Data Center Mining Garage and Man Mining Cave ( PART 2 !!!!!!!!)

[citronick]

The BIOSTAR TB85 is a great Board and Great alternative to the SOLD out ASROCK H81 BTC Pro.  

I still have a box (carton?) of H81s still un-open from Newegg in the storeroom. I think a box holds 10 boards. Not for sale though because it's reserved for another project. When we started the farm last year, one of my investors correctly predicted that the H81 will be hard to find if the crypto coin industry takes off - so we bought plenty....

However, the BIOSTAR TB85 is newer, so thats a good alternative too since its designed for mining just like the H81s. I got 7xGPUs working with R7-370s with a PCI-USB splitter with H81s. Since small data mining bandwidth is required vs high IO gaming, 1x PCI is sufficient for data transport. I have to try them on my Nanos but ZEC is killing it now and I prefer no downtime around this time.

Sorry about the Z170-GT7 situation - I feel for you man.

[1714125500]

1714125500

[citronick]

Anyone mining DASH with AMD or NVIDIA?  How does that compare to the Baikalminer ASIC miner?  A friend just brought that conversation up today and I know nothing about mining DASH but it's smoking hot in prices right now.

I host 25GHs of Baikal X11 ASICs for one of my team members. He is a huuuge DASH supporter and he is also into FINTECH stuff. The 25GHs farm is being rented out on Nicehash X11 marketplace and currently paying 0.0122 BTC per GHs per day. The entire 25GHs is powered by 5 x PSUs (3 x 1600 and 2 x 1300). Amazingly efficient power consumption these ASICs.

GPU mining for X11 is almost dead in the water. Sure it will mine but no fight vs Baikals or Pinidea ASICs. Better get the GPUs to mine ZEC  

[yun9999]

I think I word the question poorly.  My real question is whether it's worth investing in the ASIC BAIKAL Miners now vs more GPU rigs since DASH is on FIRE.  I love the low wattage which means we can mine them for a very very long time.  However the short 30 days warranty also could mean we can get into a lot of down time.  Another concerning point is that not too long ago Dash was barely $10 and it would probably take forever to ROI on these ASIC miners.  Now that prices are popping, I wonder if there's at least 6-9 good month where we ROI and just enjoy regardless of price or how high Diff is.  12 of the top end unit would fit into my SHED slot perfectly.  Another challenge I would have in trying to buy 5-15 of these units is that they require payment in DASH coins.  Looks interesting and fun even the smaller units.

P.S Was going to keep 1 Racing MB as a ROM / Test Station as it's so damn sexy plus I can direct connect 4 GPUs into it without needing risers.  The biggest plus as a ROM station / separate test station is not needing a power button, but this one I'm testing the power button sensitivity just stop working.  I guess it's not meant to be.  Time to return them all.

[citronick]

I think I word the question poorly.  My real question is whether it's worth investing in the ASIC BAIKAL Miners now vs more GPU rigs since DASH is on FIRE.  I love the low wattage which means we can mine them for a very very long time.  However the short 30 days warranty also could mean we can get into a lot of down time.  Another concerning point is that not too long ago Dash was barely $10 and it would probably take forever to ROI on these ASIC miners.  Now that prices are popping, I wonder if there's at least 6-9 good month where we ROI and just enjoy regardless of price or how high Diff is.  12 of the top end unit would fit into my SHED slot perfectly.  Another challenge I would have in trying to buy 5-15 of these units is that they require payment in DASH coins.  Looks interesting and fun even the smaller units.

P.S Was going to keep 1 Racing MB as a ROM / Test Station as it's so damn sexy plus I can direct connect 4 GPUs into it without needing risers.  The biggest plus as a ROM station / separate test station is not needing a power button, but this one I'm testing the power button sensitivity just stop working.  I guess it's not meant to be.  Time to return them all.

GPU for X11 will be a mismatch because the smallest Baikal Asics is only around 300 bucks delivering 150MHs.
A rig with 6 or 7 GPUs maybe can push 15-20Mhs per rig... so not worth wasting the watts. It better to get the ASICs.

