Phobya 4 Channel Fan Controller Review
by Dark Mantis
This 4 channel fan controller from Phobya is the very bottom of their range but I was a little surprised to have it delivered in a
jiffy bag. Phobya's products are normally well packaged to save damage in transit and I think they should rethink this one. It
constitutes an excellent purchase as far as value for money is concerned. If you are looking for a dedicated way to control a
maximum of four fans in your system but don't want to spend a fortune in doing so this is your boy.
It fits in any standard 5.25" spare mounting bay and is made from a black powder coated aluminium faceplate with two mild steel arms
to use for securing inside the bay using the four screws supplied. In fact two sets of four screws are supplied to make sure that you
have the correct ones for your case. The mounting arms are unpainted. Mounted on standoffs, like on a motherboard, the printed
circuit board is secured to the rear of the faceplate. It is actually produced by Innovatek according to the PCB.
On the rear of the cicuit board is a large Molex connector that enables power to be supplied from the PSU of the machine. There are
also four small three pin Molex connector blocks attached one for each fan that needs controlling. In theory more that four fans
could be connected at once using splitter cables as long as the maximum load for each header wasn't exceeded. There is a total of
12W allowable per channel. The speed of the fans is governed by voltage regulation. It will go from 6 to 12 volts so unless you have
a fan that will run from 5 volts, of which there are a few, it will enable full control of the speed range.
Looking from the front there are four black knurled control knobs each with their accompanying blue LED over. The faceplate is held
onto the arms by four black allen bolts. Behind the knobs are 10K potentiometers that actually do the business of the voltage
control. When in use the blue LEDs illuminate but don't change colour or brightness depending on the speed selected. Apart from the
screws there is nothing else supplied so you will have to use your own fan cables or extensions and Molex power adapter.
Considering the low price of just under £12.00 I think that it is excellent value and you cant go wrong. It feels surprisingly
solid too. I award it 9/10.
Supplier: C and C Central http://www.candccentral.co.uk/ Price £11.99
