Q: Do you need the 3rd pin to read RPMs on a Fan controller?

Yes, you need the third pin or lead for the tachometer feedback from the fan.

Question 1

If I just chain these all together to hook up 3 fans would it cause any problems?
Also I really don't want about a foot and a half of cables inside my computer, so if there's a molex to 3 or 4 two-pin fan connectors, I can't find it.  But if you know where to get something like that it could mean the difference between me being zapped or not.

Accepted Answer

Fans use very little power (usually < 0.2 amps), so daisy chaining several onto one Molex rail is fine.

To cut down on cabling, you might want to consider splitting the fan cable instead of multile Molex splitters.  Using these, the cables are at least smaller and easier to manage.

You would use one Molex Splitter.  Then use one of these (or two for 3 fans):  StarTech Model TX3SPLIT12 12" TX3 Fan Power Splitter Cable

Question 2

Do you need the 3rd pin to read RPMs on a Fan controller?

Accepted Answer

Yes, you need the third pin or lead for the tachometer feedback from the fan.

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