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I had issues with the two S3s that I ordered. Got in touch with Bitmain and received the go ahead to return them for RMA. That was 1/3/15. I just got them back about a half hour ago, and they are the same exact miners with the exact same problem. NEITHER of them work. They had good reviews, but my experience has been horrible. AGAIN,I feel they are nothing but CROOKS! And if they aren't crooks, then their management is sub par to say the least.

PM sent

*Let us clarify.  This unit was sold by the 3rd party.

Good luck and welcome to the pain train...

Their customer service is radically useless, all they do is tell you shit and don't come through.

Unreal incompetence, worst than even eBay/PayPal.

You could spit on a wall and get better results than getting anything done with Bitmain customer service.

One big run around meant to get you to give up on their crap and buy more.

Go read the forums of their hardware, the proof is there, I used to have 10TH/s of their crap.

Now down to about 4TH/s and going Spondoolies in the new year.

Many long term buyers of Bitmain are fed up of their junk service and switching providers; just like I am.

I paid more for my last few orders just to get better service; just got fed up of arguing with their non-sense.

Been a buyer since 2013 and still get the "go fuck yourself treatment"; which is just a run around of incompetence.

Again, good luck to ya, seems like don't matter if you bought 1PH/s or 100GH/s you get the same junk, Fischer-Price service.

In your case, I should thank you for helping me make my decision a whole lot easier.  ;D

They may have been sold by a 3rd party, but they were made and shipped by bitmain.


December 18, 2014, 5:55 am, Buffalo NY US   Out for delivery
December 18, 2014, 5:36 am, Buffalo NY US   Package arrived at a carrier facility
December 18, 2014, 4:08 am, Louisville KY US   Package has left the carrier facility
December 18, 2014, 2:56 am, Louisville KY US   Package arrived at a carrier facility
December 18, 2014, 2:44 am, Louisville KY US   Package arrived at destination country
December 18, 2014, 1:39 am, Louisville KY US   Package arrived at a carrier facility
December 17, 2014, 11:39 pm, ---   Completed customs clearance process
December 17, 2014, 8:05 pm, Shenzhen CN   Package has left the carrier facility
December 17, 2014, 4:28 pm, Shenzhen CN   Package has left the carrier facility
December 17, 2014, 3:16 pm, Anchorage AK US   Package has left the carrier facility
December 17, 2014, 12:43 pm, Anchorage AK US   Package arrived at a carrier facility
December 17, 2014, 10:42 am, ---   Initiated customs clearance process
December 17, 2014, 12:15 am, Shenzhen CN   Package arrived at a carrier facility
December 17, 2014, 12:06 am, Shenzhen CN   Package has left the carrier facility
December 16, 2014, 8:02 pm, Shenzhen CN   Package received by carrier
December 16, 2014, 6:38 pm, Shenzhen CN   Package received by carrier
December 16, 2014, 1:51 am, CN   Package has left seller facility and is in transit to carrier

Claiming that someone else sold them for us, so it isn't our problem is just bs.

Where did you buy from? 

If you want a warranty you need to buy from bitmain or their official resellers.   

I got them through cryptocrane, but they are just the middle man. They are warranted for 90 days. Neither of them lasted more than 10 minutes.

Are you able to describe the problem?  Someone might be able to help if you tell us some more info.

I can try. Okay here goes, like I said I purchased 2 S3s from cryptocrane. The shipping was fast and the packaging was great. I was sent the wrong PSU, so I couldn't hook both of them up. I had an old PSU from a scrap computer. Hooked one of the miners up to it. After a couple of minutes the PSU was smoking. Okay, must've been a bad PSU. A few days later my other one arrived. So I hook same miner up to it. BOOM! That one blew.(which was a 750 watter) Well, hell I bought 2 1000 watters. They got here and I opened them up, hooked the same miner that blew the last two up, and within minutes that PSU was shot. What the hell? Bad miner, gonna have to return it and run the other one. Hooked the other miner up to the other 1000 watter and wouldn't you know BOOM again. What the hell are the chances of that? So, I figured maybe I was using shitty PSUs, so I broke down and got a EVGA 1000 Supernova G1, got to hook the miners (yes, wishful thinking, I know.) up and nothing. The one that fried the 3 PSUs is completely dead. No fan no red or green LEDs nothing. The second miner's fans work but nothing else. Again no LEDs. Using their guide I tried troubleshooting them and determined that was a lost cause. Got in touch with Bitmain and was told to send them to Colorado. I did. I get them back tonight and like I said they are the exact same miners I sent them. Melted plastic in the connector and everything. Figured maybe the fixed whatever was wrong. Hooked them up and same thing. The one that blew 1 PSU the fan comes on but nothing else. Other one is dead. Now, my question is what the hell was the point of sending them to them if they weren't gonna fix them. Just wasted money on shipping. So, that's about it. Any suggestions?   

