




Brand | NZXT |
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Model | SEN-MIX2 |
Compatibility | Single 5.25" |
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Material | Acrylic, Plastic |
Features | Fan Connector: 4-Pin Finish: Matte black bezel with glossy black sliders Connections: 2x Molex Cable Finish: Black Rubber RGB Color Changing Control Method: Sliders Fan Channel Quantity: 6 Fan Channel Wattage: 30 Watts Maximum Combined Wattage: 180 Watts Included Accessories: 4x M3 Screws. Matte-black faceplate with glossy-black sliders 6 channels for complete airflow control 30 watts per channel Integrated color LED lighting with five different colors to choose from All black cabling PWM sized connectors. |
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Date First Available | July 10, 2013 |
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Pros: Gives precise control to fans. Looks very sleek, colors change to match my mood.
Cons: Takes up a 5 1/2" bay? (That may actually be a plus...)
Overall Review: Using PWM fan splitters I was able to control 8 fans with this in groups of two in my Corsair C70. (2 top, 2 bottom, 2 front, 1 rear, 1 Zalman CPU cooler.) I keep them all throttled to minimum 90% of the time and the system is virtually silent, even with 2-140mm fans in the top.
Pros: -Touch screen -Independant control of 5 fans -10% power increments from 40-100% -5 Thermocouplers input temp readings to the controller
Cons: Flemsy Molex connectors. I ended up cutting them all off and hard wiring my 5 fans. Doing so gives you the ability to cut-to-length the wiring for better routing and tucking results. Also ensures you won't get a short from the poopy connectors. May burn out your fans and LEDs over a period of time... After about 5 months I discovered one of my 120mm fans was not running, in addition to 2 of the LEDs dead and 1 flickering. I ensured no shorts in the wiring loom, then with a voltometer I tested the power lead from the controller. It was jumping like crazy, which must have burned out the fan motor and LEDs. Two other fans were also having similar problems - LEDs flickering or out completely, and low fan speeds even when on 100% throttle. I tested the power source from my PSU into the controller and it was perfect. The problem lies within the controller. I've since bypassed the controller for my fans straight to the power supply and will need to replace three $20 fans now. Sweet.
Pros: This is more of an update on owning this product. It controls your fans, lets you turn them off, and looks great without taking up too much space.
Cons: It doesn't control high end fans, so be aware. This unit only has 2 pin fan headers, which do not give enough power to high end fans and it just makes them tick and spin really slow.
Overall Review: Spend a little more and get a better fan controller. Though, since not everyone is not after super high end fans, most fans will work with this. From my experience so far, bitfenix spectre pro's as well as normal specters, some of the large 200mm fans from coolermaster that comes WITH cases, and cm sickle flows have all not worked with this.
Pros: Slide controls look alot better on most cases than those huge twist knobs that stick out. I have 4 fans hooked to one slide and 2 each on the other 4 This thing is Great Black cables look nice as well better than having a bunch of multi colored wires to have to hide.
Cons: Doesn't come in white which I wanted for my Switch 810 build but after building it the balck offsets the all white front. Doesn't make my dinner
Overall Review: just buy it you wont be unhappy at all its a great controller
Pros: -Cheap cost -The bright screen looks great -Touch controls are easy to use, even with my semi "big" hands -Controls up to 5 fans, each able to be controlled between "Off" and 40%-100%. (Going by 10's) -Has multiple temperature strips to mount in your case (but not necessary) -Automatic fan control (going by the temperature strips), or you can manually set each fan up -Can either show temperature in F or C -Remembers settings when you turn PC off and on -Can turn the screen off at night
Cons: -Lowest setting is 40%, going lower turns fans off, would've been nice to get into 30%, 20% and even 10%. -My cooler master fans, when plugged into the Sentry 2, make a terrible rumbling sound. It doesn't matter if they are powered at 100% or 40% (The lowest setting before turning fans off). It forced me to completely turn them off, my other Antec fans in the case work perfectly.
Overall Review: I bought the Sentry 2 to lower the settings specifically for the cooler master fans as they were a tad bit too loud. But when plugged into the Sentry 2 the noise is louder then they were WITHOUT the controller! When the fans are plugged into just the PSU they work fine. Obviously the fans aren't compatible with the Sentry 2, or vice versa. Now if I want to restore airflow I have to either live with the noise of the fans, listen to the rumbling, or spend even more money and buy fans I know work.
