle it down (after my PC's powered up for the first time) to it's 'quiet' speed that I normally have it on??

Thx again
 
Never mind. I went the 'fiddly route' :)

Spliced in some spare wiring I had lying around, now the controller switch is sitting right at the top-front where I wanted it - happy days ;)
 
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