Looking for info on installing new fans.

[Dominus]

I have 2 80mm 12v DC fans from old PSes that I plan on installing in my case. I have several 12v connectors free coming out of my PS. I have all the gear needed for soldering at my disposal; all I need to know is what to solder.

Could someone point me at a diagram of the voltages of each wire in a 12v PS lead?

I'm fairly new at soldering, and would like some help.

Hoping for an easy color coded answer with a diagram, but I'll be happy with a clear explanation.

[richamies]

I'm assuming you are pulling the power for the fans from the hard rail on your PSU. The positive side of the fan(normally with the cable colour coded red) goes into the yellow wire on the PSU output, and the black wire on the fan goes onto the black wire next to the yellow one on the hard drive output.
I'm not quite sure if I am answering this rightly, I think i might have misunderstood your question but if you are planning on using the HDD rail, then those are the wires to take power from.

*EDIT*
when I solder I keep a little piece of old wet sponge next to me, so I can wipe the flux and excess solder off. If you are soldering something quite large(like the 12v cable on your HDD rail) I would advise heating the end of the cable with the soldering iron for 3/5 seconds before tinning it(covering the copper with a thin layer of solder all the way around). This is good as it stops oxidation occurring(when the copper goes a dark and brown colour) which keeps conductivity up. If you are soldering anything with fairly long enough legs on it(sure as resistors and capacitors) I reccomend using some long nose pliers, and holding the item with them, preferably on the leg which is being soldered. This is good as it will conduct some of the heat away from the item you are soldering, some of these little components will heat up in a very short amount of time!

[This message has been edited by richamies (edited 01-05-2000).]

[dexmax]

Do it the easy way....

Instead of soldering it just...

1. in the yellow and black wire, cut out the insulator without cutting the wire. Just peel it off, a length of about 1cm would do it.

2. Splice the red wires copper around the (yellow) copper wire. and do the same with the black.

3. Wrap the wires separately w/ electrical tape.

4. You're all set and ready to rock!!!

Good Luck

[Dominus]

Well, I don't have $20 to spend, and I haven't had 20 years experience at breathing yet.

But I have steady hands and a keen mind. I canabalized the connectors off 2 old Socket 7 fans, so theres no actual modifications done to my PS.

The fans work fine, all I need to do now is find a place to mount them. Won't be much trouble.

[OuTpaTienT]

Besides, it's more fun to scavange old parts and make use of them. I just wouldn't feel right unless my computer was some sort of Frankenstein mesh of old and new parts.

[richamies]

What i personally did was take the lead off an old 486 fan, and used the break out wire for the hard drive rail, and ahcked into that. If at start up neither of the fans span up I had my hand on the mains lead. Just make sure you inslate the wires well, remember they are probably gonna sit next to your chassis/case and a short could be lethal to your motherboard. It is a fairly simple operation and I wouldnt try putting you off doing it, it's only 2 wires. One thing I would suggest is unplugging all hard drives and cdroms before powering up with the fans hooked up. But you'll do it and it will be fine, I have every faith. The worst you can do apart from shorting is the wires go the wrong way on the fans, and they blow backwards(!). If this happens, either turn the fan mounting around, or connect the wires again. I suggest hooking the wires up again and keeping the fan spinning the way it was intended.

[Dominus]

I soldered all wires together, and covered all bare wire with lots of electrical tape. I also tested them with the PS of a less critical system. I'm confident that the fans will work fine.

Also, they both rotate in the same direction. I made sure of that.

[This message has been edited by Dominus (edited 01-06-2000).]

[Axel]

I've got a bit of trouble with this thread -

New fans are really cheap - Also - the quality of the fans has improved with ball-bears and brushless power leads, etc. etc.

Rather than soldering and risking a short in your system that could have some really ugly consequences, why not spring for a new fan or two with in-line power plugs and forget about doing any soldering.

Then again, you might have been an electronics guru with a 20 year career in the navy and know exactly what you're doing and all I'm doing is blowing hot air.....

I just hate to think what you saving $20 might mean to your power supply and other components.