Pros: Well worth it for the cost,LCD touch screen,ease of intallation,just need an empty 5.25" slot and your golden.Plenty of Cable length for the fans and Power hook-up.Optional choice for 3 or 4 pins to connect your fans.Large easy to read touch screen and quick response time.Temp sensors are pretty accurate and match up within a degree or so with my Motherboard read outs.Looks great installed,adds to the look of the case.Shipping cost and delivery time excellent as always...received two days after ordering.Fits the bill for cost value and quality,no issues to be found atleast from my perspective.Does the job I expected.I would definitely recommend this fan controller.
Cons: Tons of wires,do yourself a favor and get some wire harnesses to keep things organized.Like many reviews the instruction manual is a bit on the light side,sure it describes basic operations for using the screen features and a brief description of installing the unit but,more information on placing the heat sensors and suggested installations and placement would help.I pretty much educated myself by looking up suggestions on the net.The thermal tape furnished for anchoring the sensors is cheap at best and the sticking power came into question,I basically bypassed the provided tape and bought some at a local electronics store.Not the quite the same stuff but,it was made to withstand high temps and definitely holds tight.The case of the unit is plastic and has metal inserts for the screws which hold it into the drive bay,word of caution do not over tighten as they will pop out like one of mine did,fortunately I was able to pop it back in without any further trouble.
Overall Review: As many of the reviews state this unit does have an issue with some brands of Case Fans.Problems range from humming to a ticking sound and this issue is acknowledged by NZXT and you can read about this on ther web forum.The Fans affected are: Antec - Big Boy 200 Antec - Tri Cool 120mm Lian Li - LI121225SL-B4-C Lian Li - LI121425QE-B4-A Scythe - S-Flex SFF21E Cooler Master - R4-L2R-20CG-GP Cooler Master - R4-L2R-20CK-GP Cooler Master - A12025-12CB-3BN-F1 Revoltec - RL026 120mm XION - RDL1225 Yate Loon - D14SL-12 Be Quiet! SlientWings BQT T8025-LF (80 mm) Be Quiet! SlientWings BQT-T12025-LF (120 mm) so in short know your fans before purchasing this unit.
Pros: -Stunning display -Easy connections with or without extensions, literally reaches anywhere. -Link Capability -Pushed my fans to their true potential.
Cons: -here it comes, why the -2 eggs you ask?... -To appropriately hook up the temp sensor, you must re-install your heat-sink.... no thank you. -The metal frame was bent.... from the factory because the box was perfect. -My temp sensor was hot glued to the circuit...... -Last but not least, the display on/off button does NOT work...
Overall Review: Shout out to NZXT (would love some feedback) Is my temp sensor supposed to be hot glued to the circuit board? If so, why give me another temp sensor in the box... not like I can switch it out =O Beyond that, Do Better On QUALITY CONTROL... I believe in you guys/gals... do better dangit! I will be starting the RMA process tomorrow.....hope it was just a lemon, here's crossing fingers eh?!
Pros: The software included is easy to use, simple to get setup. Supports 6 fans and is painless to install.
Cons: The CAM software (required to use the device) leaves a bit to be desired. Upon launching the software, instead of taking you directly to the fan control it wants you to login and create a cloud profile. That's nice, but oddly unnecessary. The Cam+ can not control the fans controlled independently. One setting controls all fans, and you don't have much flexibility in the matter. If you have multiple fans which run at different speeds and sound levels this can make the Grid+ less than ideal. Not a deal breaker, but you really need to configure your fans around the fan controller. It's somewhat counter-productive that you need to build around the Grid+, NOT use the Grid+ to improve your case. The "all or nothing" approach in the software removes a lot of versatility.
Overall Review: The fan controller only accepts 3 pin fans. While it does include 2 adapters, this doesn't help if you've got a case full of 4 pin fans (hi!). No worry, you can just buy some fan adapters online. Only, that's oddly much harder than it should be. Finding a basic 4 pin to 3 pin fan cable that's *under* $10 that suits your needs exactly is much more difficulty than it should be. Plenty of Y-cables, multiple inputs. Even my local computer megastore lacked the adapters. Even Nzxt doesn't sell the fan adapters on their site. Don't get me wrong, you can find the cables, but the pricing and shipping are not entirely in your favor. While I'll admit that it's my fault I didn't look at the fan connections when purchasing it getting the cables needed to convert my fans to work with the Grid+ added another $30 to the cost. Just something to keep in mind. If they can find a way to implement 4-pin fans AND independent fan controls in the future, along with improving the CAM software, this thing will be killer. As it is, it works well enough on its own, but it's lacks the finesse most other fan controllers on the market.