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Hello fellow miners.

I wanted to update the community on my work to optimize the 2880W breakout efficiency and overall thermal performance.  We have put together a design and are currently adding this breakout board to my manufacturing list.  It is a pain in the behind, but we figured it out.

This board has 22 PCI-e 6-Pin output for 12V power.  There are four, 3 pin fan connectors and a power switch with a secondary jumper for network switching.  

Behold the 2880W Breakout:

Main Breakout Board
https://i.imgur.com/aVF9aw2.jpg

Power Input Board
https://i.imgur.com/dRUi7pb.jpg


This is what it looks like on the supply.  I have also added holes for zip-ties so that you may secure the boards together in an efficient manner.

On Supply Top:
https://i.imgur.com/DH67Ss8.jpg

On Supply Bottom:
https://i.imgur.com/zxVivDM.jpg

I am currently running extended thermal tests, but here are my preliminary results.  My initial testing was done with limited airflow and an ambient of 20.7C.

Ambient:
https://i.imgur.com/UUmlhWI.jpg

The testing was done at approximately 1900W (I need to move everything to the machine/tooling side of my shop for 30A breakers) with the test stand my team has put together.

Test Stand:
https://i.imgur.com/LWQJwRX.jpg

This test stand loads each PCI-e pin tested to ~150W.  This is used for initial thermal testing as well as individual unit testing to ensure functional and safe products.  During this test, I measured heat using FLIR and used a 4-wire (6 digit) DMM to verify power losses (though still an approximation).

The heat measured as follows at 1900W:

Connector Side (cables coming through)
https://i.imgur.com/J59WU16.jpg

Back side (closest to 2880 PSU)
https://i.imgur.com/V3ebXrt.jpg

We had some air blowing, so the static temperatures may be a bit higher, though this construction matches that of the 4k design and we have never seen more than a 40C rise out of those units at 3kW loading.

To give you a reference point, this is what our load stand looked like under FLIR:

https://i.imgur.com/m8XoAE5.jpg

To measure and approximate power losses, I have measured the voltage drop at 1900W, on the furthest connector from the power supply output.  For the first article, we measured 15.215mV and 13.000mV drop on the return and +12V pins respectively.  At 1900W, we are consuming about 158.3A with a total drop on this board of 28.215mV.  This puts the design at around 4.47W loss at 1900W.  That is about 1/3% loss (with margin).

My largest concern with this breakout is the exposure of 220VAC.  Anyone that tries these boards must exercise caution and common sense.  These boards and supply should never be handled without powering down the entire system.

Anyhow, my team is currently operating out of www.price-technology.com if anyone has any questions or would like to try this product.  They cost $70 in singles and I am sure it is worth it.  I am also happy to answer any questions on the forums.

Cheers,
-Optim

Wohoooo.

Finally these are out.

Love your boards separate design.

Looking forward to receive them!

Okay are the three silver dots hot?

I left the photo on it.

Yes.  We will be potting shipped units with epoxy for insulation, but there is 220VAC on the input line.  Always use caution.  That first article photoed above is not sealed yet.  That is fressh off an assembly bench.

-Optim

Thank you very much Optim!

I got the package a week ago but did not have enough time to post the photos.

http://imgur.com/a/HWyjr (http://imgur.com/a/HWyjr)

I totally recommend your board though I do not have a thermal gun atm to measure the temperatures but I touched them by hand and they are way lower than my body temperatures.

I got a great deal from you + you ship internationally and it was cheap for me for such a big package!


Looking forward to deal more with you.

Cool!  I always advise against touching active electrical components, but if you ever get the heat gun out, do let me know how it goes.  I am curious of the performance at different ambient temperatures.

-Optim

I got one last week  I have been really busy but finally started testing it.

I am using  a dps 2980 unit  with modified fans.   This unit  does plat and is my most efficient psu.

We moved all gear from buysolars barn/loft into his basement today.

this allows for  heating his home .   It also means  I had to mod fans to cool the psu.

For now I am running these 2 units.



about 24.6 th
the meter shows 12.2 volts no draw
and 12.0 volts with about 80% to 85% draw

say 2400 watts used of 2980 watts max

remember the 2980 is a true plat  with the fan mods I did to it last year.

more to come  but I will be slow due to holidays

This is first time I ran 2 s9's on a 2980  should do it with ease  (I hope)

https://i.imgur.com/FjWMdZr.png

A bump for the GPU guys.  Get that ETH!

We have added potting compounds to the exposed side of the board for safety and reliability.

Pics incoming.

-Opt

Hokay,

In order to protect these boards and make them mimic the wiring that this board is interfacing; we have added several processes.

The back side of the 2880W connector has been sealed with a high dielectric strength potting compound, made specially for electronics.

https://i.imgur.com/fT4RqLI.jpg
This layer is essentially impenetrable.

https://i.imgur.com/3S4jDOq.jpg
Quite industrial.

