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[Solved] 4-Pin Motherboard & 3-Pin Fan Compatibility: Will it Work Correctly?

patryk220 25020 6
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Treść została przetłumaczona polish » english Zobacz oryginalną wersję tematu
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  • #1 17334957
    patryk220
    Level 7  
    Hello,
    The case looks like this, if I have only 4-pin inputs on the motherboard and the fan I plan to buy has a 3-pin power supply, then if I connect it to the 4 pin, will it work completely correctly?
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  • #2 17335092
    Anonymous
    Level 1  
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  • #3 17335128
    patryk220
    Level 7  
    Ok, and one more question, if I choose a PWM fan, i.e. it will have 4 pins, I will be able to regulate the speed in the bios, and if it has 3 pins and without PWM, will I also be able to control them in the bios? And the second question is is this PWM useful?
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  • #4 17335138
    dt1
    Admin of Computers group  
    patryk220 wrote:
    if I choose a PWM fan, i.e. it will have 4 pins, I will be able to regulate the speed in the bios

    You can either or not, depending on whether the board is adjustable or not. Some boards allow adjustment on some fan slots, not all.

    patryk220 wrote:
    if it will have 3 pins and without PWM, will I also be able to control them in the bios?

    Depends on the disc. Some of them enable speed control in DC mode (i.e. by reducing the voltage supplying the fan). Refer to the disc's instruction manual for details.

    patryk220 wrote:
    is this pwm useful?

    Is fan speed control useful?
  • #5 17335146
    patryk220
    Level 7  
    Okay, let's forget about the last question and as for the rest, thanks for your help :)

    Added after 4 [minutes]:

    And one more quick question, let's assume that we have a fan without PWM, it can be controlled via SpeedFan or it also depends on the board, coming back to whether control is possible at all?
  • #6 17335174
    dt1
    Admin of Computers group  
    The SpeedFAN talks to the system that controls the fan. If SF can regulate speeds, the board usually does as well. Speedfan, on the other hand, is outdated software, it can often be unpredictable on newer motherboards (half a pain if it just doesn't work).
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  • #7 17335224
    patryk220
    Level 7  
    Problem solved
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Topic summary

Connecting a 3-pin fan to a 4-pin motherboard header is feasible and will function correctly, with one pin remaining unused. The compatibility allows for 4-pin fans to be connected to 3-pin headers as well. Speed control for fans depends on the motherboard's capabilities; some motherboards allow for fan speed adjustment through BIOS settings, while others may not. PWM (Pulse Width Modulation) fans provide more precise speed control compared to non-PWM fans, which typically operate at a constant speed unless voltage is adjusted. Software like SpeedFan can regulate fan speeds, but its effectiveness may vary with newer motherboards.
Summary generated by the language model.
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