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Most overclockers know and fear the annoying sound of the popular high performance 60 mm and 80 mm Delta fans. The 60 mm Delta "Black Label" is running with up to 7,000 rpm and the high-profile 80 mm EHE Delta fan is running at 5,700 rpm. Regular fans of these sizes are running at roughly half the speed. The noise of these 2 powerful Delta fans is in excess of 50 dB and so intense that nobody with a functioning hearing can endure these fans for a longer period of time. There are several ways to cope with the problem: most users are employing these fans only for overclocking and put in "normal" fans for day-to-day use. A more convenient way is using a fan speed regulator. Swiftech for example is offering for this purpose a "rheostat" as accessory to their noisy 80 mm HSF series.

Left: Swiftech Rheostat. Center and Right: Lian-Li fan switch.

Some PC cases are equipment with simple 2 or 3-step fan speed switches. This here is the 3-step switch for the 2 front-side 80 mm case fans in the LIAN Li PC 70 aluminum server case. Both solutions however are not very solidly made. Mounting and access from outside the case is difficult. The Lian Li switch for example is covered by the front panel, which has to be removed to set the fan speed. I also doubt that both devices can handle high ampere loads. Those who have access to the necessary parts can of course go for a DIY regulator.

The Japanese company System Technology is now selling a professionally made step-less fan regulator called the "ST Fan Controller" in several versions:

The ST-01 comes only as PCB with a wheel to adjust the fan speed; it can be fixed inside the PC case:

ST-01

The ST-02 comes with a metal bracket to be mounted on the rear side of the case and has the same wheel for step less fan speed adjustment:

ST-02

The ST-4 has side and front steel panels and can be mounted in a 3.5-inch front bay, let you adjust the fan speed by a wheel and has additionally a power LED, which lights up and down indicating the fan speed

click to enlarge

click to enlarge

The "ST Fan Controller" let you adjust the fan speed from zero up to 100%, which is not possible with the above-mentioned other devices. The simple Swiftech "rheostat" for example can only be reduced by 20%. The pictures show that the "ST Fan Controller" is obviously made for heavy-duty fans. The manual mentions expressively that the fan controller has been tested and is approved to run the 60 and 80 high-performance Delta fans. And there is good reason for this. The 80 mm Delta EHE is drawing 1.5 Ampere; it burnt the CPU fan mobo header in less than a second. We were then running the EHE from the 3-step LianLi fan-speed switch. But later we had to connect the EHE via molex, because we found that the little switch became extremely hot and was omitting acid smell. Nothing like this with the "ST Fan Controller". As shown here the PCB has a molex connector for in and a 3-pin connector for out. In order to stress the device we used a 3-pin cable splitter and put 2 heavy-duty fans on line: the 80 mm 1.5 A Delta EHE rated with 5,600 rpm and a 120 mm Nidec case fan drawing 0.8 Ampere and running at 2,800 rpm. This is very heavy stuff, and we kept both fans at full speed running for 8 hours without any problem. The noise however was not bearable for human beings.

click to enlarge

click to enlarge

As we've seen before, these high performance fans can make indeed a difference in cooling. This is shown in a comparison from one of our recent coolers reviews here. The Swiftech MC462 is shown in that comparison running with the default 4,600 Sanyo Denki fan and also with the 5,700 RPM Delta EHE fan. The same heatsink performs 2C better (under load) with the Delta, but the noise is unbearable. A fan controller is the perfect accessory to run such a powerful fan at lower speed on day-to-day use such as web-surfing or email. When gaming, by using the TS Fan Controller you have the ability to unleash the full cooling power just with a slight movement of the wheel or to scale it back when regular cooling will do - it is indeed very convenient. The "ST-04 Fan Controller" we tested was easily fixed with 4 screws in a 3.5-inch bay, the frame is made of steel, and the whole little device is a solid construction. It even comes with a 8 page manual (in Japanese).

Unfortunately the Japanese have a knack for such kind of nifty gadgets and do not bother to produce them in high quantity even for the limited demand in the Japanese market. Another example is the high-quality 60 mm to 80/92 mm adaptors made of injected aluminum, which popped up last year first in Japan and reviewed here. The "ST Fan Controller" is a well-made little device for the hardcore overclocker. Unfortunately it comes for a price. The ST-4 goes for around 30 USD, and the ST-01 for around 18 USD. It seems that the ST Fan controller is currently only sold in Japan, but such a well-made and handy device - or, like the fan adapters, internationally-produced and marketed copies - will probably soon be available in other markets as well.