These boards have also been coated with silicone specific to lead free processes to prevent whisker growth and other contamination over time.

https://i.imgur.com/KuXiZys.jpg
We can verify the coating via black light and this layer may be repaired at any time.

Cheers,
-Optim

Looks nice.

The prototype you sent in December of 2016 has worked for 110 days.

Zero issues pulling two thousand watts plus driving 2 Avalon 721s

Very nice item

Thank you Phil!

By the way, here is a bump for updated stock.  We have updated a few processes to catch any errors. 

Lead times on orders below 50 are less than a week!  PSU stock is limited.

-Optim

Seems amazing.... Would we need to make all these to use or how does it actually work out....

D

I provide complete assemblies (and kits if needed).

It's pretty simple.  Mount a 2880W power supply to whatever rack holds your video cards and plug all of the cards in via PCI-e cabling.

This is what is looks like on a 6 card GPU miner I am using with teh DPS2000BB variant.

https://i.imgur.com/Lb6WtEl.jpg
This is a full view of the miner using a rack off of Amazon.  The cables are supplied by myself or Sidehack on the forums.

https://i.imgur.com/0e9eKHD.jpg
I tied in and bolted the power supply to acrylic underneath the cards so that both may be cooled by my fans.

https://i.imgur.com/ydnoRhc.jpg
Here, standoffs are used to mount the breakout card so that it holds itself in place.

https://i.imgur.com/DH67Ss8.jpg
This is what the 2880W looks like with the breakout card attached.

My 2880W rigs are far away from me (another state) so I cannot show those right now, but I can show how those mount in these miners at a later date.

-Optim

We are now accepting BTC payments in addition to PayPal!

There is also a promotional discount to any returning users that post a picture of their rig with our breakout board clearly in view!  You will receive 10% off on your next two purchases!

Ya gotta start somewhere.... Here's a pic of my tiny (so far) farm, using three of Optimizer's breakout boards on three 2980W IBM BladeCenter H power supplies. I have discovered that the zip ties securing the input and output boards are not to be omitted. Been running for months solid.

Those are Optimizer's 6-pin PCI-E power cables too, at a *fantastic* price.

Super customer service as well, and quick to answer any questions.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/g7in8z1h5vtue8c/Small_farm_web.jpg?dl=0

Nice!  That mine looks clean! 

You should add the image to the post so we don't have to move to an external link.

How was set up time?  I've been putting together a FAQ on our website to help hit all of the more obvious question related to powering GPU/ASIC mines.

Optim

Are these 2880 breakout boards still available?

Images posted by newbies like me show up as a link instead of an actual image, as a way to stymie trolls, etc. If/when I've accumulated enough activity on the forum to no longer be classified a newbie, all my img-tagged images are supposed to transform from links into normal pics.

Setup of your equipment is a breeze, no problems. For those seeking guidance, I'd recommend attachment of both boards to the power supply first, then zip ties, then PCI-E cables with a support hand behind the board, then main power cable (not yet energized!) as a safe sequence. I can also imagine some people preferring to do PCI-E cables on the output board first, before even attaching it to the power supply. Some kind of plastic enclosure, as you mentioned you were working on in another thread, could be a nice enhancement if it ever works out. I'd certainly pick up some, as part of the Optimizer-approved package.    8)

Yes.  We still make these.

We have a prototype of the enclosure, but the manufacturers are as slow as molasses.  If you know of a good shop for form/molded plastic, do tell.  I will update this thread with pictures of the prototype enclosure in about a day.

Thank you for the feedback.

PM Sent

Wanted to see if these are still available. Probably would need a bunch.  :D

I am busy working on a PID control deployment, but I have a competent sales team (though sometimes dramatic) that could help you out.

http://www.price-technology.com/contact.html

 :D

-Optim

mine are working as I type zero issues with them.

Phil,

I appreciate the trust.  If I remember correctly, you are using the gen 0 board which is the worst case scenario.  Since then we have updated part of the layout and the dielectric compound to increase margins!

I have heard from a few source that some of the L3+'s can pull huge amounts of current from 1 or 2 pins within a small amount of time.  I would error on the side of caution when using some less than ideal ASIC miners since fault protection cannot detect single pin current draw (that would be incredibly inneficient unless we were maintaining spacecraft or something as equally as critical).

Have you played with those at all?

-Optim

I have not ordered an L3. I was considering getting one and some one told me they occasionally pull hard current killing psus.

The hp 1200 which is a very good psu was fried by some L3s

So I have not purchased any L3s

For me I have drifted towards gpus due to the long warranties.

I may be getting 5 dragon mints this month.

GPUs are my favorite place to be with the resale value and what not.

Let me know how the dragons go.  I have considered using a few ASIC miners for experiments.

-Optim

http://www.price-technology.com/ibm-bladecenter-2880w-breakout-board.html

Thank you!  Both sides work.  I have not been hacked like everyone else.  ;)

-Optim