Best/simplest way to connect AquaComputer Ultitube D5 NEXT, LeakShield, and High Flow NEXT

spinelli

Junior Member

Donnerstag, 19. September 2024, 23:30

1

I bought these in May and still am just running the Ultitibe D5 Next manually (not connected to PC, just use the D5 Next's physical buttons once in a while).

I thought the Leakshield and High Flow Next simply connected to the Ultitube D5 Next so that the D5 Next would sort of act as the "brain" or the "master" and then all 3 would function as one integrated unit. Then, if I wanted extra features & functionality via Aquasuite, I'd have the option of simply plugging the D5 Next to my PC.

From what I understand, it's not like that at all and much more of a convoluted install. It seems you have to plug each unit separately into the PC or you can have the units all connected to one/some of the AquaComputer boards below and then have those connected to the PC...or possibly a mix of both...or something like that (I'm really confused).

What's the best way to do this?

I'm willing to purchase some of the following AquaComputer products to finally do this the best way:
- Hubby7
- Quadro
- Octo
- RGBpx Splitty4
- Splitty9
- Splitty9 ACTIVE
- RGBpx Splitty12 ACTIVE

Also, from what I understand, the cables that come with the Ultitube D5 NEXT, Leakshield, High Flow NEXT, and the products listed above still isn't enough and therefore I'd have to purchase more AquaComputer cables separately? Is that true?

P.S. I don't care about lighting (ie. RGB) unless a product automatically uses RGB (eg. RAM, motherboards). I have no interested in RBG cables, connecting & setting up RGB, etc. so please ignore all that.

Speedy-VI

Senior Member

Freitag, 20. September 2024, 02:22

2

The D5 Next, High Flow Next, and Leakshield all have a USB connection. If you plug them all into the Mobo they will show up in Aquasuite. This is the easiest and most common way to connect these devices. If your Mobo does not have enough USB2.0 headers, the Hubby7 is an excellent internal USB2.0 hub. The D5 Next does have a 4-pin connector that you can connect a fan to or use as a Flow Sensor input. To get the High Flow Next flow rata data into the D5 Next you need to get cable #53294 and plug the small connector into the HIgh Flow Next Signal header and the large 4-pin connector into the D5 Next Fan/Flow header. I bought this cable and used it to send flow rate data from my High Flow Next to my D5 Next. Here is the reason why.

The D5N has a "virtual flow sensor" that reports a flow rate that is a calculated value based on several parameters. There is a calibration procedure for the virtual flow sensor, but even after calibration, it’s not very accurate. The User and installation manual even says it's really more of a flow/no flow indicator. The manual also says the virtual flow sensor will not work below 80l/hr, but in my case, it did not work below 180 l/hr. I could not use the D5 Next alarm because it would activate when my flow rate was fine because the virtual flow sensor was so inaccurate. When you connect the HFN Signal header to the D5N Fan/Flow header with cable #53294, the D5N can use the HFN flow rate data instead of the virtual flow rate.

The setup is a little tricky. In the HFN Alarm tab under Signal Output, click the button that says, “Generate high flow sensor [53068] signal (DP Ultra, Inner Diameter <7mm)”. This will cause the HFN to generate a timing signal that emulates the #53068 flow sensor. #53068 is a discontinued flow sensor model, but it does not matter here. Then in the D5N Sensors tab, select the 2nd sensor and in the section below, under Sensor Type select Aquacomputer high flow [53068]. For Medium/Coolant select DP Ultra, and for Fittings Type select >7mm. Now the HFN is set up to emulate the flow rate signal for the #53068 flow sensor and the D5N is set up to receive that signal. After doing this, the D5N Alarm will now use the HFN flow rate instead of the very inaccurate virtual flow rate.

Regarding the rest of the stuff you listed, the Octo and Quadro are both excellent PWM fan controllers. The main difference between them is the Octo has 8 PWM ports and the Quadro has 4. The Octo also has 2 RGBpx lighting ports while the Quadro only has 1 but since you don't care about RGB, this is not relevant to you. The RGBpx Splitty 4 and the RGBpx Splitty12 ACTIVE are both RGBpx splitters, so if you don't care about RGB, you don't need these. The Splitty9 and Splitty9 Active are PWM splitters that allow you to connect more fans to a PWM port on an Octo or a Quadro. Whether you need either of these depends on how many fans you have and if you want to group a bunch of fans together and control them from the same PWM port.