There are Baikal, Pinidea, iBelink etc. to choose from. The Baikals are very stable, and it was install and forget from day 1. Also they gave me a nice utility to manage the farm - scan network automatically, change pools and config centrally. The Giant model is 900Mhs per ASIC and uses 205-215watts. A 1300 PSU will drive 5 of these Giants.

We paid in BTC directly to Baikal because we are in Asia.

For US sales & support - you might want to PM bittawm.

[thedue]

Sadly I can´t order risers from hawkfishs Amazon Shop with shipping to europe 

[yun9999]

Hehe, I'm still wording it badly.  What I mean is if I were to invest $2400 in a GPU rig mining ETH / ZEC or whatever for  the 6-12 months.  Does the future look rosier in that path which right now looks good but DASH is popping.  Stay that path or diversify a bit and add some of these ASIC to the mix.

@thedue - You can order it on his Ebay store.  PM him.  He ships Internationally.

[citronick]

Hehe, I'm still wording it badly.  What I mean is if I were to invest $2400 in a GPU rig mining ETH / ZEC or whatever for  the 6-12 months.  Does the future look rosier in that path which right now looks good but DASH is popping.  Stay that path or diversify a bit and add some of these ASIC to the mix.

@thedue - You can order it on his Ebay store.  PM him.  He ships Internationally.

LOL.... yeah my eyes are going bad.

Yes, diversity is best IMHO.

Just like coins - you wouldnt want to do all ETH but pair the best GPU type for the right coin type.

Eg. RX best for ETH. Non-RX best for non-ETH.

Man don't eat on bread alone 

[m1n1ngP4d4w4n]

The Biostar 7 Slot GPU Z170GT7 Racing is a SEXY Board.  I really really want it to work but it didn't.  It's actually a very stupid card.  All Looks and no go.  Max is 4 GPU.  You have to flash the BIOS in order to see some CPU models.  How do they expect us to do that?  Have a spare CPU just for that?  I bought 15 of them, I may only keep 1 for a ROM / Test station.  Why would they tease us with 7 Slots but only 4 are designed to work?  That's like going to an ALL YOU CAN EAT Buffett, just to be told It's ALL YOU CAN EAT, NOT YOU CAN EAT ALL!!!

Hey yun, i think i saw somewhere on this forum you had to activate a specific option in the newest mobo bios to get 6 gpu to work, it was "4G bandwith or something", i'll try to find the post again. Try to see if you see something like that in the bios, seems to be the key to get 6 gpus if i remember correctly. Keeping you updated

Ah there it is

http://mining-hardware.weebly.com/blog/category/z170-bios-mod

Dunno if you can get it to work the same way for the biostar. Tell me about it

[CryptoWatcher420]

@cryptowatcher - You got PM.  Would love to learn how.  =)

P.S I have my wife doing network cabling.  I love custom lengths so it's AWESOME.

I make my own network cables as well, Im very big on the whole do it yourself, lol
I hit you back with a PM to your inbox!

if there is anyone else that is interested in making there own custom length power cables for there rigs pci express, eps 12v, 4 pin molex and sata
yall are welcome to hit me up, i have a some information that should allow just about anyone to jump right into making there own cables instead of spending and arm or a leg for what you might think is quality made, if you make it you control the quality, every now and then i see things like splitter cables that use stranded aluminum, not a good choice, those of us that are old enough knows what happens to houses that have aluminum wireing don't we? over time and or when its overloaded. i use nothing but straight up stranded copper wire


BTW @yun9999 sent you a pm!:D

[m1n1ngP4d4w4n]

if there is anyone else that is interested in making there own custom length power cables for there rigs pci express, eps 12v, 4 pin molex and sata
yall are welcome to hit me up, i have a some information that should allow just about anyone to jump right into making there own cables instead of spending and arm or a leg for what you might think is quality made, if you make it you control the quality, every now and then i see things like splitter cables that use stranded aluminum, not a good choice, those of us that are old enough knows what happens to houses that have aluminum wireing don't we? over time and or when its overloaded. i use nothing but straight up stranded copper wire


BTW @yun9999 sent you a pm!:D

Custom power cable, if you use big 2 or 4k psu, that sound very interesting, why not opening a topic about making your own power & network cables !

