Question about QL120 fans in my new build.

Hey everyone! I have had so much trouble finding a clear answer for this, so I’m hoping someone can clearly answer this for me. I have a Lian Li Dynamic XL case, and I have bought 10 QL120 fans (3 triple packs and 1 single pack). I have the new Z490 ROG Maximus XII Hero motherboard, the EVGA G2 1300 watt PSU, and I have purchased 2 commander pros. With 2 commander pros and 2 of the lighting node cores that the 3 pack fans came with, am I all set to be able to control RGB lighting and Fan speeds from the Corsair app? I have seen videos where people with not enough ports have needed to buy an additional hub. I just want to make sure with my equipment I will be able to plug in everything and control it all with what I have. I’m building the PC tomorrow evening, so if I need anything else I need to grab it tonight. Thanks!

with 2 LNcores you are good.

Each can control 6 QL fans so that's all good.

Given how much juice these take to light up, i'd advise you to connect the LNcore to a dedicated SATA cable from the PSU, just to make sure you don't get blackouts when going full white :)

the LNcores plus commander pro, that will be 3 USB2 headers taken so you'll have to connect the commander pro to the motherboard and use its USB2 passthroughs to plug the LNcores.

 

Regarding fan speed control, you will either need splitters or PWM hubs since the commander pro only has 6 fan ports.

 

Th commander Pro is notorious for burning up transistors when using 3 pin DC controlled fans, but should be fine using PWM fans. I personally ran 9 fans out of it (3 fans per header with splitters) but oficially, it is not recommended.

 

So what you may need to get is powered PWM hubs. Any brand should do as long as it's 4 pin headers, and with SATA power.

 

And get ready for a cable management marathon :) plenty of velcro straps or zip ties.

Each Core can take up to 6 QL fans. You will need to break the 10 into 6 + 4. That likely is the top 3 and rear or possibly top/bottom 6 and side/rear 4. This matters in terms of your lighting programming as each group will act like a separate programmable lighting group.

 

Each Core needs a usb 2 connection to communicate, but each Commander has 2 usb pass through ports. Those should work well for the two Cores. So that’s 1 for the Commander and you should have 1 left over.

 

Where you could save a little is by using 1 Commander. The 6 ports can’t cover the 10 fans in the way you would like, especially since 3 way splitters are problematic. However, a Far less expensive PWM hub could offload the current of 3-6 fans while taking up less space. Those 3-6 would all run the same speed, but then you don’t need different speeds for the groups of three on each panel. The other thing to be aware of is iCUE doesn’t really differentiate between identical components. Having run two Commanders before, they constantly flip flop their placement in the menu and you spend a lot of time clicking the wrong one. If you don’t really need it, don’t use it.

Each Core can take up to 6 QL fans. You will need to break the 10 into 6 + 4. That likely is the top 3 and rear or possibly top/bottom 6 and side/rear 4. This matters in terms of your lighting programming as each group will act like a separate programmable lighting group.

 

Each Core needs a usb 2 connection to communicate, but each Commander has 2 usb pass through ports. Those should work well for the two Cores. So that’s 1 for the Commander and you should have 1 left over.

 

Where you could save a little is by using 1 Commander. The 6 ports can’t cover the 10 fans in the way you would like, especially since 3 way splitters are problematic. However, a Far less expensive PWM hub could offload the current of 3-6 fans while taking up less space. Those 3-6 would all run the same speed, but then you don’t need different speeds for the groups of three on each panel. The other thing to be aware of is iCUE doesn’t really differentiate between identical components. Having run two Commanders before, they constantly flip flop their placement in the menu and you spend a lot of time clicking the wrong one. If you don’t really need it, don’t use it.

 

I forgot to say the 3 on top are going to be placed in a Kraken Z73 AIO. This change anything?

with 2 LNcores you are good.

Each can control 6 QL fans so that's all good.

Given how much juice these take to light up, i'd advise you to connect the LNcore to a dedicated SATA cable from the PSU, just to make sure you don't get blackouts when going full white :)

the LNcores plus commander pro, that will be 3 USB2 headers taken so you'll have to connect the commander pro to the motherboard and use its USB2 passthroughs to plug the LNcores.

 

Regarding fan speed control, you will either need splitters or PWM hubs since the commander pro only has 6 fan ports.

 

Th commander Pro is notorious for burning up transistors when using 3 pin DC controlled fans, but should be fine using PWM fans. I personally ran 9 fans out of it (3 fans per header with splitters) but oficially, it is not recommended.

 

So what you may need to get is powered PWM hubs. Any brand should do as long as it's 4 pin headers, and with SATA power.

 

And get ready for a cable management marathon :) plenty of velcro straps or zip ties.

 

 

I actually have two commander pros. Does that change anything?

I forgot to say the 3 on top are going to be placed in a Kraken Z73 AIO. This change anything?

 

Yes. The 3 QL on the radiator will get their power/speed control from the X73's internal fan controller. That takes your count down to 7 and further reason not to use 2 Commanders. You can use dual PWM splitters to make the 7 fans fit on the 6 port Commander.

 

X73 will need a USB 2 port as well. 1 for the Commander. Both Cores can piggy back off the Commander USB passthrough x 2.

Yes. The 3 QL on the radiator will get their power/speed control from the X73's internal fan controller. That takes your count down to 7 and further reason not to use 2 Commanders. You can use dual PWM splitters to make the 7 fans fit on the 6 port Commander.

 

X73 will need a USB 2 port as well. 1 for the Commander. Both Cores can piggy back off the Commander USB passthrough x 2.

 

So as far as RGB control and fan speed, I have everything I need besides a 2x1 splitter to put fans 6 and 7 in slot 6? Those two fans will need to be the same speed at all times, but no restrictions outside of that? Thanks for your help!

You have everything you need, plus one extra Commander. See if you can send that one back. A little too expensive to keep as a back up.

 

The PWM splitter will cause both fans connected to run at the same speed. However, this should not be an obstacle since you are going to run those banks of three at the same speed anyway. The only fan that might need independent control is the single rear fan. Just pair off two of you bottom or side fans. You don't need a powered PWM hub with only 7 fans to manage.

You have everything you need, plus one extra Commander. See if you can send that one back. A little too expensive to keep as a back up.

 

The PWM splitter will cause both fans connected to run at the same speed. However, this should not be an obstacle since you are going to run those banks of three at the same speed anyway. The only fan that might need independent control is the single rear fan. Just pair off two of you bottom or side fans. You don't need a powered PWM hub with only 7 fans to manage.

 

Thanks! I really appreciate the help! I’ve been stressed about getting every part for my build. I would’ve been frustrated if I went to build tomorrow night and I was missing stuff lol.

One thing to consider when hooking this all up is to separate the two Core devices onto different SATA ribbons coming from the PSU. We have seen some some people get into a 5v shortage when using 10-12 QL/LL fans on the same line back to the PSU. Drives usually pull from all three voltage lines, so putting the two Cores on the same ribbon as two 7200 rpm HDDs may get you into trouble. A 4xQL core and a pair of SSDs should not.

I don't care about fans speed i only want to control rgb and sync lights in all x10 fans so i don't need to get commander pro right ?

 

And if i want to control fans speed i should get copro ?

Edited August 13, 2020 by IOX