I feel sorry for what happen sir.

But this is all your fault. You should not use shitty psu. Miner is power hungry monster. Give them scrap old psu, that what you get back.
The miner make psu explode because shitty psu had no overload protection. Then the psu get angry and make miner dead.

I hope you learn something from this boom.

Always go with 80Plus Gold / Platinum PSUs. 1000W or higher is highly recommended initially, until you get the hang of it.

Yes, I've learned my lesson about this. That still doesn't negate the fact that I paid to ship 2 dead miners back, just to have them returned dead. I mean come on, they didn't even try to test them, or they would've known neither of them worked. And then they have the audacity to try and say what they sent me were new miners from a different batch, which is a blatant lie. That's not how a company is supposed to run, I don't give a damn what anyone says. 

I can sympathize with you. Bitmaintech shipped them to you.  To say a third party seller is an issue when they came factory direct is a bit cheesy.

Now you used a psu and instant death

 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=671189.msg10016458#msg10016458

at this point in time  you should have joined and posted here.

I can also say posting a thread with a curse in the title is not the best way to get some help. It puts the company on the defensive.
Bitmaintech is pretty good but not perfect. I don't think they can send you a new s-3 due to the change over to s-5's.

Maybe they could have sent 1 s-5 to replace the 2 s-3's.  Keep trying to get a replacement.  I would think that the first s-3 you deserve a replacement no questions asked.

A 600 watt psu should run a s-3.

One S3 should run just fine even on the most weak shitty PSU. even if the PSU burns, the miner should be just fine, if the connectors are not melted. If there are melted connectors, then it's a bit different. It might be that your connectors were not good enough and could not bear the current going through them. It also might be the miner's fault, if the connectors are not well soldered. It might be even loose connection between the two connectors.

What model shitty PSU did you use? How is it rated on the rails? What are the other ones?

If BITMAIN claimed they sent you different miners, this is not very nice of them to lie.

Did you send them pics of the miners or did you just mail them to them? I'm asking because many vendors will blame the user if there is something melted.

Going with Gold/Plat PSU is not a must. Yes, it is nice on the power bill but nothing else. On the other hand going with good PSU is a must. One has to read before buying.

This is an interesting case so keep us posted.

The first one was one that I acquired a while ago out of an old tower. Unknown specs, but it was running 3 Rockminer new R-box 100's for my buddy. And I'm pretty sure the S3 doesn't run much more than that.
The second one was a Chiefmax (or Cheapmax) 750-watts total ATX form factor 140mm cooling fan with intelligent fan speed control Over-current protection Over-temperature protection 20/24 pin ATX power connector 8 pin EPS+12V connector with detachable 4 pin P4 +12V Six (6) Serial ATA Connector Six (6) Molex power connectors Two (2) floppy drive connection Two (2) 6+2 pin PCI Express video connector Retail Package Includes: 750-watt power supply Power cord Specifications DC Output +3.3v +5V +12V -12V +5VSB Max 36A 38A 40A 1 A 2.0A Min 0.5 0.5A 0.4A 0A 0A
The third and fourth ones were Kentek 1000 (ordered the 950) 140mm large fan Quiet Performance and High energy efficiency ATX 12V version 2.3 and EPS12V version 2.92 Spec Intel AMD Spec Matte black color coating and Ball bearing fan and matel gurad grill Mash cable sleeve for easy cable management SLI ready SATA 20/ 24 Pin ATX 4+4 Pin Short circuit and over voltage protection
No, I didn't take pics before I sent them. (lesson learned) I was just happy to be getting 2 new miners. Yes, I was told completely new (different) miners. Alas, now I've got a 80 gold PSU with nothing for it to run. And those aren't cheap. I'm telling you, ALL I WANT TO DO IS MINE SOME COIN. Why is that so much to ask? I have kept every correspondence I've had with bitmain. I don't appreciate being shat on. Especially since I had every intention of purchasing more products from them. 

When getting a PSU for mining always first ensure that it is a single rail PSU.  For mining purposes, single rail means; the full capacity (or very close to full capacity (wattage)) of the PSU can be output to only the PCIe cables.

