17 Avalon photos

[johnyj]

After days of communication with custom, finally they released the package and I managed to fetch the Avalon machine before weekend. I planned to order 2 units, but since that batch is so small and order system is crowded, I ordered just one. But now I know that some people ordered 10 or more, seems centralization is the destiny for everything  


I opened the Avalon before I connected it, took some photos and admired ngzhang's artworks  

Chinese cable and wifi antenna are the only accessories




Well protected packaging




Machine feels solid and heavy






The case is very simple but smartly connected by 6 pieces of 3mm thick aluminum PLATE, the material Avalon used are quite generous, if not unnecessary

To my surprise, the overall finish of the machine, especially PCB board is much better than I expected, it is not only used for mining, it can also be used for decorating Many years ago my first batch of PCB production had much worse layout and components, but still sold for more than 200 dollars each. Consider that Avalon contains 3 large hashing unit and two routing board, many quality components, it worth the dollar spent from a hardware perspective

The protective plast and the IKEA-style conjunction




3 hashunit-v1. On left side of hashing unit, just after the fan, I observed lot's of dirt, it means unit has been thoroughly tested for days




WR703, the usb cable was fixed by the tape




Power routing module, this part and the data routing module on the left are crowded by lot's of wires, difficult to get a clear photo




The heatsink is directly mounted on the bottom plate, so bottom plate also works as part of the heatsink




The special 2x6 power connector and HDD cable, now my HDD cable in closet will have some use again, I think the hashing module can be re-arranged to improve cooling




A memory of PATA hard drive and 2xPCIE graphic card power supply




The backplane




The backplane connects 8 small hashing units together, part of my unit are full of thermal compound




Closely examine all the small hashing units, I can see that most of them have only 2-3 screws attached, I don't know if adding more will improve the cooling




Avalon Project by ngzhang    Modulized power supply design proved how much power are required by each small unit




Compare to previous popular hashing unit




Now test running,  when the fan speed is relatively low, noise is around 55-60 DB at a 50cm distance. Close the case won't improve the noise performance much, since the case is not isolated. Better open it to improve cooling. Anyway such noise is not suitable for putting in the bedroom



It is very interesting to see how these engineers cleverly utilized many existing PC technologys to reduce the custom design effort and accelerated the final delivery process


Now snow fall attacked Avalon




Larger version of photos:
http://avalon.mystisland.org/a01.jpg
http://avalon.mystisland.org/a02.jpg
http://avalon.mystisland.org/a03.jpg
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[server]

Thanks man !

[Raoul Duke]

Ok, now can you take those photos down until you watermark them?
Because I can guarantee if you leave them like they are they will end up on ebay on scam listings.

The community thanks you.

[PuertoLibre]

So each larger module is composed of 8 smaller modules?

I really do wonder what Gen 2 will bring. I had thought that the large modules were one solid piece....apparently they break down into even smaller ones....

[crazyearner]

Hi jonnyj Can you tell me if you where in Batch #1 or Batch #2 and location thx.

[buyshowher]

You are a  lucky dog. I'm in China and have not received my batch#1

[bittenbob]

Great unboxing thread.

You say wow about the tape but I said my own wow about it - just not the wow you are thinking of. As someone who is involved with materials testing I instantly recognize that as Kapton tape. Google it. It was used on the Apollo missions and has the best temperature resistance of any tape out there. It is truly a space age material. It may just be one of (if not) the most expensive tapes you can buy. 

[johnyj]

Hi jonnyj Can you tell me if you where in Batch #1 or Batch #2 and location thx.

batch 1 order 198

I remember that I waited until count down and the ordering website was immediately overloaded by users and crashed, I tried again and again for another 1-2 hour and finally got one order in, just lucky and some patient

I believe Avalon team is working full speed to make the delivery. But it is a tough task for a small team to deliver 900 units in one-two month, include the test

[johnyj]

So each larger module is composed of 8 smaller modules?

I really do wonder what Gen 2 will bring. I had thought that the large modules were one solid piece....apparently they break down into even smaller ones....

That backplate holds 8 submodules, but the heatsink size is fixed. I think gen2 will be the same as gen1 for hashing unit, maybe the control unit is upgraded

I just checked Avalon's claim back then: "If the prototype can be made before the end of January, then mass volume production will be guaranteed. If the prototype can not be made before end of January, you will get refund."

So they did follow the schedule, just no time to talk, no tracking email...  All my messages and tickets were ignored, kind of scaring

[Magnate]

They should use a modular PSU to get rid of all the excess cables. Very messy.

And why the third different fan? Probably just there to prevent circulation back through the third hole and they use the same front/rear plates.

Hopefully they make improvements for V2. However I don't think they will last much after V3 with the 28nm ASICs due later in the year.

[johnyj]

They should use a modular PSU to get rid of all the excess cables. Very messy.

And why the third different fan? Probably just there to prevent circulation back through the third hole and they use the same front/rear plates.

