Supermicro M12SWA-TF PCH fan noise

[lunadesign]

Rumor has it the Supermicro M12SWA-TF PCH fan is really noisy.

Has anyone found any good solutions for this?

Can the fan be swapped with a Noctua? Or maybe use the existing fan with an LNA resistor to slow it down a bit and rely on good case cooling?

Thanks!

 

[nabsltd]

It appears to be a standard 40x10mm 3-pin fan, so either the Noctua NF-A4x20 FLX or the NF-A4x10 FLX should be drop-in replacements.

I'd go with the 20mm version for the higher static pressure and more airflow at lower noise, since they are priced almost the same.

 

[RolloZ170]

the FAN is close to the heatsink, i doubt the noise go lower. maybe different frq. and not that annoying.
better a 92mm on like a top blower CPU cooler, mounted on 3 or 4 MB standoffs to get the height.

edit: forgot there can be GPUs in the PCIe slots

 

[lunadesign]

It appears to be a standard 40x10mm 3-pin fan, so either the Noctua NF-A4x20 FLX or the NF-A4x10 FLX should be drop-in replacements.

I'd go with the 20mm version for the higher static pressure and more airflow at lower noise, since they are priced almost the same.

That's what I was thinking too although I'm not sure how safe it is to be messing around with the screws that attach it to the heatsink while the heatsink is still on the chipset.

 

[lunadesign]

the FAN is close to the heatsink, i doubt the noise go lower. maybe different frq. and not that annoying.
better a 92mm on like a top blower CPU cooler, mounted on 3 or 4 MB standoffs to get the height.
View attachment 25866
edit: forgot there can be GPUs in the PCIe slots

Very interesting idea!

 

[lunadesign]

FWIW, I chatted with Supermicro Tech Support today and it appears they know the PCH fan is noisy.

Swapping the fan or even plugging in a "low noise adapter" resistor would, in their opinion, constitute modifying the motherboard and thus voiding the warranty.

They apparently have a motherboard rev coming in late Q1 2023 that will include a lower RPM fan. Existing users that want the new fan will have to send the whole motherboard into their RMA dept for swapping.

Apparently the WRX80 chipset runs hot as all of the WRX80 motherboards I've seen have a fan on them. Kinda interesting because from the looks of the Supermicro motherboard manual block diagram, that chipset is only handling USB, audio, 4 SATA ports and 1 U.2 port.

 

[RolloZ170]

Kinda interesting because from the looks of the Supermicro motherboard manual block diagram, that chipset is only handling USB, audio, 4 SATA ports and 1 U.2 port.

afaik the chipset was mady by AMD and manuf. not by TSMC in 7nm. it s a 14nm ? same issue that was on X570 chipsets
the chipset is just a limited IO-DIE with high IF clocks.

 

[lunadesign]

Per this video from Level1Techs (see the video at the 9:05 mark), they say it is possible to use IPMI settings to slow down the chipset fan. Is this true? Does it make a difference?

 

[RolloZ170]

they say it is possible to use IPMI settings to slow down the chipset fan

souds to me its possible if they want, but its not implemented yet.
the FAN is a 3pin one, IPMI controled FANs are normaly 4pin.
if you slow down the FAN keep in mind the chipset can be overheat. i don't think they mounted the FAN just to annoying you.

 

[i386]

I found some post on reddit discussing the fan and some people disconnected or removed it completly (modding/removing the fan voids warranty according to the supermicro support).
I think in workstation/server chassis with enough airflow this could work...

 

[RolloZ170]

the chipset heatsink& FAN remembers me of my old i386 motherboard.
this looks like mounted last minute in a hurry, not even professional more like made by a drunken cat.
ther is place for a much bigger heatsink thought.

 

[lunadesign]

souds to me its possible if they want, but its not implemented yet.
the FAN is a 3pin one, IPMI controled FANs are normaly 4pin.
if you slow down the FAN keep in mind the chipset can be overheat. i don't think they mounted the FAN just to annoying you.

I believe 3 pin fans can be slowed down if the motherboard can lower the voltage it supplies to the header. However, my understanding is that most motherboards don't do this and instead rely on PWM (4 pins). And zooming on the photo, it appears the PCH_FAN header is a 4 pin header (but the fan is only a 3 pin fan).

