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Corsair Commander Pro Question


lukemurtagh

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Hello all,

 

I have a question about the Commander Pro. I am looking to have one HD120mm fan on the outside of my Dark Rock Pro 4 for just a touch of RGB. I want to be able to control the RGB with Corsair software. What would I need to achieve this? I saw a YouTube reviewer who stated you only need the Commander Pro which would act as a fan hub for my other Noctua case fans but also provide power and RGB control for my HD fan. In a contradictory fashion I have seen posts on here and elsewhere which state I need both the Commander Pro and the RGB hub Corsair also sells. Could I get clarification on this please?

 

Thanks.

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You need a software interface device to control the lighting (Lighting Node Pro or Commander Pro) and you need the RGB Lighting Hub to supply the lighting power. The current draw for up to 6 RGB fans is significant and the RGB hub regulates that. It needs a SATA cable from the PSU for power.

 

A Commander Pro is a Lightning Node Pro plus a fan controller. There is no reason to get the Commander unless you want a 6 fan controller, but it does provide software level fan control for all fan types. BE AWARE — the Commander has trouble with BeQuiet’s PWM fans. There is some issue with the PWM signal and no control. BeQuiet DC 3 pin fans work fine as do nearly all others. However, it does seem relevant here and the other known issue is the Noctua Industrial 3000 rpm PWM variants.

 

See here for detailed info. https://forum.corsair.com/forums/showthread.php?t=173880

 

The Corsair RGB System is deep and complex, but it is kind of a tough sell for 1 fan.

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You need a software interface device to control the lighting (Lighting Node Pro or Commander Pro) and you need the RGB Lighting Hub to supply the lighting power. The current draw for up to 6 RGB fans is significant and the RGB hub regulates that. It needs a SATA cable from the PSU for power.

 

A Commander Pro is a Lightning Node Pro plus a fan controller. There is no reason to get the Commander unless you want a 6 fan controller, but it does provide software level fan control for all fan types. BE AWARE — the Commander has trouble with BeQuiet’s PWM fans. There is some issue with the PWM signal and no control. BeQuiet DC 3 pin fans work fine as do nearly all others. However, it does seem relevant here and the other known issue is the Noctua Industrial 3000 rpm PWM variants.

 

See here for detailed info. https://forum.corsair.com/forums/showthread.php?t=173880

 

The Corsair RGB System is deep and complex, but it is kind of a tough sell for 1 fan.

 

Thanks for the reply. I won't be using any beQuiet fans in any hubs. I plan to have my one beQuiet CPU fan plugged into my CPU fan header on my mobo. The Noctua fans I'm using are the NF-A14 ones as well.

 

My overall plan is this then: have my five Noctua fans plugged into the Commander Pro and my one HD fan power cable into the Commander Pro. I then connect my Commander to the RGB hub and plug the HD RGB cable into the RGB hub. The RGB hub is powered by a SATA cable and the Commander plugs into a USB port. Have I got all that correct? Is that viable? I presume with this setup I can manually control the RGB HD fan?

 

Two other quick questions: should I use a USB 2 header for the Commander, and will the Commander allow me to manually control the Noctua fans even though they aren't Corsair fans?

 

Thanks for your help!

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The Commander Pro (as a fan controller) should work with any fan, 3 pin DC or 4 pin PWM. The two widely reported exceptions are any BeQuiet PWM fan and specifically the Noctua Industrial PPC 3000 RPM PWM version (NF-F12 and A14i). All other Noctua fans including Chromax, Redux, and the standard A14 should work. The 2000 RPM Industrial versions are fine as well. There is something different about the PWM motor on the 3000 RPM model.

 

Yes, I think you have the requirements down. Since you want fan speed control for the whole case (or nearly), the Commander Pro is the one you want. Within the iCUE software you will have a tab selection for the Commander Pro that will include both fan speed control tools and the lighting options for the HD fan. You can create as many different fan speed profiles as you like and every single fan could run a different control curve, from a different control variable, if desired. The lighting control for the HD fan will be under "Lighting Channel " 1 or 2 and you will be able to choose form a variety of presets or create your own, as well as individual LED control over the 12 LEDs on that fan.

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