In case you are wondering about the Aquabus ports on the Octo and the Quadro - Aquabus is a legacy serial connection that has generally been replaced by Next devices that have USB ports. If you have an Aquaero controller, you can slave an Octo or Quadro to the Aquaero controller using the Aquabus ports. If you don't have an Aquaero controller, there is really no need to use these ports.

Hope this helps.

Dieser Beitrag wurde bereits 1 mal editiert, zuletzt von »Speedy-VI« (20. September 2024, 02:34)

spinelli

Junior Member

Freitag, 20. September 2024, 02:53

3

Zitat von »Speedy-VI«

The D5 Next, High Flow Next, and Leakshield all have a USB connection. If you plug them all into the Mobo they will show up in Aquasuite. This is the easiest and most common way to connect these devices. If your Mobo does not have enough USB2.0 headers, the Hubby7 is an excellent internal USB2.0 hub. The D5 Next does have a 4-pin connector that you can connect a fan to or use as a Flow Sensor input. To get the High Flow Next flow rata data into the D5 Next you need to get cable #53294 and plug the small connector into the HIgh Flow Next Signal header and the large 4-pin connector into the D5 Next Fan/Flow header. I bought this cable and used it to send flow rate data from my High Flow Next to my D5 Next. Here is the reason why.

The D5N has a "virtual flow sensor" that reports a flow rate that is a calculated value based on several parameters. There is a calibration procedure for the virtual flow sensor, but even after calibration, it’s not very accurate. The User and installation manual even says it's really more of a flow/no flow indicator. The manual also says the virtual flow sensor will not work below 80l/hr, but in my case, it did not work below 180 l/hr. I could not use the D5 Next alarm because it would activate when my flow rate was fine because the virtual flow sensor was so inaccurate. When you connect the HFN Signal header to the D5N Fan/Flow header with cable #53294, the D5N can use the HFN flow rate data instead of the virtual flow rate.

The setup is a little tricky. In the HFN Alarm tab under Signal Output, click the button that says, “Generate high flow sensor [53068] signal (DP Ultra, Inner Diameter <7mm)”. This will cause the HFN to generate a timing signal that emulates the #53068 flow sensor. #53068 is a discontinued flow sensor model, but it does not matter here. Then in the D5N Sensors tab, select the 2nd sensor and in the section below, under Sensor Type select Aquacomputer high flow [53068]. For Medium/Coolant select DP Ultra, and for Fittings Type select >7mm. Now the HFN is set up to emulate the flow rate signal for the #53068 flow sensor and the D5N is set up to receive that signal. After doing this, the D5N Alarm will now use the HFN flow rate instead of the very inaccurate virtual flow rate.

Regarding the rest of the stuff you listed, the Octo and Quadro are both excellent PWM fan controllers. The main difference between them is the Octo has 8 PWM ports and the Quadro has 4. The Octo also has 2 RGBpx lighting ports while the Quadro only has 1 but since you don't care about RGB, this is not relevant to you. The RGBpx Splitty 4 and the RGBpx Splitty12 ACTIVE are both RGBpx splitters, so if you don't care about RGB, you don't need these. The Splitty9 and Splitty9 Active are PWM splitters that allow you to connect more fans to a PWM port on an Octo or a Quadro. Whether you need either of these depends on how many fans you have and if you want to group a bunch of fans together and control them from the same PWM port.

In case you are wondering about the Aquabus ports on the Octo and the Quadro - Aquabus is a legacy serial connection that has generally been replaced by Next devices that have USB ports. If you have an Aquaero controller, you can slave an Octo or Quadro to the Aquaero controller using the Aquabus ports. If you don't have an Aquaero controller, there is really no need to use these ports.

Hope this helps.

That helps a lot.

1. Will the High Flow Next sensor report just as accurately / the same when emulating the discontinued 53068 flow sensor VS being plugged straight into a motherboard's USB port without any emulation?

2. The D5 Next and High Flow Next are both part of the modern "Next" lineup, therefore, why would the D5 Next - High Flow Next combo (when connected to each other) have to be put into an emulation mode for an older flow sensor model?

I'm thinking of buying the Octo and/or Splitty9 Active and/or Hubby7...