[CryptoWatcher420]

The Biostar 7 Slot GPU Z170GT7 Racing is a SEXY Board.  I really really want it to work but it didn't.  It's actually a very stupid card.  All Looks and no go.  Max is 4 GPU.  You have to flash the BIOS in order to see some CPU models.  How do they expect us to do that?  Have a spare CPU just for that?  I bought 15 of them, I may only keep 1 for a ROM / Test station.  Why would they tease us with 7 Slots but only 4 are designed to work?  That's like going to an ALL YOU CAN EAT Buffett, just to be told It's ALL YOU CAN EAT, NOT YOU CAN EAT ALL!!!

Hey yun, i think i saw somewhere on this forum you had to activate a specific option in the newest mobo bios to get 6 gpu to work, it was "4G bandwith or something", i'll try to find the post again. Try to see if you see something like that in the bios, seems to be the key to get 6 gpus if i remember correctly. Keeping you updated

Ah there it is

http://mining-hardware.weebly.com/blog/category/z170-bios-mod

Dunno if you can get it to work the same way for the biostar. Tell me about it

good info although i have to say im not sure i would trust a bios "mod", if its not from MSI for there motherboard that could void warranty other than that the rest of the info is good

[CryptoWatcher420]

if there is anyone else that is interested in making there own custom length power cables for there rigs pci express, eps 12v, 4 pin molex and sata
yall are welcome to hit me up, i have a some information that should allow just about anyone to jump right into making there own cables instead of spending and arm or a leg for what you might think is quality made, if you make it you control the quality, every now and then i see things like splitter cables that use stranded aluminum, not a good choice, those of us that are old enough knows what happens to houses that have aluminum wireing don't we? over time and or when its overloaded. i use nothing but straight up stranded copper wire


BTW @yun9999 sent you a pm!:D

Custom power cable, if you use big 2 or 4k psu, that sound very interesting, why not opening a topic about making your own power & network cables !

actually as yun9999 has inquired about it and so has another member on the forums watching this thread it has crossed my mind to start such a thread. but honestly i haven't felt ive gathered enough intel to be able to. im not very handy at making a guide of any sorts. i can give up things like where to look for pin outs, tips and tricks i use when making custom cables, things like that. as people ask me things im able to dig up more info, like for instance seasonic psu's on the 8pin plug that plugs into the psu is a specific plug that's NOT made by molex and its slightly different from its normal 8 pin molex connector plug.

[m1n1ngP4d4w4n]

actually as yun9999 has inquired about it and so has another member on the forums watching this thread it has crossed my mind to start such a thread. but honestly i haven't felt ive gathered enough intel to be able to. im not very handy at making a guide of any sorts. i can give up things like where to look for pin outs, tips and tricks i use when making custom cables, things like that. as people ask me things im able to dig up more info, like for instance seasonic psu's on the 8pin plug that plugs into the psu is a specific plug that's NOT made by molex and its slightly different from its normal 8 pin molex connector plug.

That's fine mate to share your infos there then, im sure yun wouldn't mind, i for one are very interested ! Thanks !

[philipma1957]

The Biostar 7 Slot GPU Z170GT7 Racing is a SEXY Board.  I really really want it to work but it didn't.  It's actually a very stupid card.  All Looks and no go.  Max is 4 GPU.  You have to flash the BIOS in order to see some CPU models.  How do they expect us to do that?  Have a spare CPU just for that?  I bought 15 of them, I may only keep 1 for a ROM / Test station.  Why would they tease us with 7 Slots but only 4 are designed to work?  That's like going to an ALL YOU CAN EAT Buffett, just to be told It's ALL YOU CAN EAT, NOT YOU CAN EAT ALL!!!

