• How do I convert Celsius to Fahrenheit?
• How to find System and CPU temperatures
• What's the best case fan to use
• What should I look for in a case fan?
• High Watt Fan RPM and Power Splitter
• Open the Hidden Vent
• Where can I get information on fan speeds, airflow, and noise levels?
• Which wires on a molex connector are 5V and 12V?
• My CPU is HOT, what can I do, quick!?
• Fan Switches FAQ's
• Where can I buy Panaflo Fans?
• 12V fan specifications
• How do I run my fans at 7V to reduce noise?

You can convert that by using our converter below. Enter a number in either field, then click outside the text box. F: C:

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by Kevin edited by FastEddie
last modified: 2010-12-30 10:27:47

Generally there are two ways to go about this. The first way is entering the BIOS and finding the hardware monitor page. On this page you will commonly find things like CPU temperature and voltage, case temperatures, power supply voltages as well as other various motherboard related things. The only pitfall of this method is that in most cases the CPU is not under stress. This means the CPU temperature you see is equal only to what we would seen in the OS when the computer is idle. Heat related problems occur almost always when the computer is under load (thus producing more heat).

So our second option is to use software to monitor temperatures. The most commonly used program for this is Motherboard monitor 5. This program can not only read voltage levels but also fan speeds and System/CPU temperatures. Most motherboards are now automatically detected during setup so there is no configuration needed.

If however you can't find your motherboard in the list of boards during setup look at this page to find which sensors on your motherboard correspond to which sensor in MBM.

You can download MBM 5 here.

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by Exit edited by FastEddie
last modified: 2004-02-15 11:48:54

The best 80mm case fan to use depends on what the user wants, less noise more or better air movement or a combination of both. To see what the OC'ers prefer take a look at their preference Here.


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by FastEddie

Every computer needs cooling, but to what extent? Cooling is one of the most basic principles in building a computer, and can/will provide excellent stability and overclockability. How is this? Silicon's performance decreases as temperatures rise, causing unwanted crashes, errors and low stability.

Many overclockers look for CFM (Cubic Feet per Minute) before anything else in a fan. However, your computer will sound like a fighter jet if you don't factor in the noise!!! Most 80mm Fans will shoot out about 35-40 CFM with reasonable noise (30-40 DBA) Anything above, and it's all noise, as these fans can reach extremes of 50-60 DBA, but it's your hearing! The ultimate overclockers dream is to have a silent PC with a lot of CFM. A PC is considered silent when below 28 DBA. Many overclockers also look for many 80-92mm Fan holes in case (anywhere from 4 and up)

Generally, name brand fans are the first thing to look into like Panasonic Panaflo, Sunon, Delta, Sanyo among others.

Deltas are for extreme overclockers who don't care about noise, and generally have a loss of hearing. They have high RPMs to pump out high CFM, but in some cases, you can get your body parts chopped off if you don't be careful and put on a fan grill

Sunons are the mainstream fan, and for good reason. They pump out reasonable amounts of air with not too much noise.

However, many overclockers and regular users alike are turning to Panasonic Panaflos for their remarkable quietness with excellent CFM. Unless you are such a hardcore overclocker, and do not care about the noise one bit, and you live for the highest CFM, Panaflos are the way to go.

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by TheHondaMan edited by FastEddie

Be careful not to run the higher speed fans directly from the motherboard headers. The ever-popular 38CFM Delta fan is not only annoyingly loud at 46.5dBA, but it also draws 0.32Amps and 3.84Watts of power. To avoid blowing the fan headers built into the motherboard these fans come supplied with a 3 pin-to-molex connector, which allows the fan to draw power directly from the computer’s power supply.

Follow the guide


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by FastEddie

Open the Hidden Vent

Almost all the computers built today now have a front mounted fan, or at least a place to mount one, hidden behind the front panel. The manufacturers usually cut some slots or a few hole for the fan to draw in cooler air. Now that's like trying to drink a very thick milkshake thru a very small straw, it takes a lot of work. Now just image what is happening to your fan, it's working harder than it has to and drawing very little air.

If you have or are going to put in a front mounted fan, the best thing to do is open up the area in the front panel that is covering up that fan and cover it with a grill. This will drop your case temperature by 3-4 Celsius and the fan won't be straining to pull in fresh air.

You'll have to buy a grill to cover the hole that you are about to cut and it will have to be at least the size of the fan that's hidden behind the front panel. So if you have a 80mm fan get yourself a 80mm fan grill. I used a fancy laser cut grill that you can find at PCMods they also carry the regular grills too.

The first thing you do is remove the front panel and drill a hole in it in the area that would be right in front of the fan. Now using a Dremel, jigsaw or even a hand saw, enlarge that hole so it is the size of the fan grill that will be covering it. Stop your cutting every now and then and match the hole you are making to the grill that you will be mounting over it and make sure they match up. Don't make the hole larger than the grill or it won't look professional.

