How to Create a Three-Speed Fan Control without Spending a Dime
Removing the Pins from the Connector
Contents
The first thing we need to do is to remove the power wires from the fan connector, i.e., the first and the second wires.
If there is a sleeving protecting the wires, you will need to open it with a blade or scissors, as shown in Figure 5. Later, you will need to cut (with a scissors) the portion of the sleeve that will be hanging.
Figure 5: Open the sleeving if your fan has one
To remove the pins, you will need a precision screwdriver (here we used a 1.4 mm one). Look carefully at the fan connector and you will see a small opening in front of each pin. Through this opening you can reach the lock that holds each pin in place. What we need to do is push this lock with the screwdriver in order to release each pin, as shown in Figure 6. Then gently pull the wire and it will come out of the connector, as shown in Figure 7.
Figure 6: To remove a pin from the connector, push its lock with a precision screwdriver.
Figure 7: Then pull the wire gently.
The third wire must be kept on the connector, and you will install the connector back to the motherboard, as shown in Figure 9. If you are making the modification to a fan with a four-pin connector, the fourth pin should also be removed and insulated with insulating tape.
Figure 8: Our connector after we removed the two power pins
Now it is time to connect the pins to the power supply.