Hey yun, i think i saw somewhere on this forum you had to activate a specific option in the newest mobo bios to get 6 gpu to work, it was "4G bandwith or something", i'll try to find the post again. Try to see if you see something like that in the bios, seems to be the key to get 6 gpus if i remember correctly. Keeping you updated

Ah there it is

http://mining-hardware.weebly.com/blog/category/z170-bios-mod

Dunno if you can get it to work the same way for the biostar. Tell me about it

no he and I exchanged  multiple emails.   the z170 biostar  was made with the   intel sixth gen in mind.

inorder to get a seventh gen cpu to work  a bios flash update is needed.

in order to do this you need a sixth gen cpu.

been there done that over the last 4 to 6 gens of mobo's  at least 4 times.

the board is a great board for a no riser build  of four cards using the g4400t cpu or the i5 6400t cpu.

No one has ever shown it to work well with 5 cards or 6 cards

[m1n1ngP4d4w4n]

Ah i see, so same chipset but not working the same, thx for your input. well it seems to be a good MB but just not for mining !

[CryptoWatcher420]

The Biostar 7 Slot GPU Z170GT7 Racing is a SEXY Board.  I really really want it to work but it didn't.  It's actually a very stupid card.  All Looks and no go.  Max is 4 GPU.  You have to flash the BIOS in order to see some CPU models.  How do they expect us to do that?  Have a spare CPU just for that?  I bought 15 of them, I may only keep 1 for a ROM / Test station.  Why would they tease us with 7 Slots but only 4 are designed to work?  That's like going to an ALL YOU CAN EAT Buffett, just to be told It's ALL YOU CAN EAT, NOT YOU CAN EAT ALL!!!

Hey yun, i think i saw somewhere on this forum you had to activate a specific option in the newest mobo bios to get 6 gpu to work, it was "4G bandwith or something", i'll try to find the post again. Try to see if you see something like that in the bios, seems to be the key to get 6 gpus if i remember correctly. Keeping you updated

Ah there it is

http://mining-hardware.weebly.com/blog/category/z170-bios-mod

Dunno if you can get it to work the same way for the biostar. Tell me about it

no he and I exchanged  multiple emails.   the z170 biostar  was made with the   intel sixth gen in mind.

inorder to get a seventh gen cpu to work  a bios flash update is needed.

in order to do this you need a sixth gen cpu.

been there done that over the last 4 to 6 gens of mobo's  at least 4 times.

the board is a great board for a no riser build  of four cards using the g4400t cpu or the i5 6400t cpu.

No one has ever shown it to work well with 5 cards or 6 cards

if i got a one of that motherboard, id love to give it a try. i build and repair comps and a good challenge is always welcome lol

[onefinecoin]

if there is anyone else that is interested in making there own custom length power cables for there rigs pci express, eps 12v, 4 pin molex and sata
yall are welcome to hit me up, i have a some information that should allow just about anyone to jump right into making there own cables instead of spending and arm or a leg for what you might think is quality made, if you make it you control the quality, every now and then i see things like splitter cables that use stranded aluminum, not a good choice, those of us that are old enough knows what happens to houses that have aluminum wireing don't we? over time and or when its overloaded. i use nothing but straight up stranded copper wire


BTW @yun9999 sent you a pm!:D

Custom power cable, if you use big 2 or 4k psu, that sound very interesting, why not opening a topic about making your own power & network cables !

I would really like that !! Please create a complete tutorial post !

[yun9999]

@ m1n1ngP4d4w4n - The MSI is a different beast.  That link might come in handy for me though as I was looking at other FUN MB options last night since I have all these LGA 1151 CPUs and a few DDR4 RAM chip last night so I decided to get a MSI Gaming Pro Carbon used on Amazon.  

@ Cryptowatcher - I'm ordering all the supplies you need my friend, it's in my Amazon Cart ready to ship to you.  Let's make it happen.  I see endless opportunities if you can make those cables for me.


************PICO PSU*****************************************

Finksy's version will be SEXIER and more POWERFUL.  This is just to give everyone an idea of how PICOs work with the Server PSU.  In order for Finksy to get us attractive prices, he have to buy in good volumes.  This is where I urged Hawkfish to partner up with Finksy to make this happen.  It's not part of their core business so both of them don't want to be stuck with huge inventory of these things.  I said "DO IT FOR THE COMMUNITY, there WILL BE a huge demand for it once people understand the value it brings.

