Supermicro Atom C2000 A1SRi boards - voltage fan control instead of PWM?

[wywywywy]

Hi all,

Does anyone know with the Supermicro Atom C2000-series (A1SRi series) board, whether there is a way to control the fans by voltage, rather than PWM please?

The reason I ask is because I got some nice Noctua fans coming to me, but they are 3-pin not 4-pin.

I don't see any options in the BIOS. I've done some googles but didn't managed to find any relevant info.

Thanks.

 

[alex_stief]

From the manual:

Fan Headers (Fan 1 ~ Fan 3)
The A1SAi & A1SRi Series motherboard has three 4-pin fan headers (Fan 1~Fan 3). Although pins 1-3 of the fan headers are backward compatible with the traditional 3-pin fans, we recommend to use 4-pin fans to take advantage of the fan speed control via Pulse Width Modulation through the BMC. This allows the fan speeds to be automatically adjusted based on the motherboard temperature. Refer to the table on the right for pin definitions.

Not sure if they refer to backwards compatible as "the plugs fit" which is kind of obvious of if there is actual voltage control for these fans.

 

[wywywywy]

Yes like you said they do spin but I want to know if they can be controlled.

 

[alex_stief]

Sorry, no first-hand experience with these boards.
As a pessimist I would interpret the statement in the manual as a "no". Isn't it great that supermicro always leaves room for speculation

 

[vanfawx]

Your best bet is probably to install the included speed limiter with the Noctua fans to run them at a lower speed. Or return the 3 pin for 4 pin fans.

 

[Diavuno]

Hi all,

Does anyone know with the Supermicro Atom C2000-series (A1SRi series) board, whether there is a way to control the fans by voltage, rather than PWM please?

The reason I ask is because I got some nice Noctua fans coming to me, but they are 3-pin not 4-pin.

I don't see any options in the BIOS. I've done some googles but didn't managed to find any relevant info.

Thanks.

Not that I've found....
if they are not PWM the board will put out full 12v and the volume is based on the fan you plug in...