Other PWM Multi Chan fan controller.

There was a chap here who did a project at one stage - found here
https://bit-tech.net/reviews/modding/pwm_fan_controller/1/

Apparently his name was Dave Williams , I think his forumn name was Macroman, it doesn't look like he has logged in for a while and I need to make a multi chan version of his fan controller to control up to 8 fans inside a chassis with no motherboard, it only runs disks.

Does anyone know how to get hold of Dave, because it does not look like he has logged in a while or alternatively how I extend his project to 8 channels.

Cheers in advance.

 

If you google about you'll find qutie a few Arduino projects for controlling PWM fans. May be worth looking into.

 

If you don't need them at different speeds you can just run them all of the same output (assuming it can deliver enough power).

Also, are these 3-pin fasn or 4-pin fans?

 

My recommendation to you would be an Aquacomputer OCTO: https://shop.aquacomputer.de/product_info.php?products_id=3832&language=en

I have a QUADRO In my Unraid server which runs all by itself as the OCTO/QUADRO have on-board memory. I setup by connecting the controller to another machine, set all the values for speed vs temp, and then put it back in my server. It's been running for 7 Mo now with no input from me. The Aquasuite software is pretty nice too, I found it fairly intuitive to configure

 

These are 4 pin fans but they should work on a 3 pin connector as well, I didn't want to go an overly complex route with an arduino or anything like that, just something with a couple of trimpots maybe, one to control the pulse witdth and one for the speed or something like that, the fans themselves are NIDEC Ultraflow V80E12BHA7-57 T07 they run at 12v .80a and run at over 6000rpm full tilt, measuring 80x80x38 and output about 56db at full speed. I connected one to my motherboard and used the on board fan system to adjust it, at 2600rpm with a 50% duty cycle it was actually quite tolerable and still pushed a tonne of air.

The problem being the case that it will be running in will have no board at all and will be cooling hard drives on a back plane so their is no way to control it from a PC and it needs a standalone solution like the one I mentioned earlier from a project here but I need to be able to control more fans.

I believe the affore mentioned circuit can run multiple fan controller chips but I don't have the electro wizzardry to make that happen.

 

They are a nice unit but over kill for purpose with a lot of stuff that just isn't needed, quite pricey too, by the time it got to NZ with tax added and freight I would be looking at 160NZD

 

Ah, okay, fair doos.

If you are only looking to set a speed and forget, why not use the single channel PWM fan controller and then use a fan hub/powered splitter?

https://www.arctic.ac/en/Case-Fan-Hub/ACFAN00175A

https://www.deepcool.com/product/dcoolingaccessory/2017-11/12_7223.shtml

https://shop.aquacomputer.de/product_info.php?products_id=3830

http://www.phanteks.com/PH-PWHUB.html

 

The PWM controller in the article isn't a controller for PWM fans; it's a circuit that converts the 12v supply into a 30Hz square wave. If you want an "actual" PWM controller, all you need is an adjustable square wave at 5v / 16KHz, which is what you get with the Noctua NA-FC1.

Excuse the rushed diagram:


Depending on the strength of the PWM signal, you may be able to hook up the PWM wire from all eight fans to a single controller, but it's possible that you may need two or three controllers. Obviously you'd want to power the fans directly from the PSU and connect only the PWM wire to the controller. Maybe try one and see how you get on. Just watch out for the wiring on the Nidecs as there is no standard colour for PWM.

PWM on the 12v supply is not commonly encountered these days because it's not good for a fan's internal circuitry, and as the article states it often causes unpleasant noises when the fan is running at low speed, and you can't use the speed sensor.