That said, the guy on the video made it sound like he had successfully lowered the speed via IPMI. It's possible he was mistaken.

 

[lunadesign]

I found some post on reddit discussing the fan and some people disconnected or removed it completly (modding/removing the fan voids warranty according to the supermicro support).
I think in workstation/server chassis with enough airflow this could work...

I haven't seen that post (would you happen to have a link?) but I'm not sure I'd be comfortable running that PCH completely fanless. If the mobo can't lower the voltage, a 3 pin fan controller like this one + good case cooling might do the trick. But slowing down the fan might trigger a BIOS warning.

 

[RolloZ170]

And zooming on the photo, it appears the PCH_FAN header is a 4 pin header (but the fan is only a 3 pin fan).

That said, the guy on the video made it sound like he had successfully lowered the speed via IPMI. It's possible he was mistaken.

good point, indeed its a 4pin header. in the video he shows that FAN settings is missing in BIOS, for that reason he guess it can be possible to adjust the FAN speed in IPMI.
edit: but PCH FAN speed must be regulated by PCH temp or he die's.

 

[lunadesign]

the chipset heatsink& FAN remembers me of my old i386 motherboard.
this looks like mounted last minute in a hurry, not even professional more like made by a drunken cat.
ther is place for a much bigger heatsink thought.
View attachment 25938

Agreed. I think they were too concerned with blocking two PCIe slots. But I have some short cards that wouldn't be bothered by that.

BTW - I initially thought this was a flat heatsink with a normal fan on top of it but I saw a close-up that indicates that this heatsink has a cutout that the bottom half of the fan blades rotate through.

BTW #2 - It appears there are two versions of this fan (probably one for the v1.00 version of this board and one for v1.01). One is a black fan on a silver heatsink, the other appears to be a black fan on a black heatsink.

 

[lunadesign]

edit: but PCH FAN speed must be regulated by PCH temp or he die's.

Either that or you have a fixed speed fan that maybe runs a bit slower than the stock one to cut down on the noise while keeping the temps within the acceptable range. But with that tiny fan, its possible it really needs those high RPMs to move enough air. It's definitely a trade-off that might result in a shorter lifespan for the chip.

FWIW, I generally aim for fixed speed fans to avoid the distraction of hearing fans spinning up and down or whooshing sounds increasing/decreasing while I work.

 

[RolloZ170]

BTW - I initially thought this was a flat heatsink with a normal fan on top of it but I saw a close-up that indicates that this heatsink has a cutout that the bottom half of the fan blades rotate through.

correct, makes the HS FAN combi ultra cooling capable !! <- sarcasm
a GPU installed above it is sucked in by the FAN! Danger !

there is much room for a bigger HS without the need of a FAN

 

[ZWorkstations.com]

We found a fix for the PCH Fan noise on the Supermicro M12SWA-TF motherboard. We actually had the complete Supermicro A+ SuperWorkstation 5014A-TT, which uses that motherboard.

The PCH fan is 3-pin, so it's not PWM. The fan speed cannot be managed by IPMI. 3-pin fans spin at the full speed. The default fan installed spins at 5700rpm according to IPMI.

We purchased the Noctua NF-A4x10 FLX, which is a replacement 40x10mm fan. But there is no need to replace the fan. Included in the Noctua package is a NA-RC1 Low-Noise Adapter. It's a cable that connects between the fan and motherboard. With this cable connected, the fan speed reduces from 5700rpm to 3600rpm, eliminating the whistling noise and resolving the issue.

The low-noise adapter cables can also be purchased separately from Amazon. Search 'Noctua NA-SRC7'. It's interesting that a cable can reduce fan speed. An easy and effective fix.

 

[RolloZ170]

It's interesting that a cable can reduce fan speed. An easy and effective fix.

4 Pin FAN speed is controlled by a PWM signal, they get full +12V
3 Pin FAN speed is controlled by Input voltage Range 7-12V.

 

[i386]

It's interesting that a cable can reduce fan speed. An easy and effective fix.

The cable adds more resistance, voltage drops, fans spin slower