Computers these days because of fast speeds and people modding their cases use a lot of fans. The problem with using fans is that each one takes a Molex plug and you don’t have an infinite amount of them. There are a few things which you can do to help you with this problem, you can get a fanbus, rheobus, baybus, or similar fan control device. Today we are looking at a Dual Voltage 6 Port Baybus w/ Blue/Red LEDs which was provided by Sharka Corporation. If you don’t know what a baybus is don’t worry I’m going to go over what it does. A baybus is basically a fancy parallel circuit for the electricity. You are able to use one Molex connector to power 6 fans because when electricity is in parallel each device is getting the same amount of power as the first.
I really like the package of this baybus because it is a nice change to see something come in something other than a box. I like this tube because it is very protective of what is inside and is very compact. everything inside is also packaged well and the baybus is protected with bubble wrap.
The package includes the Dual Voltage 6 Port Baybus, 6 LED clips, acrylic drilling template, Molex Y-splitter, and instructions. The baybus comes with bubble wrap around it so that it is protected during shipping. The drilling template is nice because it has adhesive tape on the back of it so that you can stick it onto the faceplate that you are going to drill. The instructions are really good and easy to understand, I really like when products come with instructions no matter how simple the product may be because not necessarily everyone is going to know how to use it. The LED clips are provided to make the unit look better when you are done and the Molex Y-splitter is nice because it will save you that Molex.
The top of the unit is really clean in design and looks really professional, each switch is labeled with what number it is. The LEDs have a brace around them so they are not just bare leads which could be bent. You can also see that at the top there is a pot for each switch which will be looked at more next and there are all the other electrical components on the PCB such as the mosfets and resistors. The side view of this unit shows you the DPDT (dual position dual throw) switches, each switch has 2 nuts and 2 washers on it.
The front of the baybus has Pots located at top of unit facing upward, there is one for each switch which can be used to adjust the low voltage level. You can Adjust it from 7-9v this is a good thing because the higher voltage may be necessary for fans that require more voltage to operate at lower voltages such as Sunons because they wont run at 7v. All you need to do if you want to increase the voltage is take a screwdriver and turn it up. The back of the unit has a really clean layout from the traces, to the solder points, to the configuration. The screw terminals for where you will connect your wires for your fans is really awesome, each terminal is labeled with red and black and for which switch it will be on. I really like this because it is clearly labeled and takes any guess work out. I also really like that the Molex plug is facing back rather than to the side. This makes plugging and unplugging really easy.
I will be using my Cooler Master ATC-101-SX2 case case to install this baybus to. Installation of this baybus is really easy because of how it is designed and what is provided for you. The first thing you will need to do is take the template and stick it onto the face plate that you want to use. After you have the template applied you will need a 1/4″ drill bit and drill out all 12 holes. Just some advice on metal face plates I would suggest wrapping it in a paper towel or something else soft because they are sharp and can cut you. While drilling the faceplate spun when the drill bit got stuck and cut me open pretty good which wasn’t fun.
Before you put the baybus into the drilled bay you will need to remove the top nut and move the bottom one up so that it is about 2mm from the base of the switch. After you have the bottom nut aligned correctly pop the baybus into the drive bay that that you drilled out. Take the remaining 6 nuts and tighten then down onto the switches so tht the baybus is secure to the face plate. When you have the baybus secured to the face plate take the 6 LED clips and pop them over the LEDs so that they are flush with the face plate.
Now that you have your baybus installed to the faceplate all you need to do is put it back into your case, attach all of your fans to it and plug a Molex into it to give it power. I fired up my computer and this thing is amazing! I have used the old PCMods 4 port blue/green LED baybus and this one just totally destroys it. The baybus can handle 8W per channel pre-production units tested stable and safe at 14W on each channel at once, for a total power consumption of 84W across the baybus. I was able to run fans on every channel while switching from on to off and 7v without any problems.
Conclusion
Having used the old PCMods 4 port red/green LED baybus I can say that this Dual Voltage 6 Port Baybus w/ Blue/Red LEDs owns it. There are so many things about this product that I really like, it has 6 ports, the LEDs are blue and red rather than other boring colors. The PCB layout is really good making installation and use really easy. All the necessary parts are included with this package including instructions.
I really like this product because not only does it look cool but it works really well too. The biggest benefit to using this product is that it only takes one Molex to power 6 fans and that you have the ability to make the fans run at 7v making them a lot quieter than they really are. If you are looking for a really easy way to make your computer quieter than it is or gain some more Molex connectors this is the product for you.
This baybus is currently $34.95 whicis is a good price considering what this thing can do and how awesome it looks Overall I am going to give this product a 10/10 and award it the OCmodshop Seal of Approval
Pros
- 6 ports
- Dual blue and red LEDs
- Great PCB layout
- Instructions included
- Easy to install
- Pots to adjust the lower voltage from 7-9v
- Looks awesome
Cons
- None