Reddit mentions of Noctua NA-FC1, 4-Pin PWM Fan Controller (Black)

Container: Rubbermaid 20 gal Brute Bin

Lights: Kingbrite 60 W Quantum Board (if you want dimmable, ask for a dimmable driver like the HLG-60H-36B and a potentiometer)

Screws: You'll need lots of nuts, long screws, washers, and spacers to mount the board and PSU. First put the board on the lid and mark where to drill, then drill holes. Then put the power supply on the outside in the middle, mark and drill those hoses. Mount power supply and then flip lid over and mount the light, using long screws and nuts to hold it in place (the light should NOT touch the lid but be 1-2 inches from it, held in place by nuts). Drill small hole for power line, then connect. Finally, drill 3 inch hole for exhaust beside the light. You'll also need long screws with nuts to keep the fan and shrouds together. Be sure to use spaces anywhere the screw heads or nuts are touching the lid or the lights. For light spacers, I used rubber spaces between the nuts.

Cooling shrouds: 120mm Fan Duct Cooling Shroud to 4 Inch Vent Hose

90 degree 4 inch elbow for exhaust: 4 in. 90° Round Adjustable Elbow

4" to 3" reducer for exhaust: 4 in. to 3 in. Round Reducer

2x regular JB Weld to mount the reducer and 3 inch "trunk"

Fan: Delta AFB1212SHE-PWM 120mm x 38mm 4pin PWM+Tac Sensor Extreme Hi-speed 3700 RPM 151 CFM

Fan controller: Noctua NA-FC1 4-pin PWM Fan Controller

Fan power supply: LE Power Adapter, UL Listed, 3A, 120V AC to 12V DC Transformer, 36W Power Supply

Fan power supply adapter: CRJ Female DC Power Supply Plug to 12V Molex Power Adapter Cable

Fan molex adapter: Coolerguys Mini 3-4 pin Fan Adapter (Single)

2x ABS fan elbow (for "snout" intake): 3 in. ABS DWV 90-Degree Hub x Hub Long-Turn Elbow

Air filter for intake: 16.25 in. x 12.5 in. x 0.19 in. - 16.3 in. x .2 in. x 12.5 in. - CF300 Carbon Filter

Air filter (not pictured): VIVOSUN 4 Inch Air Carbon Filter Odor Control with Australia Virgin Charcoal for Inline Fan

Fan hose (not pictured): iPower GLDUCT4X8C 4 inch 8 feet Non-Insulated Flex Air Aluminum Foil

Watering device (not pictured): Janolia Automatic Irrigation Kit, Self Watering System, with Electronic Water Timer

Camera (not pictured): Wyze Cam 1080p HD Indoor Wireless Smart Home Camera with Night Vision (glue steel piece for magnetic base onto the upper side of the bin)

Notes: This design is very safe because it keeps all electronic components high in the bin. At the same time, using a battery powered watering system keeps you from requiring to ever open it. The lamp runs very cool. The PWM fan controller works well and keeping the air moving without using a lot of power (do NOT buy a cheap voltage modulator, I did first and it doesn't work nearly as well as the PWM controller). The Wyze cam is super cheap and lets you keep an eye on everything or make timelapses. Have fun growing your tomatoes!

First time filling up my case with multiple case fans.
X570 Aorus Eliter Mobo, what's the correct methodology to attach 3+ case fans?
Do I need a fan controller e.g.: https://www.amazon.co.uk/d/Computer-Fans-Cooling/Noctua-NA-FC1-4-Pin-PWM-Controller/B072M2HKSN

The server was bought off eBay as a complete dual-node, Supermicro system: an SC808T-1200W chassis with dual X8DTT-F motherboards. Each node came with 72GB RAM and two Xeon X5650 (95W TDP) CPUs, but no hard drives.

I made no permanent mods to the server. The only changes I made were...

1. Removing the six 1U fans and fan mounts.
   
2. Removing the hard drive backplane because 2.5 inch SSDs were going to be installed rather than 3.5 inch HDDs. The backplane could have been left in place had I bought Supermicro caddie adapters, but I didn't.
   