The goal is to get a complete turn key solution including all custom cables for around $30 while saving everyone from the headache of buying crappier / more expensive solution like I did and then hunt for specialized cables since the PICO was designed for mini PC not mining rigs.

Why a standard PICO PSU won't work for us
* The CPU cable won't reach a normal Motherboard CPU slot.  
* It requires an expensive and Bulky AC power adaptor.  Who needs another thing to plug in or waste another outlet?
* It will require a custom 6 Pin to 2.5MM barrel cable to power the Pico if you dont want to use the AC adapter and power it via server PSU
* It will require a 6 pin to 4+4 ( pin EPS CPU cable if you want to make it 100% server PSU powering or a 4 pin to 4+4 (8)Pin EPS cable if you want the PICO to power the CPU.  

What I got from Ebay

$40 for this weak 80W combo with no cables that I need.  I still had to go and find the EPS cable for $10 on Amazon and it was very difficult to get the 6 pin to 2.5MM barrel adapter cable.  I ordered 2 different version and only 1 worked.  More money wasted.  This is NOT the Pico you want.  





6 Pin PCI to 2.5MM barrel adapter to power the PICO via server PSU.  Another cable was used to power the CPU via the server 6 Pin to 8 Pin EPS.  This waste 2 valuable PCI slot from the server PSU breakout board.







WHAT WE WANT................
Who wants to search on Ebay for separate items just to wait a month from China, overpay and get wrong stuff like I did?  No one.  I had to do many trial and errors and the complete solution worked and is better than the above but still not cost effective nor SEXY as I want it.  We want 1 solution that is tested and have everything so there is no guessing game.  We at least 160W of Pico power for the same price as 80W.  We want to use 1 6pin cable that splits and power the PICO and can also power the CPU.  This will reduce the PCI slot wasted per rig.  Most importantly, we WANT IT CHEAPER!

WHY WE WANT PICOs.

* It's super Compact and sexy.  The entire PSU is just a the size of your MB plug adapter.  You hardly see the thing once it's plug into the MB slot.  I purposely left the cables outside just so you can spot the PICO!  If I hide it's tiny 4 pin CPU and SATA cable, you won't be realized a PICO PSU is plugged in.



* It's very cost effective if we can get it for $30.  You can't get a quality baby ATX PSU for under $50 raising your cost per RIG
* Less Cable clutters and space needed in the rear.  This help improve air flow and cable management



Picture Powering 4-5 x 6 GPU rigs this solution easily when paired with Finksy 4kw PSU bundle.  SO FRESH FRESH...........SO CLEAN CLEAN!



NOW HERE IS THE KEY WHY YOU SHOULD want it.  On top of being SEXY, Cost effective per RIG, you now move 98% of your Power load to the more efficient GOLD to Platinum rated Server PSU.  These things are TANKS and are designed to be run for years 24x7 vs consumer grade ATX which are not.  When you're using the old way with 4-5 Baby PSU, those are generally cheapy 80+ or less efficiency so this solution pays for itself very quickly via the efficiency.  P.M Finksy and Hawkfish and tell them.  WE WANT PICOs.............WE WANT PICOs!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[yun9999]

*******************Simple Rig Resetter (SRR) REVIEW **********************************

//DRAFTING//////

How many of us wake up to Rigs being Hung or have RIGs that is constantly requiring reboots?  I'm sure everyone does.  Not only does this cost us money but it also makes us worry about taking vacations, or be away from home.  I have over 65 rigs between myself and a friend I'm hosting for.  Embarrassed to say but it's the reality we live in, I usually wake up to at least 1 rig that is Hung or having mining issues.  That's a few bucks a day which doesn't seem like much but compound that to a few rigs x 30 days a month and you can see it can get very EXPENSIVE.  This is why SRR is so important to me.

