question What are the pros and cons of enabling the fan speed control function in BIOS setup?

[apairofpcs]

[SIZE=+1][SIZE=+1]For many years, I've Enabled the CPU and case fans speed control function in BIOS setup. What are the [SIZE=+1]pros and cons of doing this on the stability of a desktop pc? Would disabling this feature be beneficial on any level? If I keep it Enable[/SIZE][/SIZE]d, should I choose Silent, Standard or Turbo as the speed of the fans? The difference in noise [SIZE=+1]is of no consequence. Will the Turbo setting keep the interior of the case cooler than the Silent setting?[/SIZE]
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[apairofpcs]

I should have elaborated on the fans that the function controls:

• CPU fan
• Chassis fan
• Power fan

 

[ddrueding]

Faster fans will keep things cooler, and that is a good thing. The downsides are as follows:

More noise
More dust in the case
Faster fan wear

Noise is my biggest complaint, but if that doesn't matter to you, I would be wary of how much dust gets in there.

 

[apairofpcs]

Faster fans will keep things cooler, and that is a good thing. The downsides are as follows:

More noise
More dust in the case
Faster fan wear

Noise is my biggest complaint, but if that doesn't matter to you, I would be wary of how much dust gets in there.

[SIZE=+1]You're correct, the slight difference in noise between Silent and Turbo doesn't bother me. But the difficulty of vacuuming microdust from every nook and granny every month or so bothers me more. So I'll be proceeding with the Silent fan speed, if I keep the function enabled.

[SIZE=+1]This would be as [SIZE=+1]good a time as ever to rela[SIZE=+1]te a story about ASUS's Q-Fan Control software utility that came with the P5Q S[SIZE=+1]E/R MB.....
[SIZE=+1]When the desktop[SIZE=+1] build was complete, I was experimenting with a few programs that I found on the ASUS CD. I was changing [SIZE=+1]parameters in the dialog box of the Q-Fan Control program and didn't do anything out of the ordinary[SIZE=+1]. [/SIZE][/SIZE][/SIZE][/SIZE] At one point, I restarted my pc.[SIZE=+1] It refused to terminate at the desktop, showing me the dreaded white text on a blue background hardware failure screen in a continuous loop. The only way to intercept the loop was to enter BIOS Setup and disable the [SIZE=+1]Q-Fan Control function. When I did this, the pc booted as expected.[SIZE=+1] I immediately uninstalled [SIZE=+1]the[SIZE=+1] utility so I wouldn't be tempted to use it again. After this, I wanted to see if enabling the [SIZE=+1]function in BIOS Setup made a difference in the fan speeds, and it did. With the software uninstalled and the function enabled, the pc works as expected.

[SIZE=+1][SIZE=+1]Since I notice a difference in noise between the three fan speeds[SIZE=+1], I know that [SIZE=+1]enabling the function makes an audible difference. I started this thread to find out what's happening besides the difference in fan noise.[SIZE=+1] Is there any difference in the pc's stability when I have the function either enabled or disabled? When disabled, all I notice is the drone of constant rpm fans.[/SIZE][/SIZE][/SIZE][/SIZE][/SIZE][/SIZE][/SIZE][/SIZE][/SIZE][/SIZE][/SIZE][/SIZE][/SIZE][/SIZE][/SIZE][/SIZE]

 

[Chewy509]

Is there any difference in the pc's stability when I have the function either enabled or disabled?

No, all things being equal...

The only items the fan speed will effect, is the movement of air around the case. (In a properly ventilated system, it'll bring in cold air, and expel the warm air). All this will stop your systems chip from overheating, or essentially cooking the electronics. (not to mention harddrives, etc). That's it...

As long as the internals stay below a certain temp, then there is no risk to the components and go with the slowest fan speed.

 

[apairofpcs]

No, all things being equal...

The only items the fan speed will effect, is the movement of air around the case. (In a properly ventilated system, it'll bring in cold air, and expel the warm air). All this will stop your systems chip from overheating, or essentially cooking the electronics. (not to mention hard drives, etc). That's it...

As long as the internals stay below a certain temp, then there is no risk to the components and go with the slowest fan speed.

This makes sense. Each of the two cores of my CPU is usually 40 degrees C, if I can believe the program Real Temp 3.70. There's plenty of air flow, with 1 front panel and 1 bottom panel intake fan, and 1 back panel exhaust fan. The Corsair PS also has a fan.

I should have been more specific with my question. Is there a possibility that the circuit on the MB that controls fan speed has an intermittent problem that results in my pc freezing, when fan speed control is enabled in BIOS Setup? Since I disabled it the freezes have stopped, at least for the last 63 hours, the longest span of time between freezes since May. I'm hopeful that I found the solution.

 

[Chewy509]

If there is a bug in the BIOS firmware, that is triggered by enabling the fan speed control, then yes it could affect stability... Also could be a bug the ACPI interface, the OS drivers that talk to it via ACPI, or a number of other things... So, there is a possibility that it could affect stability. It could also be an issue with the VRM circuit as well (at the hardware level).

 

[apairofpcs]

If there is a bug in the BIOS firmware, that is triggered by enabling the fan speed control, then yes it could affect stability... Also could be a bug the ACPI interface, the OS drivers that talk to it via ACPI, or a number of other things... So, there is a possibility that it could affect stability. It could also be an issue with the VRM circuit as well (at the hardware level).

I've never updated the BIOS. It's the original version from the MB manufacturer. As you know, it's risky initiating a BIOS update because of the uncertainty of a freeze. If a freeze occurs while I'm updating it, my pc will be rendered "null and void."

