It's been a while since I've taken a look at any interesting types of accessories, there's lots of them out there but most are just average and not that exciting, it's not often that one come across my desk that I really like and find useful.
The product I have today for review is from our friends at Aerocool and it's called the Modern V. What the V stands for I'm not sure, but it's an LCD Display Fan Controller and Temperature Monitor that looks pretty cool when it's installed in your PC, oh and it works great as well…
Continue on to learn more about the Modern V…
Aerocool Modern V LCD Fan Controller and Temperature Monitor
Author: Kristofer Brozio
Sponsor: Aerocool
Tech Specs,Features or the Basic Info:
Aerocool Modern-V LCD Fan Controller and Temperature Monitor
Features:
– Modern designed fan controller with Unique and Colorful LCD
– Large LCD with "easy to read" information
– Choice of auto or manual fan speed and temperature control
– Switch between Celsius and Fahrenheit
– LCD backlight can be switched on or off
– Alarm fan speed and temperature setting for overheating protection
– All custom settings can be reset to factory settings
– Smart fan controller – All custom settings will be memorized after computer restart
– Control 4 sets of temp and fan speed
– 2 x 5 1/4" bays
– LCD Display
A Better Look at Things
:
The box for the Aerocool Modern V is nicely done with lots of information and pictures on it, including a nice labeled picture of the display on the back of the box.
Inside we find the manual and a plastic box that contains the Modern V itself and the accessories for it's installation.
The LCD of the Modern V comes with a protective piece of plastic to prevent any damage during shipping, of course it will have to be removed before use. On the Modern V we find four buttons across the bottom under the LCD display, the first two on the left are for making adjustments to the setting and to change from Celsius to Fahrenheit, the next is to change the mode or switch between what you are monitoring, and the last is the on/off button for the display.
Looking at the Modern V from the inside we can see the circuit board that controls everything and all of the various connections along with the alarm buzzer. Everything comes pre-connected so you don't have to worry about that part of the installation as you might with other accessories of this type.
The connections include a Molex pass through for power to the Modern V, four 3pin fan connections and four temperature sensors.
Aerocool was nice enough to include two extra temperature sensors as well, and mounting tape along with screws for installation.
{mospagebreak title=Installation and Testing}
Installation and Testing:
Installation is relatively easy, the Modern V does take up two 5.25” bays in your PC case though, depending on how many bays your case has and how many other devices you have, if you wish to use the Modern V you may have to remove one of your other devices.
The Modern V has four holes in the side of the plastic frame that have metal inserts in them, these match up with the standard screw holes in most PC cases in the 5.25” bays. You basically just need to attach the screws and your finished with the main installation process.
The next part of the process involves hooking up the power connection of the Modern V to an available Molex, connecting yours fans to the Modern Vs 3-pin connection and attaching the four temperature sensors wherever you wish them to be.
Overall it's very easy to install the Aerocool Modern V.
I attached the four temperature sensors to the video card, CPU cooler, hard drive and left one on the bottom of the case to give me a somewhat ambient case temperature reading, itried to use the same labels as the Modern V did on the LCD display. I only had three fans in my case with 3-pin connections so that's all I could hook to the Modern V.
Here's what it looks like all powered up:
It's very bright and can easily be seen from across the room, it really adds to the aesthetic of the computer, it very much resembles an LCD screen, or possibly a touch screen.
I used my Thermohawk non-contact infrared thermometer to compare the temperature readings that the Modern V was reporting and they were very close, less than 1 degree Celsius of a difference. You can also very easily switch between Celsius and Fahrenheit with the push of a button for those not familiar with either system.
With the temperature controls you can choose Auto Mode and use the preset settings or Manual Mode that will allow you to customize the fan speeds and alarm settings.
One note is that you cannot turn the fans completely off and you cannot turn the fans to full speed, the lowest setting is 60% and the highest setting is 90% of the maximum rated speed or RPMs of the fan.
On a side note I think the Modern V is a bit large for the small amount of things that it really does, it seems to waste quite a bit of space. If I was designing it with just these limited functions I would have made the temperature and RPM displays much larger by doing away with the temperature graph and putting these measurements in its place.
Summary:
All things considered the Aerocool Modern V is a great looking and useful device that is easy to install and works exactly as it should.
Of course there are a couple small drawbacks that some people might not like, but nothing too severe, the Modern V works as it should and looks nice once installed in a system.
DragonSteelMods gives the Aerocool Modern V a 4.5 out of 5 score and our Recommended Award as well.
Pros:
-Fairly accurate
-Looks cool
-Easy to install
-Easy to use
-Works as fan speed controller
-Long wires for both fans and temperature sensors
-Seems well made
Cons:
-Takes up two 5 1/4” bays
-Cannot turn fans off
-Cannot turn fans to full speed
-Limited functions for such a large accessory
I would like to thank Aerocool for the chance to review the Modern V and for their continued support of DSM.
review# 461