3. Replacing the installed Xeon X5650 CPUs with Xeon L5630 (40W TDP) CPUs.
   
4. Replacing the factory 1U CPU heat sinks with new Cooler Master S2N-PLMHS-07-GP 2U Passive CPU Cooler Processor Heatsinks. All the Supermicro 2U heat sinks I could find on eBay were designed for front-to-back airflow, so the fins across the top were closed. I needed heat sinks that would accept top-down airflow.
   
5. Replacing the factory Supermicro PWS-1K21P-1R power supply with a new Supermicro PWS-920P-SQ power supply that I found on eBay for $60. This was based on a great write-up on servethehome.com: Supermicro PWS-1K21P-1R, PWS-501P-1R, PWS-920P-SQ noise comparison. The PWS-920P-SQ is only 920W compared to 1200W, but provides sufficient power and is much quieter. The power supply in this system powers both motherboards.
   
6. Adding two Noctua NA-FC1 4-pin PWM Fan Controllers for better speed control of the 140mm fans. These are the small black devices with green and amber LEDs. They allow the fan RPMs to be lowered 50%. This generation Supermicro motherboard provides only limited fan speed control, and it's in BIOS rather than through IPMI.
   
   Overall, the server is not silent, but it is whisper quiet. It's also a bit more of a space heater than I expected.

These are the products I used to quiet down my ML30. You will probably need a different size fan.


be quiet! Pure Wings 2 fans (2): https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B016XWZ5SK/

Noctua NA-FC1 fan controller: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B072M2HKSN/

Noctua NA-SAV2 anti-vibration fan mounts: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B018T385ME/

An update for anyone else that may come across this.

Sounds like it's only an issue with the Behringer NX6000, but the fan pins only output 5-6VDC, so the Noctua NF-A8 FLX fan above does not work at all. I decided to try the lower power Noctua NF-A8 ULN (0.6W vs 0.84W), which did spin up, but not fast enough to provide any cooling. Next, I tried the Noctua NF-A8 5V version, which works a little too well... it's even louder than the original fans. That said, I have decided to keep the FLX models that I will externally power and control with this Noctua PWM fan controller.

Update #2: I went with this AVS Forums relay outlet box that is currently in operation. It works really well, and has no "thump" when the relay powers the amp on. As an added benefit, I now have my fans plugged into the extra receptacle, so both the amp and the externally powered fans turn off/on with the receiver. Also, since this method does not alter anything inside the amp, there will be no warranty issues.

Note: the link to the AVS Forum goes to the last page. The info for the relay controlled receptacle box is the first post.

Hope this helps someone avoid a lot of work and Amazon orders/returns in the future.

Edit: added my final power relay fix in update #2.

For the bottom fan you would need a controller + power supply. So find a controller with the least amount of available connections (cheapest) and a power supply (power adapter) that would connect to it. So this + this. The controller is overpriced imo (because it's noctua lol) but it does what you're looking for and looks cool...

I mean, why did they place it in the middle of the board though. That's such a strange spot haha.

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Maybe try one of these if it's triggering your OCD like it is mine.

https://www.amazon.com/Noctua-NA-FC1-4-pin-PWM-Controller/dp/B072M2HKSN

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You don't even need to hook into the mobo you can use the little knob as your own manual fan speed control.

> fan

I have fixed my problems with the fans and the machine runs both silently and even more quietly. I ordered a Noctua fan controller (https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B072M2HKSN/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1) and a spare Noctua 92mm (https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B00RUZ059O/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o03_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1).

Both of the controllers come with a cable that undervolt the fan it is connected to (called a low noise adapter). I removed the stock 92mm fan (which was facing me because of the way my setup works. You might be able to get away with not doing this, but then you'll be out an extra low noise adapter wire, which will limit the amount of sound dissipation you'll get out of it). I installed my Noctua 92mm in it's place. Then I moved the stock fan to the front.

The fan controller comes with a cord that connects to the motherboard and a sata power connector. It receives it's instructions from the motherboard and then powers all the fans connected to it proportional to how fast you set it at. E.g. if the motherboard is saying fan speed 100%, and you have it set to 80%, all the fans will move at 80%. It draws extra power from the sata cable so that it won't draw too much power from the motherboard. I ran those two cables through the bottom PCI slot and then attached the controller to the bottom of the outside of the case. I did have to use the extension cable to get it out of the case. (This is also included in the package).