If an ATX PSU is single rail then you can expect it to be capable of outputting near its wattage rating; if it is high quality it can probably slightly exceed its wattage rating (don't test this).  The best efficiency is usually around 55-60% load of wattage rating.

PSU's vary greatly in quality much in the same way that cars do.  As almost any car's speedometer will go up to 120 mph; this does not mean the car can actually reach 120 mph or be properly stable and maneuverable at that speed.

Personally I use Corsair RM850's to power my S3's.  They can power one overclocked S3 efficiently or 2x default clocked S3's safely.  They are reasonably priced, gold plus rated and have excellent resell value.

That's not true. On the way out a PSU won't necessarily stick to 12V as various internal things start turning to goop.

you are correct but  the op said he could run 3 100gh

 r boxes  that is   about 375 watts.  so  I am thinking the first s-3 was a bad unit.

remember he got the end of life s-3's .---------------------I base this on the assumption the op is telling the truth.

 the last set was  a little less quality then the previous 3 or 4 months based on various complaints.

Of course I can see the viewpoint of bitmain and without photos the entire complaint is a bit suspect.

At least the op removed the curse word in the thread title.

I understood the OP that indeed a reseller sold them and shipped them initially... And Bitmaintech only returned the RMA...

Don't know, but in the Netherlands consumer law would also insist you first take it up with the reseller... Not the manufacturer.

On the other hand - although I believe it was the PSU - I, myself have had to do with Bitmaintech's CS and am NOT happy with them. They push back as hard as possible to make you do the work and do not RMA that easily (hell, even BFL RMA'd easier!). And I gave up (because although several S3's weren't running up to specs [>5% less], but at least they worked...). So for me, also: no more Bitmaintech and hellohoo Spondooliestech for a next purchase... Pay a bit more, but get premium service in return (as far as discussed in these here fora).

The biggest problems I have with the SPTech products is they are so freaking loud :( At least with the S5's, you have options to make them run more quietly, but the SPTech stuff is too loud for "home mining" even at their quietest settings :(

Don't get me wrong, Bitmain is nowhere near close to walking on water, and I agree with you that SPTech offers some killer products. Both companies are the only two I would deal with at this point in time, but both also have their pro's and con's.

Very frustrating.

At the risk of sounding like I'm making excuses, I'd like to think Bitmain is just "that busy", but I can verify your sentiment with the S3's. The S3 launch ruined the "honeymoon" period I was having with Bitmain. Thankfully, my two direct-purchased S5's have been performing very well (if not louder than I would like), so I can't anecdotally say anything bad about the S5's despite the unfortunate reports I've been reading.

Could be worse. You could be running Butterfly Labs gear ! Oh wait...

To me s-5's and  sp20's   are both good and both have pros and cons.

I got my one s-5 to run dead quiet .  I run it at freq 300 with 2 delta fans at 5.5 volts from an external psu total gh is 1000.

I had 1 bad s-1 in feb.  bitmaintech offered  an RMA  but no cross shipping and replacement would take about 10 days. At the time coins were 700 usd and 10 days down time was unacceptable.

Minersource bailed me out they shipped an s-1 upfront on trust.  My delay was 3 days not 10. I send the dead s-1 to minersource.

I did get more then 30 good products from bitmaintech.  1 dead.  If I count u1's I got 250 good ones 3 dead.  the reseller sent me new u1's

I rate bitmaintech as secondplace and spondoolies as first place.  with asic miner a distant third.

If he honestly thought that an S3 had blown up his perfectly good / adequate PSU, why would he put a further THREE PSUs on that unit as each subsequently fails? I don't think we're getting the full story.

yeah.    I kind of doubt the story.    I would have  stopped as soon as I killed 1 psu and asked questions.

 But I have had days of extreme stupidity  with electrontics. A Marantz  monoblock amp comes to mind.  I thought the fuses were defective.

I kept putting in bigger fuses thinking that would fix the problem!!!!  So when I finally got up to a 30 amp fuse from the oem 3 amp I blow the Marantz up.  When I look back at that I do not have an explanation for my testing procedure other then extreme stupidity . 

 So maybe the op was guilty of an off day. Hard to tell I am not inside his head.

