Antec TriCool fan unit ( TRICOOL 80MM )

by Antec

Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 6.6 x 1.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B00066ISVG
• Item model number: TriCool 80mm
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
• Date first available at Amazon.com: October 3, 2004

Product Description

Antec TriCool Case Fan TRICOOL 80MM Computer Case Components

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great fan, quiet, low priced, February 21, 2008

By 

Charles G. "An Engineer and Business Person" (San Francisco, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Antec TriCool fan unit ( TRICOOL 80MM ) (Personal Computers)

It's hard not to love this product. We needed a hobby fan that we were going to use to exhaust air out the back of a cabinet that we sometimes heat food up in, to avoid the moisture that fogs your glasses when you are stirring the food. I wasn't sure how I was going to figure out which pins did what, but they are very clearly identifiable based on what they give you and how it is wired.

Out of the fan case itself, pops two cables. One cable has a switch that has H M L on it, for high, medium and low. This is the speed control.

The other cable has a three pin female connector, into which a 3 wire male plug containing three wires arrive already plugged in. A red and black wire for power, and a white wire for control. The red and black wires are already built into a 4 prong Molex connector (two fo the prongs are unconnected) that has both male and female on different sides, so that you can plug the male side of the Molex into a power supply connector, and then plug another device into the female side of the Molex. The white wire is terminated by another three wire connector, with two of the positions left unconnected.

If you have a motherboard that has the three wire connector, that provides both control and power, you can pull the male plug that has the three colored wires out of the end of the cable coupled to the fan (lift the tab on the side and then slide the plug out) and pop the plug at the end of the clear wires onto your motherboard and let the motherboard do the speed control for you. Try this arrangement first: if the fan spins when you turn it on, you're fine.

If you have a motherboard that has a three wire connector, but only the control is functional, leave the wires plugged into the three wire connector, plug the second three wire connector into your motherboard, and then plug the molex into your power supply. So if you unplugged the three colored wires, plug them back in after you make the connections I described above.

If you have no three wire plug for fan speed control at all, leave that wire unplugged, and just plug the molex into your power supply.

Finally, if you don't have a fan speed control plug or it doesn't work, use the speed control switch that comes with the fan to set it on the highest setting that doesn't bug you, preferably high.

Note that the speed control reduces whatever voltage you give the fan and that drops the speed of the fan. But the fan needs 5 volts minimum to spin. If your power supply isn't putting out all 12 volts, the speed control will drop the voltage down too far at the lowest setting, causing the fan to stop spinning. But that probably means the medium setting is about as low speed as you can get with the voltage you have available.

Finally, if you are using it as a hobby fan, not with a computer, like we are, connect any 5V-12V power wart that you have lying around (clip the ends of the power wart off and jam them into the connectors with the red and black power wires (the white is the control), or clip the red and black wires off the molex plug and twist one of the wires from the fan to one of the wires of the power wart, then repeat with the other wire from each device.

The fan will spin backwards if you connect them incorrectly, so reverse the wires or the fan orientation, as needed. If I had to guess, I'd assume the side with the round Antec sticker is the side the air comes out of.

We used 4 - #6 x 1.25" screws in our hobby application, as the fan is slightly under 1" thick, and we were screwing them into 1/4 inch masonite. #8 screws probably would have worked as well. If you are using them for a computer, you'll need 1" screws that fit the holes in your computer's case.

It's a great product and a great value. It would have been nice if the manufacturer told you all this stuff, but now armed with this information, you should find that this fan works in nearly any application, computer or otherwise. We're really happy with it.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very inexpensive and quiet., October 6, 2007

By 

SmartMedia Card Repair "SmartMediaRepair" (USA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Antec TriCool fan unit ( TRICOOL 80MM ) (Personal Computers)

Fans are quiet and the speed control is a plus. The price was right especially with free shipping. The fans feature the small 3 prong connector for your motherboard with speed sensing and a large 4 prong molex connector. The large 4 pin Molex adapter can be removed.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars SO good so far, January 31, 2009

By 

Robert Stansbury "Tech Bob" (AL USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Antec TriCool fan unit ( TRICOOL 80MM ) (Personal Computers)

Have not had them long, but a good price for the fans, reasonably quiet. I even used one to extend the life of my power supply when the fan quit but the PS seems to not be totally dead.