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Fan controllers are very popular among the enthusiast audience and some models offer detailed real time reporting. NZXT strayed from that approach with the Sentry Mesh and have continued down the same path with the new Sentry Mix. The Sentry Mix adds an additional fan channel and a numeric LCD display to a design that worked well with the Sentry Mesh.
“Sentry Mix takes its inspiration from the legendary sound mixers that command the acoustics of rock concerts” said Johnny Hou, Founder and Chief Designer at NZXT. “Mix puts the power right at your finger tips with optimal control and customization with a simple, quick slide.”
We believe the majority of people who purchase fan controllers also buy very specific aftermarket fans. They are either looking for silent fans for a media center or for fans with high CFM ratings to cool overclocked gaming rigs. If an educated enthusiast knows the RPM and CFM of the fans is there really any need for the LCD display to display a speed setting?
The NZXT Sentry Mix is retailing in the US for $39.99 which is $15 more then the Sentry Mesh. We have to wonder if NZXT made enough changes to justify the increased price. They have increased the power output from 30 watts per channel to 50 watts per channel and added 1 more channel. They also added the numeric LCD display for a touch of ‘Bling'. One thing we would have liked to see would be a few split cables added to increase the number of fans the Mix could control.
Not many case fans need 50 watts to power them but if you happen to have a stack of eardrum shattering Delta's hiding in a box, now is your chance to break them out. That said, if you need fan speed monitoring and audible alarms then the Sentry Mix is not for you. If you want a powerful easy to use fan controller the NZXT Sentry Mix becomes a viable option.
The $40 price point does little to make us feel the need to upgrade but the fact is that the Sentry Mix is a well built product. We feel that the NZXT Sentry Mix is definitely worth considering if you are in the market for a simple to use high quality fan controller for a new system build.
Pro's
- Simple to install
- 6 separate 50 watt channels
- Numeric LCD display
- Reasonably priced
Con's
- No fan speed monitoring
- No audible fan failure alarms
I gotta say, I never understood the need for these. Just never got the whole ‘fan controller thing. I do agree with reviewers comments on fan speed. who needs a readout for that? its surely all based on noise
Looks ok, not something I would be rushing out to buy either.
Not really my cup of tea looks wise. Generally, if I want a fan controller, I put inside my case or I just get a case for the build that has a built in fan controller. Both my Antec DF and NZXT Phantom have built in fan controllers. Perhaps some people like these. I had a NZXT Sentry LX that I used for a bit but that was mostly for the temperature readouts. I didn’t use it for very long before I sold it for some seperately controlled fans.
I almost feel like, most of the time, you set all the fans to the speed where you balance cooling and noise and then never touch it again.