Yes. You are getting the whole story. My biggest problem is patience. I have none. Old PSU could've been the problem. Or it was the machine. Like I've said elsewhere, I like to be optimistic. I can tell you now, beyond a shadow of a doubt Both of those miners were/are defective. As I said I quit tryin to save a few bucks and bought a 80+ gold. And after last night, I just don't know anymore. I hooked that psu up to my r-box, and this morning I am hashing at 3 G/s tops. Couldn't figure out what was going on, so I took all my gear over to my buddies house and did a process of elimination. And guess what I discovered. It wasn't software, it wasn't the miner, and it wasn't the cables. Only thing left was the brand new EVGA 1000. So, I should probably edit my first post to 5 PSUs. I'm just glad this one has a 5 year warranty. These things have cost me dearly.

Thank you. But at over $500, I don't see one s3 cutting it. 2 is what I paid for. 1 s5 may get me back toward recovering what I've lost. I just wish they understood the way it works. If we, as a consumer, have more money to spend, then we are obviously going to spend it somewhere. I don't know, maybe in more investments? I've been up for over 32 hours, so I shouldn't even be on the computer right now. I can say this and then i will say goodnight. I do not hate on the big guys, and don't feel anyone else should either. I only hate on the people that effect me negatively.

Related, I've been trying to throw money at Bitmain for a Paypal purchase and have been getting the runaround for about a week  now :(

Really don't know what's up with them lately :( Possibly hammered with demand and other things behind the scenes ?

*shrugs*

What exactly are you trying to do, and what's going wrong? I'll sort you out.

Sent Yoshi a $30 coupon from my account to be applied towards a Paypal purchase on January 5th, have sent two follow up emails, and still waiting. Last email requesting a status update was sent January 15th with no reply so far.

Not cool. At all.

Guess I should have just purchased coins on Coinbase, and purchased that way via the official site. I would have had the miner by now... At least their website ordering system has never given me problems.

Okay. PM me on Tuesday/Wednesday with order details if you've still not heard anything.

Did you run the units all off of the same 12V rail.....?

I find it pretty hard to believe that both units are bad...we bought 26 Antminer S3's and none of them had any power issues?  I would honestly also try powering it from a completely different power source-maybe your home has some power quality issues or something because this story sounds very strange.  Also I'm not sure why you would have kept buying new PSUs and blowing them up sequentially?!

Honestly I'd go test the one that didn't blow up your PSU hooked up to a different PSU that's on a completely different power line-like someone else's house or an office outlet or something because I honestly think there's something really wrong with the power in your home or something similar.  It's very rare for a modern PSU to actually physically blow up even if there's something horribly wrong with what it's connected to.

This is exactly the problem. I'm waiting for Paypal order details... For almost a couple weeks now.

¯\(°_o)/¯

*hugs Bitmain*

EDIT: Also, Yoshi is speaking in Miami, which I imagine might be understandably hampering things.

I agree this is hard to believe.
I did try taking it to a different local. And now I have a dead EVGA 1000w SuperNova G1 (80+gold) which has every safeguard imaginable. There are no power issues in the house we rent. These units are definitely defective. The question is, seeing as how there are no visual defect, what else could cause this?

This is likely what happened:
1) You put inappropriate power supplies on the units, repeatedly.
2) The power supplies died.
3) On of them may have electrically damaged the S3 on its way out.
4) You put an appropriate power supply on the unit, but after it had already been traumatised by 3 other exploding power supplies, it subsequently killed the 1000w.

None of those are primary issues with the S3s, so its up to BM what they decide to do for you.

You'll usually get sorted out almost immediately if you PM me or BITMAIN [for sales based stuff] as its our jobs to deal with customers. Yoshi has many responsibilities so may take longer for sales emails. I can't really intervene with this case as he is already dealing with it, and it would duplicate the job, causing more problems.

EVGA 1000w SuperNova G1 can not be killed with a short. It is protected against short circuit.

We can not know for sure what exactly happen. There is no guarantee that the short circuit protection can protect the psu since we didn't know what kind of short it can stand(even the factory will be had problem to identify).
The fact now even the EVGA is dead.

But who's the joke then; CryptoCrane or Bitmain ???

Today, after returning from shipping these back to CryptoCrane, there was a delivery from UPS with two new miners in it. So I humbly apologize for any negative comments I made. As soon as I get my replacement PSU in the mail, hopefully, I'll be one happy camper. So again, Dogie and Bitmain I apologize for my words. Now, how can one go about getting their post removed?

Just press "delete" on the right side of your post(s)...  :-\

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Edit the #1 post, advanced options at the bottom and tick the lock post box.

glad all this was fixed up.