Once you have the hole cut to the size you need, sand any rough edges down with some fine grit sand paper. Now lay the grill over the hole and carefully match them up. Now mark the mounting holes by using a pencil and sticking it in the grills mounting holes and wiggling it back and forth. Now carefully drill those holes with the correct diameter drill bit. You can find out what size drill bit you need by finding a drill bit that will fit thru the grills mounting hole.

Once the holes are drilled you are ready to assemble everything. If you use a laser cut grill you may want to use a piece of stiff screen to stop any objects from entering your computer case.

Hold the grill to the front panel and insert the screws thru the mounting holes of the grill and on thru the front panel. If you are going to use screen, put holes in it where the mounting screws will go thru it and mount it on the back side of the case and put the nuts on the screws and tighten them. Now your fan will have an easier time pulling fresh air in the case.

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by FastEddie

Where can I get information on fan speeds, airflow, and noise levels?

You can find a list of fan specifications at this review from icrontic.com.

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by MacGyver edited by FastEddie
last modified: 2002-03-05 13:21:06

Which wires on a molex connector are 5V and 12V?

The yellow is the +12V and the red is the +5V.






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by Sc0tt edited by FastEddie
last modified: 2002-05-28 19:12:41

My CPU is HOT, what can I do, quick!?

Reading this from your 60C AMD XP with a stock heatsink and no case fans, there are a few things you can do to help in less than 10 minutes!

First thing is first, looking at the front of the computer, take off the left panel of the case. You'll notice 2 thumb screws holding the side panel on. You can unscrew them, then slide the side off.

Even with OEM (retail; Dell, Compaq, HP.. ect) nearly all computer cases have IDE expansion bays that are on the front panel of the computer. You can pull them all out, creating a nice size gap in the front of the case.

If you want, near the back of the computer, you can also pull out any extra PCI bay covers by unscrewing them creating a couple extra vents. Think car grill.

If you have a can of compressed air, while your case is all apart (and computer is hopefully off) blow out your case with the can. If a little dinky can of air isn't going to move the 4cm thick dust coating inside your system, if you have a Shopvac or anything that will blow air, more common, a vacuum cleaner, take the computer outside and let her rip.

Now that your case looks like a skeleton and it's mostly dust free, if you have a little office fan, something small like a 6" (about 13cm for you metric folk) electric fan. You can then position the fan to circulate the air inside the case. You can experiment with fan alignment with whatever works best for you.

When you put your ghettoized self-cooling computer back in it's place, make sure it's not pushed up against a wall. You can leave it against the wall if it is the side that holds the motherboard.

Now go buy a decent heatsink and some case fans!

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by Mike edited by FastEddie
last modified: 2002-04-19 19:55:56

Fan Switches FAQ's

You can find everything you want to know about connecting switches to control case fans at this web site.

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by FastEddie

Where can I buy Panaflo Fans?

Generally, Panaflos are sold with no "tail" or connector to plug into your motherboard or Power Supply.

Buying Panaflos from certain resellers, such as Newegg, can add much cost to the fan with the tail, as shipping can get expensive. Other dealers, such as Caseetc offer Panaflos with tails pre assembled for much less. Customer service is also very nice from both resellers.

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by TheHondaMan edited by FastEddie
last modified: 2002-08-08 21:44:01

12V fan specifications

Ever wonder how loud that fan in your computer really is? Well now you can find out. These site's also have things like voltage, amperage and air flow rates listed.

80mm fans

92mm fans

More fans

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by Exit edited by FastEddie
last modified: 2003-11-10 22:08:22

How do I run my fans at 7V to reduce noise?

Almost all case fans run on the 12V DC supplied through a power supply. One way to reduce fan noise is to supply a lower voltage to the fan. All ATX power supplies provide both 12V and 5V DC outputs. A case fan could run on a 5V voltage, but the 58.3% voltage reduction would significantly reduce the cooling power of the case fan. An alternative is to use the 12V as the positive and the 5V as the negative (ground), using the voltage difference as 7V. With 7V, the voltage is dropped only 41.7% from 12V, but it is 20% higher than 5V allowing enough cooling while effectively reducing fan noise.

First off we have the regular male molex end connector. This pin number and color relationship are the same whether it's a male or female connector. The connectors are designed (keyed) so they only fit together one way, which prevents you from damaging your hardware.


Next we have the fan connector. Note the red wire is 12V+ and black is ground.


To run your fans at 7V (12V-5V) simply run the red fan wire to the 12V pin of the molex connector and the black to the 5V pin as shown below.


Enjoy your quiet fans!

Images from bleedingedge.com

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by Exit edited by FastEddie
last modified: 2004-05-24 18:49:10