Vantec Nexus 305 Fan Controller

Control: management of fans, temp/rpm monitoring via soft/hardware

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kie
Posts: 105
Joined: Wed Nov 12, 2003 10:46 am
Location: UK

Vantec Nexus 305 Fan Controller

Post by kie » Sun Jan 25, 2004 7:34 am

I just got one of these and thought I'd share my observations for anyone looking for something similar

Image

The Vantec Nexus 305 Fan Controller fits in a 3.5" bay and can control up to 3 fans (which was enough for me). Importantly, you can turn a fan from off to full power. There is a gradual increase in fan speed (as far as I can tell) so you really do have good control over the fan's range. The Nexus 305 uses PWM to control fan speed and although others have complained about noise and buzzing from their PWM fan controllers, this one is silent or at least inaudible to me (even with all fans off). Each know is lit by a bright blue led.

Another plus point is that the supplied leads allow you to plug in fans with the standard 3pin plug, or a molex plug.

The 4th knob controls 2 blue cold cathodes (that I don't need but are useful when I am poking around inside my PC case) which are included in the pack. They can be set to off, on for sounds activated.

All in all a good product, I'm very happy with it. The lights aren't necessary but some people might like them. It's not the cheapest fan controller out there, but it was the one that did everything I wanted it to do, that I could find at the moment (UK). It comes in black or silver and costs around £25.

Hope this helps someone in the future, just wanted to give something back to a site that has helped me loads.

silvervarg
Posts: 1283
Joined: Wed Sep 03, 2003 1:35 am
Location: Sweden, Linkoping

Post by silvervarg » Sun Jan 25, 2004 11:12 am

What fans do you run on the controller?
How many watts per channel can it take?
Any idea of what PWM frequency it uses?
Is there a way to get RPM forwarded to the motherboard?
If there any kind of capacitance connected to the fan feed?

kie
Posts: 105
Joined: Wed Nov 12, 2003 10:46 am
Location: UK

Post by kie » Sun Jan 25, 2004 2:48 pm

silvervarg wrote:What fans do you run on the controller?
Currently I am running the 120mm case fan that comes with a Antec Sonata case, a Panaflo L1A 80mm, and a Panaflo L1BX 92mm
How many watts per channel can it take?
18W
Any idea of what PWM frequency it uses?
No idea
Is there a way to get RPM forwarded to the motherboard?
Yes - but it requires some modding. The fan would have to be wired with 2 plugs in series. One with the + and - to the fan controller, and one with the speed and - to the motherboard.
If there any kind of capacitance connected to the fan feed?
No idea

MajereXYU
Posts: 39
Joined: Wed Dec 31, 2003 4:33 pm

Post by MajereXYU » Sun Jan 25, 2004 2:56 pm

It can take as much as 18w per channel and there are 3 channels. You can (even if Vantec warns against it) connect more than one fan per channel (with pass-thorough connectors).

No ideai of the PWM frequency.
You can't forward RPM to the mobo though. (Edit: oops... didnt know)

I can confirm that it doesn't make any noise (at least mine doesn't )
It's a great tool, allowing you to shut off the fans completely if you wish.

The two blue cold cathodes included produce some bright blue light, really adding character to any windowed case.

Highly recommended to those who like to have the option of turning down fans for silence but who wants to be able to crank them up later for intensive applications.

Cyberpukish
Posts: 59
Joined: Sun Jan 18, 2004 5:35 am

Post by Cyberpukish » Mon Feb 23, 2004 8:05 am

i love it. Oh the eerie glow at nite at the back. NICE! how do u use the sound thingy?

kie
Posts: 105
Joined: Wed Nov 12, 2003 10:46 am
Location: UK

Post by kie » Mon Feb 23, 2004 8:11 am

I'm very happy with mine too.

I don't use the sound activated light function though - well except when I am showing it to my friends... :D

Cyberpukish
Posts: 59
Joined: Sun Jan 18, 2004 5:35 am

Post by Cyberpukish » Mon Feb 23, 2004 8:14 am

ok i know how it works. Great for techno!

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