I then ran the 3 way Y Splitter into the case. I attached the Noctua 92mm directly to the splitter and the low noise adapter wire to the stock fan, which is now located in the front. Basically this means that the Noctua fan (in the rear) runs around 50% speed and the front one probably close to 30% speed.

I then attached the CPU fan to the second low noise adapter.

After making these changes my temps dropped 1C to 37C from 38C and the machine went from sounding like a jet engine taking off to being basically silent.

YMMV, and you will have to go through the annoying BIOS error every time you boot (I have to hit escape when it's running the rear fan test) so it probably voids your warranty in some respect so I'd advise against this if you don't know what you're doing but it seems to work on mine.

Noctua sells a PWM fan hub :)


https://www.amazon.ca/Noctua-NA-FC1-4-Pin-PWM-Controller/dp/B072M2HKSN/ref=asc_df_B072M2HKSN/?tag=googshopuk-21&linkCode=df0&hvadid=310762440393&hvpos=1o2&hvnetw=g&hvrand=16050401483979470120&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=m&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=1006886&hvtargid=pla-564069762151&psc=1

Noctua makes this guy with a knob.

I was thinking of this one. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B072M2HKSN/

It only controls 3 fans but that's all I need, 2 intake an 1 exhaust. Planning on leaving the CPU fans and watercooler pumps on the motherboards CPU fan connector.

Edit: You could use more than 3 fans with this controller I suppose since the Arctic fans can daisychain.

that battery tray you linked doesnt seem to be wired up. maybe this is more what you're looking for?

https://www.amazon.com/Sackorange-Battery-Storage-Plastic-1x18650/dp/B071JBRYF3/ref=sr_1_2?keywords=18650+battery+tray&qid=1551039435&s=gateway&sr=8-2

instead of a 12" tube i'd buy something flat that you can just curl up and insert into the cylinder.

the cooling fans just look like PC case fans. almost every PC guy would recommend Noctua fans for cooling a PC, here's a nice small 80mm that i think would work well, and a controller

https://www.amazon.com/Noctua-NF-A8-FLX-Premium-Computer/dp/B00NEMG9K6/ref=sr_1_2_sspa?keywords=pc+80mm+fan&qid=1551039869&s=gateway&sr=8-2-spons&psc=1&smid=A1Z5H6ZGWCMTNX

https://www.amazon.com/Noctua-NA-FC1-4-pin-PWM-Controller/dp/B072M2HKSN/ref=sr_1_4?keywords=pc+case+fan+controller&qid=1551039926&s=gateway&sr=8-4

and i did find some aparently suitable wire, in multiple colors so you can coordinate your color rails.

https://www.amazon.com/StrivedayTMFlexible-Silicone-Electric-electronic-electrics/dp/B01LH1G2IE/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_2?keywords=silicon+allterm+wire&qid=1551039773&s=gateway&sr=8-2-fkmr0

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I added an additional fan to the front of my T30 to cool the 2 Toshiba hard drives I have there. Like you, they were getting pretty hot (e.g. 50C) and the fan made a big difference. I didn't try splitting directly out of the motherboard which might work but was afraid of power so I picked up a pwm fan controller from amazon that's powered via SATA power cable. (https://www.amazon.com/Noctua-NA-FC1-4-pin-PWM-Controller/dp/B072M2HKSN/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1536729206&sr=8-2&keywords=pwm+fan+controller)

I sometimes get a rear fan control error on boot which is annoying since it requires you to hit a key to boot and my machine is usually headless. Still trying to figure that out.

I use this https://www.amazon.com/Noctua-NA-FC1-4-pin-PWM-Controller/dp/B072M2HKSN to control the PWM input on the PWM hub included in my FD Meshify S2 case. Controls 7 fans flawlessly.

Fans are powered by sata power to the FD PWM hub. Not the most accessible solution, but I'm a quieter fans/higher temps on my water cooling loop type of guy.

Apparently not, after doing some research I found that it is highly recommended.

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Any recommendations on a fan controller? Heres what I found with some googling

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Then for purchasing a back fan, would any 120 MM fan do? like this one?