3) I just saw a video that said the Splitty9 can act as a USB hub instead of a fan hub as long as you switch the little jumper on it. If that's the case, then what's the point in buying the Hubby7 if the Splitty9 is capable of the exact same capabilities plus more (fan hub) plus only costs like 1/3 - 1/2 the price of the Hubby7? Doesn't the Splitty9 therefore render the Hubby7 completely irrelevant?

4) I saw a video that said the fan control is saved on the device itself. I can't remember if he was talking about the Quadro/Octo or the Splitty9 (or both). Is that true? Does that mean I can have Aquasuite fully closed down (not running in background) and the fans from the device will still all follow my setup fan curves?

5) Does the Quadro/Ocro and Splitty9 also plug into one of the motherboard's PWM headers like more generic powered fan hubs so that I can control it via my BIOS

6) What is the maximum current for each fan header on the Quadro/Octo and Splitty9. Not the total, but the total for a single header. I believe I read 25 W so basically each header is rated for up to 2 A (12 V)? Is that correct? I know most powered fan headers tend to only be rated up to 1 A so I just want to be certain since I have some fairly powerful fans.

Shoggy

Sven - Admin

Freitag, 20. September 2024, 17:01

4

1.) It is very similar. Since the flow value is not provided as direct data and must be converted back and forth via an impulse rate per liter, there might be some minor differences.

2.) You can not simply connect any devices to each other in general. The only device that is able to monitor/control other aquabus devices that feature an aquabus interface is the aquaero 5/6. Please note that the aquabus only offers a very limited feature set. It can not replace a USB connection.

Since aquabus slave devices like the flow sensor or pump can not communicate with each other, the only way to get the flow rate into the pump is the mentioned workaround. Please note that an aquaero would not change that since the D5 NEXT pump can not process external flow data. It can only process such data via its own flow port.

3.) This information is wrong! Spliity9 is just a simple distribution port like a y-cable for example. Its does not feature any electronic components. It simply distributes its input signal to all output ports and is usually used to connect a group of fans to a single fan port. The splitter has a jumper that allows to set if it is being used with fans or aquabus devices. When set to aquabus mode, the jumper simply connects the 3rd pin (RPM) on all outputs since it is required for aquabus communication which uses all lines. When used with fans you don't want that because you can not monitor the RPM from several fans via one line. Only the port marked with the imprint RPM will provide the speed signal.

4.) Correct, but it only works completely autonomously if you use temperature data that is provided by temperature sensors that are connected directly to the device. If you use software temperature sensors like the CPU temperature for example of the temperature of the high flow NEXT sensor, than this requires the Aqua Computer background service which is usually running all the time anyway. The aquasuite can stay closed in that case since it does not operate anything - it is only used for the configuration and monitoring.

5.) QUADRO and OCTO are fans controllers and no fan hubs. They can not be connected to another fan port. Splitty on the other hand can be connected to other fan ports. As already mentioned its only purpose is to split the input signal onto several outputs.

6.) QUADRO and OCTO can handle up to 25W per fan port. In case of OCTO you have to keep in mind that the total load is limited to 100W. Splitty9 is no fan controller. I would try to stay below 35W, otherwise the circuit paths will start to become warm/hot if the load is too high.

spinelli

Junior Member

Samstag, 21. September 2024, 00:33

5

Zitat von »Shoggy«

2.) You can not simply connect any devices to each other in general. The only device that is able to monitor/control other aquabus devices that feature an aquabus interface is the aquaero 5/6. Please note that the aquabus only offers a very limited feature set. It can not replace a USB connection.

I thought you said you could connect the High Flow Next into the D5 Next (using cable 53294). May you please confirm if this is possible or not?

Zitat von »Shoggy«

4.) Correct, but it only works completely autonomously if you use temperature data that is provided by temperature sensors that are connected directly to the device. If you use software temperature sensors like the CPU temperature for example of the temperature of the high flow NEXT sensor, than this requires the Aqua Computer background service which is usually running all the time anyway. The aquasuite can stay closed in that case since it does not operate anything - it is only used for the configuration and monitoring.