I'm not sure what is the difference between ACPI and AHCI. Regarding the latter, I was using the IDE storage configuration in BIOS Setup when I had a WD PATA drive connected to the MB in addition to a Samsung SATA boot drive. But after I removed the PATA drive, I switched to AHCI. I read that AHCI has more features built into it than IDE, being more current technology, so I switched. My only drive is a Samsung SATA with Win 7 Ultimate 32 bit.

So in your opinion, if anything on my MB that is involved with the fan speed control function is failing, then will disabling the function in BIOS Setup stabilize the MB, i.e. stop the freezes? I find it encouraging that a freeze hasn't occurred for 65 hours since the last one, or 60 hours after I disabled the function.....

 

[Chewy509]

FYI. ACPI = Advanced Configuration and Power Interface.
It's the standard method for the OS/drivers to control system state including power (and by extension fan control). (And most implementations are extremely buggy).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Advanced_Configuration_and_Power_Interface

PS. There are a number of BIOS updates, with some mention of EPU (The Asus power unit), rebooting in some circumstances, and Q_Fan failure...
http://support.asus.com/Download.aspx?SLanguage=en&m=P5Q SE/R&p=1&os=25

 

[apairofpcs]

FYI. ACPI = Advanced Configuration and Power Interface.
It's the standard method for the OS/drivers to control system state including power (and by extension fan control). (And most implementations are extremely buggy).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Advanced_Configuration_and_Power_Interface

PS. There are a number of BIOS updates, with some mention of EPU (The Asus power unit), rebooting in some circumstances, and Q_Fan failure...
http://support.asus.com/Download.aspx?SLanguage=en&m=P5Q SE/R&p=1&os=25

Thanks for the ACPI definition, and for the ASUS link to the downloads page which I've seen before. I see a few BIOS updates that fixed problems that may be similar to mine, although not exact. Since I haven't had a freeze in 68 hours, I'm thinking that a BIOS update will not be necessary if I keep the function disabled. This is why I asked you this "So in your opinion, if anything on my MB that is involved with the fan speed control function is failing, then will disabling the function in BIOS Setup stabilize the MB, i.e. stop the freezes? I find it encouraging that a freeze hasn't occurred for 65 hours since the last one, or 60 hours after I disabled the function....."What do you think? Is the function really necessary in the first place? I've been checking the CPU core temp with Real Temp often, and with the function disabled I'm getting a 40 degree C reading for each core. I was getting the same reading with the function enabled with both Silent and Turbo fan rpm settings.

As a result of this thread, I remember the advice an ASUS tech. support rep. gave me on the phone as he walked me through the entire BIOS Setup settings step by step many years ago. I called about the looping boot process that never ended at the desktop, following my use of one of their CPU and case fan control programs. The advice from the company was disable the function altogether. I don't remember if I questioned the advice, but maybe they were getting similar calls from customers who used their utility and had the same problem.

I have this gut feeling that my freezes have ended for good, so a "necessary" BIOS update will not be interrupted. But do I really need an update at all, since my only problem along has been the freezes? Any BIOS update is a risk, even in the best of times in the life of a pc.

 

[apairofpcs]

I've come to the conclusion that my freezes have ended. I attribute this joyful event to the disabling of the Q-Fan Control function in BIOS Setup on Tue. Nov. 26th.

Chewy509, I thank you for convincing me that there is a BIOS update on the ASUS website that somewhat addresses the Q-Fan Control function in BIOS Setup. Considering that I didn't have a freeze for 74 hours since the last one, I decided to download the update in a zip file format and extract the ROM file from it. I copied this file to a 16 GB USB flash drive. The method of updating I used was to intercept a restart with the Alt-F2 key combination, leading me to ASUS's EZ Flash 2 utility. When the dialog box appeared, I selected the file on the USB flash drive, hit enter and saw the old BIOS being deleted and the new BIOS being copied in about 30 sec. My last step was to configure the new update to my settings prior to the update. I didn't have to disable the Q-Fan Control function, because it was already disabled. This method of updating the BIOS is a far cry from the old method, where we copied the file to a floppy disk and installed it from a DOS prompt.

 

[Bozo]

The only advantage to using the motherboard fan control is fan speed control and noise. I'm sure there are fan controllers available that can do the same thing.

Antec makes fans with an automatic speed control built in. Like this. I'm sure others do too.

 

[apairofpcs]

The only advantage to using the motherboard fan control is fan speed control and noise. I'm sure there are fan controllers available that can do the same thing.

Antec makes fans with an automatic speed control built in. Like this. I'm sure others do too.

Yes, some avid pc users are intolerant of noise levels as high as 1 millionth of a decibel ( dbA ), and they'll do anything and spend any amount of money to eliminate as much noise as possible. However, I'm fortunate in that I don't mind a little fan and HDD noise. It shows "character." But seriously, I hardly noticed a sound difference between the Turbo, Standard and Silent rpm settings in BIOS Setup. But I was able to see a difference in the way the fan blades were spinning, between Turbo and Silent settings. I'm sure that there is a slight benefit to higher rpms in reducing internal case temp.

I know that Antec is a big name in fans and cases. I almost bought an Antec case. So if I'll ever need a chassis or exhaust fan replacement, I'll give them a look. The Cooler Master fans that came with my case developed excessive axial play and an increase in vibrational noise. This is something that a deceased person could hear. It even bothered ME! So I added a plastic washer under the split retaining washer on the shaft, to reduce the space. It's quieter now, but I think that it's slowly getting noisier. I'm sure I'll need replacement fans before I build my next desktop pc. The fans that come with cases are not of the best quality!!!