Water sensor for MB without sensor pin

[Rhaos]

Bit the bullet over Black Friday and ordered up full water cooling set up and fittings.
Primarily have gone with EKWB for CPU, GPU, and Pump, Alphacool Rad and Barrow fittings.

I also want to know the water temperature but my motherboard (MSI X570 Tomahwak) doesn't have any pins on the motherboard for a temp sensor.

Is the only way to read the water temp to get one of those digital inline flow meters?

 

[VersionMonkey]

Controllers like the Aquaero/Octo/Quadro also take sensor inputs, but they won't be available to your motherboard (but then neither would an inline display).

So it depends on what you want to do with the temperature - are you just interested or wanting to e.g. base fan speed off the water temp?

 

[im4gine3]

Controllers like the Aquaero/Octo/Quadro also take sensor inputs, but they won't be available to your motherboard (but then neither would an inline display).

Not sure what you mean by this. Get one of the above devices and connect via an internal usb header, wire up a couple of sensors off it (normal sensor or an Aquacomputer temperature sensor inline G1/4 for coolant temp) and will be viewable via the Aquasuite software

 

[VersionMonkey]

Not sure what you mean by this. Get one of the above devices and connect via an internal usb header, wire up a couple of sensors off it (normal sensor or an Aquacomputer temperature sensor inline G1/4 for coolant temp) and will be viewable via the Aquasuite software

Exactly. The OP wanted to connect a temperature sensor to the motherboard, it wasn't clear if they wanted to use that with motherboard fan control, or just generally for information.

Clearly, if they get a separate controller, they could do fan control through the controller instead.

 

[pastymuncher]

If you just want to monitor the water temp then a inline sensor with a LCD display will be fine. I have been using them for years with no problems. If you want to control the fan speeds by water temp you will need something like a aquaero controller but it will get expensive as you add on more and more sensors.

 

[Rhaos]

Controllers like the Aquaero/Octo/Quadro also take sensor inputs, but they won't be available to your motherboard (but then neither would an inline display).

So it depends on what you want to do with the temperature - are you just interested or wanting to e.g. base fan speed off the water temp?

Sorry but what do you mean by the Inline display wont be available for your motherboard?

Looking at the Aquacomputer inline display flow sensor states its USB powered?

Not sure what you mean by this. Get one of the above devices and connect via an internal usb header, wire up a couple of sensors off it, and will be viewable via the Aquasuite software

Thanks @im4gin3 I'll have a look at them.

 

[VersionMonkey]

Sorry but what do you mean by the Inline display wont be available for your motherboard?

Looking at the Aquacomputer inline display flow sensor states its USB powered?

I was alluding to your reference to the absence of motherboard temperature sensor headers and infering that you were perhaps thinking of using the temperature for motherboard/BIOS-based fan control. A separate controller or display, USB connected or not, can not be used in that way - you would need to boot to Windows and use the software/service associated with the controller (or just look at the number on the display). It might have been clearer if I had written "not available to the BIOS", rather than "not available to the motherboard".

@pastymuncher said what I was trying to say much more succinctly than I managed.

 

[therealdippy]

I have been very impressed with Aquacomputer products. I have the High Flow Next flow sensor and the Octo fan controller which has 3 sensor inputs. Most of my fans are controlled by the great Aquasuite SW using those sensor inputs, plus some that Aquasuite can get from the motherboard I/O controllers. In contrast the sensor inputs on my mobo have lower precision, and the fan control curves in the BIOS are rather basic. Since I have 9 fans one has to be mobo-controlled, as are the dual pwm pumps because of course I need them to be controlled by the mobo independent of the OS. But when I have been tuning that fan and the pumps with the BIOS control (I have the pumps on very low speed in idle and ramp them up as the temp rises during gaming) I have so much wished that it wasn't as crude as it is and instead gave me the flexibility and precision that Aquasuite gives.

 

[WantoN]

AquaComputer make great kit, and they also have built in sensors with most of their products.

Something like the OCTO has 4 temp sensor inputs, and is a phenomenal fan controller. The Quadro would do you fine if you have less radiators / fan banks.

 

[Demon]

I ended up using a Corsair commander pro.. for the cheap price, having RGB, Fan control with 4 Temperature inputs, it's actually worked out well for the money. I have some older Aquero controllers but honestly (and I hate to say it), the iCUE software does work well for me and it's free!

I use the inline G1/4 temp sensors (have them pre then post rads) for the water, and two normal air sensors for the case to check on internal case temps.

 

[davemarcus]

I don't really have experience with this but I know someone who fixed a LCD display inline sensor to monitor the temperature and it's working perfectly well for him