Hopefully they make improvements for V2. However I don't think they will last much after V3 with the 28nm ASICs due later in the year.

They can keep it backward compatible so that v3 modules fits in the case, the case is really luxury, pure aluminum

[pc163]

congrats.   even a lots of chinese customer haven't got the unit yet. I really doubt they can finish batch #!  before May, according the delivery rate

[ngzhang]

2 points:

1, keep the case closed.
2, the 40pin ribbon cable our using is not IDE cable. IDE cables have some internal connect.

[shmadz]

Thank you for the great pictures!

Ngzhang, you should feel very proud!


- originally, due to lack of high quality photos and some misunderstanding, I was under the impression that the fans were exhausting heat, blowing out. Now from your photos it *looks* like the fans are intake fans to blow cold air into the case (makes much better sense) can you confirm?

- also, I am assuming that I should have no problem replacing the PSU with a modular one? (I've got a silverstone 1200 gold that is sadly under-utilized atm) - should easily handle a fourth module when the time comes.

- I was also thinking of using some ducting in the extra space from the missing 4th module to force air through the fins. I'm now thinking this is unnecessary as the bottom module should be the coolest one anyways, and ducting may have no effect on increasing air flow through the upper 2 modules.

  After seeing some of Ngzhang's comments I'm thinking the only mods I'll be making are replacing the PSU and directing an AC unit blowing towards the intake. And of course adding 4th module when they come available 

[johnyj]

2 points:

1, keep the case closed.
2, the 40pin ribbon cable our using is not IDE cable. IDE cables have some internal connect.

Thanks for the advice, is this mean that I can not use the own cable to re-arrange the modules? I think they should be shifted to the other side of case to avoid overheating close to the PSU 

[johnyj]

Thank you for the great pictures!

Ngzhang, you should feel very proud!


- originally, due to lack of high quality photos and some misunderstanding, I was under the impression that the fans were exhausting heat, blowing out. Now from your photos it *looks* like the fans are intake fans to blow cold air into the case (makes much better sense) can you confirm?

- also, I am assuming that I should have no problem replacing the PSU with a modular one? (I've got a silverstone 1200 gold that is sadly under-utilized atm) - should easily handle a fourth module when the time comes.

- I was also thinking of using some ducting in the extra space from the missing 4th module to force air through the fins. I'm now thinking this is unnecessary as the bottom module should be the coolest one anyways, and ducting may have no effect on increasing air flow through the upper 2 modules.

  After seeing some of Ngzhang's comments I'm thinking the only mods I'll be making are replacing the PSU and directing an AC unit blowing towards the intake. And of course adding 4th module when they come available 

The upper side close to PSU is very crowded, I think the airflow here is not very good, I can feel by hand that module close to PSU is the hottest one. So I plan to move them to the lower part, but I'm afraid the cables are not long enough. Anyway I plan to use an external blower fan directly blow on top of them no matter the temperature. I might take everything out of the box and put them into my totally ventilated basket on balcony 

[Bogart]

Wow, nice pictures.  I wish I'd been the guy to do it, but I instead just plugged mine in first thing.

I think it's a shame how some ppl are failing to appreciate the design that went into the Avalon cases, and are planning to drill them full of holes, or get rid of the case completely.  I can only hope that they'll sell what's left of the Avalon to me after they kill it.

[Uncle Scrooge]

Thanks J for the time and effort in taking and posting pics.

[SolarSilver]

- originally, due to lack of high quality photos and some misunderstanding, I was under the impression that the fans were exhausting heat, blowing out. Now from your photos it *looks* like the fans are intake fans to blow cold air into the case (makes much better sense) can you confirm?

Yes the fans suck in cold air and push it into the machine over the cooling fins, thus creating positive pressure inside the machine, the hot air just rolls out on the other side (nothing in it's way is obstructing it's path)
 

- I was also thinking of using some ducting in the extra space from the missing 4th module to force air through the fins. I'm now thinking this is unnecessary as the bottom module should be the coolest one anyways, and ducting may have no effect on increasing air flow through the upper 2 modules.

You basicly want to do this?

[johnyj]

Wow, nice pictures.  I wish I'd been the guy to do it, but I instead just plugged mine in first thing.

I think it's a shame how some ppl are failing to appreciate the design that went into the Avalon cases, and are planning to drill them full of holes, or get rid of the case completely.  I can only hope that they'll sell what's left of the Avalon to me after they kill it.

I'm a hardware fan, it is something close to the physical world  

I think the placement of WR703 is questionable: It is directly exposed under the hot air blowed from the heatsink, and 43 degree is not an ideal working temperature for such a small device without cooling. I have seen someone placed it outside of the box and that makes some sense

Same with PSU, it is located near the end of the heatsink where hotest air is sucked into PSU

Currently my unit is put on balcony and the temperature there is -2c degree, but my weather sensor still reports a 37 degree at exhaust