While it is just a guess, it appears they've used the standard pinout. I guess they didn't want anyone to be able to connect 3-pin fans to it, as to why, who knows. This is as opposed to the standard fan connector which is a modified version with alignment pin designed to allow both 3-pin and 4-pin fans. That is how you 1) find the power pins for a 4-pin PWM fan, and 2) yes, you can power the fan for 100% speed with just two of four pins.Looks like they've just used a regular Molex 4-pin KK connector. Although, adding a capacitor across the power lines with a PWM signal is cleaner, but that is another topic. This is exactly how 3d printers control their mainboard cooling fan (e.g.

You can even pulse the power wires (it is still considered PWM) for low-power fans. Nitpickers will nitpick, but this has worked for ages for cooling fans in computers and 3d printers.

This is how you find your power pins for the 3-pin and 4-pin PWM fans if you want to run them at 100% duty (no PWM signal at all - a floating pin). If you blow on a fan hard, it produces a voltage. Why does this work? If you power a typical (single-phase) DC cooling fan, it spins. You should only need to try this at most twice. Next, with a can of compressed air (not by touching or blowing), get the fan spinning and see if you can observe something close to the 5V, 12V, or 24V (what your fan is rated for). So, to answer the OP's question and help Googlers years in the future, try this:Īttach a voltmeter to any two adjacent pins/wires (power pins are usually adjacent). I have four black wires on my 4-pin PWM Arctic and Noctura fans because I use my own PWM cables. Is it possible to disconnect this connector piece and connect the individual wires directly? (red and black?)ĭo you have red and black wires? I don't. If you interpret this differently, ask the OP to clarify. I interpret this as 'I want to power my fan and have it running at 100% speed'. Is it possible to disconnect this connector piece and connect the individual wires directly? (red and black?) I currently have a fan with a 4-pin connector that I want to power, but I do not have a power supply with a 4 or 8-pin connection. How to connect a 4-pin (3-pin) connector to a power supply? If you came here from Google with the question:

4 pin fan pinout download free