Introduction

A few years back, when I just started out this crazy obsession we now call modding, I stumbled across a nifty and useful little product called the Fanbus. It was the brainchild of a man we all now know as Cliff Anderson. The Fanbus is simply a device where all the power of the fans in your case can be centralized to minimize cable clutter, thus helping to improve overall airflow. From there, the spectrum of products from Cliff A begins to widen and it includes the Baybus, Dual-Voltage Baybus, Rheostats Baybus and a few others. All these devices helps control the one trade-off that all modders face when adding fans to their case, and that is the noise from all of them! Over time, we've seen all kinds of variations of the gadgets from DIY'ers all over the world and also from a number of case-modding online stores such as the Baybus, MicroBus and Rheobus from PCMods.Com and also the Maelstrom from CaseETC.Com. All these products, all of which we had reviewed before, quickly gain popularity as new users and even seasoned modders would not have to hassle with soldering irons and stuff to build one and more importantly, it does what it's designed to do and that is to help reduce the noise and gives control to the user over the fans/devices connected to it. But this part of the modding world is about to get another boost and it comes in the form of the UltraDM from a local company here in Singapore, NatriumTech.

Front view

Rear view

Pulse Width Modulation (PWM)

Before we go into details of the product, let's take a look at what makes the UltraDM different from all the devices mentioned earlier. The primary function of the UltraDM remains exactly the same as the Rheobus and Maelstrom and that is to control the speed of the fans connected to it but instead of using rheostats/potentiometers/voltage regulators to control the voltage to the fans, it uses a technique called Pulse Width Modulation, or PWM for short. In simple terms, the PWM technique supplys power to the fans in "pulses" or intermittently, by turning the supply voltage "On" and "Off" repeatedly. These "pulses' or "duty cycles" can be varied in their duration to help change the speed of the fans. The longer the duration, the faster the speed, and vice versa. One of the main advantages of the PWM is it's load efficiency. In a resistive circuit design, like a rheobus with potentiometers, much of the power is wasted as heat in the resistor coil, but in a PWM circuit, at whatever level it is in, the PWM will use almost the full power generated, almost all of which is transferred to the load. However, the circuit design for the PWM is much more elaborate and complex and only few has the ability and resources to construct one.

OK, I'm not gonna blabber on about PWM and its features and what-not. If you want to know more about Pulse Width Modulations, I have found some resources for you in a few different sites. Some of these sites goes into detail about PWM and some shows you how to construct your own PWM circuits, with links to the places where you can find the components. Whichever you choose, there are lots of pictures and illustrations to help and guide you along the way.

• Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) Basics
• Introduction to Pulse Width Modulation
• PWM Motor Speed Controller / DC Light Dimmer
• PWM Fan Controllers

The UltraDM Digital Rheobus

NatriumTech has released the UltraDM for quite some time now and we folks here in Singapore has got the chance to use the UltraDM for a while and this is the first ever look at the product. NatriumTech also carries a few other products, almost all of which were designed and produced by themselves. They have been providing these products for the local modders and they have proven to be very popular with the modding crowd. NatriumTech named this product the "4 Channel Digital PWM Fan Controller with PC Control" but I'll call it the UltraDM Digital Rheobus since it has the same basic function as the conventional unit. :O) Now let's take a look at the specifications of the UltraDM.

Specifications

• 4 Channel Digital PWM Fan Controller with PC Control
• High current fan control via PWM controllers
• 10 Amps per channel (Recommended : 6 Amps)
• Fully PCB mounted
• RS-232 interface allows real time software control through PC
• Mounted onto a 5.25" faceplate
• 16x2 advanced LCD display and 4 control buttons

Here's a little excerpt from NatriumTech's Website about the UltraDM unit.

"The UltraDM symbolises the ultimate in digital fan control. Sleekly mounted onto a 5.25" faceplate, it has a 16x2 advanced LCD display and 4 control buttons. Gone are messy knob controls, switches or LED indicators, for all of them are integrated into this next generation fan controller. This device is no short on capabilities. The primary function of fan control is done via pulse width modulation, hence allowing the UltraDM to control high powered fans with efficiency. Fans status is displayed on the LCD screen real-time. The UltraDM is also able to be controled via software, therefore eliminating the need of PC users that put their casing under the desk to ever reach down to adjust the fan speeds."

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