OK. I have 2 hardware temperature sensors: one built into the Ultitube D5 Next and one built into the High Flow Next so how does all that work with regards to running the Quadro/Octo and Splitty in autonomous mode. Do I have to setup fan curves in AquaSuite according to the High Flow Next's (or D5 Next's) liquid temperature and then tell AquaSuite to save that to the Quadro/Oct and/or Splitty and then the Quadro/Octo/Splitty will be able to run in autonomous mode according to the High Flow Next's (or D5 Next's) water temp sensor?

Zitat von »Shoggy«

5.) QUADRO and OCTO are fans controllers and no fan hubs. They can not be connected to another fan port. Splitty on the other hand can be connected to other fan ports. As already mentioned its only purpose is to split the input signal onto several outputs.

What do you mean by fan controller and not fan hubs, I thought those are the same things? So, in terms of powering and controlling fans, how is the Quadro/Octo different from a Splitty9 Active?

Zitat von »Shoggy«

6.) QUADRO and OCTO can handle up to 25W per fan port. In case of OCTO you have to keep in mind that the total load is limited to 100W.

How can the Quadro and Octo handle 100 W total and 25 W per fan port if they are not powered? I don't see a molex or SATA connector on them.

Zitat von »Shoggy«

Splitty9 is no fan controller. I would try to stay below 35W, otherwise the circuit paths will start to become warm/hot if the load is too high.

My mistake, I meant the Splitty9 Active - which looks like the only Splitty model that's actually powered (SATA). What is it's max total power and max power per header?

Speedy-VI

Senior Member

Montag, 23. September 2024, 04:40

6

Zitat von »spinelli«

Zitat von »Shoggy«

2.) You can not simply connect any devices to each other in general. The only device that is able to monitor/control other aquabus devices that feature an aquabus interface is the aquaero 5/6. Please note that the aquabus only offers a very limited feature set. It can not replace a USB connection.

I thought you said you could connect the High Flow Next into the D5 Next (using cable 53294). May you please confirm if this is possible or not?

It is possible in this case. I know, because I did it. See the D5 Next manual, section 5.3.

Zitat von »spinelli«

Zitat von »Shoggy«

6.) QUADRO and OCTO can handle up to 25W per fan port. In case of OCTO you have to keep in mind that the total load is limited to 100W.

How can the Quadro and Octo handle 100 W total and 25 W per fan port if they are not powered? I don't see a molex or SATA connector on them.

Look again – The Octo and Quadro both have a 4-pin Molex header on the left side of face plate. It’s the biggest connector on them. For the rest of your questions. I think you will find the answers if you download and read the product manuals.

Shoggy

Sven - Admin

Donnerstag, 26. September 2024, 12:10

7

Zitat

I thought you said you could connect the High Flow Next into the D5 Next (using cable 53294). May you please confirm if this is possible or not?

I meant the aquabus communication. You can connect the flow sensor to the pump with cable 53294 but this is no direct digital data exchange. It's more some sort of workaround and will only provide the flow rate.

Zitat

Do I have to setup fan curves in AquaSuite according to the High Flow Next's (or D5 Next's) liquid temperature and then tell AquaSuite to save that to the Quadro/Oct and/or Splitty and then the Quadro/Octo/Splitty will be able to run in autonomous mode according to the High Flow Next's (or D5 Next's) water temp sensor?

More or less like that. In QUADRO/OCTO you have to set up a software sensor and assign the temperature of the flow sensor or pump as data source. This newly created software sensor can then be used as data source a fan curve for example. Since these devices can not tallk to each other in a direct way, this only works when Windows and the Aqua Computer background service is running. You can define fallback values for the system start or other unexpected situations where QUADRO/OCTO receive no data.

Zitat

What do you mean by fan controller and not fan hubs, I thought those are the same things? So, in terms of powering and controlling fans, how is the Quadro/Octo different from a Splitty9 Active?

QUADRO/OCTO and also the pump and flow sensor have a microcontroller to process most stuff completely autonomously. Through the software you can configure and monitor these devices.
Splitty9 (Active) on the other side are just dumb and have no microcontroller or USB interface. You can not control or monitor them.

Zitat

I meant the Splitty9 Active - which looks like the only Splitty model that's actually powered (SATA). What is it's max total power and max power per header?

Total power is 54W (4.5A). As mentioned you should try to stay below 35W one a single fan header of Splity9 (Active).

Best/simplest way to connect AquaComputer Ultitube D5 NEXT, LeakShield, and High Flow NEXT

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