Switched APC vs SRR

APC Switched PDUs

Pro
* You need a PDU anyways.  But it doesn't have to be a pricey APC.  ($15 Dell PDUs)
* Simple to use Web interface
* You can name the devices

Con
* Pricey at $100-150 used
* Max is 4-5 Rig support per PDU due to amperage
* Difficult to configure if you don't know.  You must buy the APC serial cable to connect via Hyperterm to set it up.  Most people don't know this or don't bother and end up using it as an overpriced Metered PDU.  I know I did in the beginning as my APCs didn't come with this cable.
* Not tied into the OS for automatic rig rebooting when a rig is hung
* DOES NOT save you money as there's no automation, you have to know a RIG needs to be rebooted and manually do so
* It's difficult and more expensive to run longer high AWG power cable then SRR signal cables
* Documentations are limited and my guess is many people will run into issues

SRR

Pro
* Very cost effective compare to APC for more than 5 rigs
* Simple to setup and use.  You can be up in less than 15 mins and most of the time required is just for plugging in Cables!
* Built in OS agents when using Simplemining.net OS
* Software to detect SRR and configure is very simple to use and Fast scanning.  
* Very SEXY and compact designed with attactive LEDs status.  
* Cables used are super high quality.
* Very well documented PDF on the how to steps
* Very simple and intuitive interface

Con
* Expensive for small setup of less than 5 Rigs
* Pricey cabling (Tytanick is working on a more cost effective cabling solutions)
* Limited to 8 port for the base unit (Expansion boards available soon)
* When you reboot the Status for the RIG still show up as Green vs RED ( Can be fix with updates)
* Single point of failure
* Can't name the ports ( Can be fix with updates)



***********The HARDWARE***********************

Lots of attention to Details!!






The unit is very Compact and the Cabling is Super High Quality!  At first I was not too happy about the pricy cabling as I thought it was normal cheapy on/off cablings but wow am I impressed.  Very happy with quality and I don't have to worry about some skinny cable snapping when I'm working on my rigs.  I was going to do a disconnect cable setup for my server cases config, but I like this so much, I think I will make the extra effort just to disconnect from the base if I need to.











The LEDs and sexy cabling makes me want to show off my SRR on the side vs hiding it in the rear







The product is super easy to setup and Tytanick's PDF for the step by step is very well done.  I finished all 8 of mine in about 15-20mins and most of that time was for running the cable as I like them organized.  





If you're using Simplemining.net OS, his agents are already built in.  You just have to choose SRR and point to it.






The scanning and management software is very easy to use, FAST and intuitive.  Just download, install and choose Scan and it will find the SRR device immediately.  I DO NOT recommend changing the IP addresses at this time.  When you do so, depending on what other services you have running, you may run into issues like I did.  There's no reset option to bring it back to factory default.  It's best to leave it as is as it scans based on other info and will auto detect, no need to memorize what port and IP addresses.





The Software is very intuitive and all the buttons speaks for itself.  The only thing that is important and this is why it's repeated many times in the PDF is to set your watchdog timer for at least 120 seconds.  This is the time out value where it would see no response from the Rig and send out a reboot / power on / off request.  You can make it longer if you want.  I tested the reboot and the RIG button was still showing as Green.  Minor issue that can be fixed via future updates but it worked as designed.  For windows rig, you have to install the SRR agents if you want the Watch dog auto restart features.




NOW I can feel more comfortable going on Vacations!!  Also this gives my Hosting partner more control / automation so they don't need to bug me as often for reboots.  I spent over $800 on 6 used APC 7911 but to date it have not saved me a dime.  Why?  Because I have to identify the issue first and then reboot it.  There is no automation.  One could argue that part of that is not wasted as you're still using it as a PDU. For me, I have my beefier Dell PDU that have more Amperage per Block so it wasn't necessarily needed.  


FAST ROI
This unit pays for itself super FAST.  I always recommend my friend to invest in Smart monitoring and automation tool as it will save you money in the long run.  Most of them tried to avoid the cost but eventually end up doing it.  So it's better to do it from the start and make your life easier.  This is based on my own example but the larger your farm and the more you OC, the more likely this relates to you.

Assuming you have 1 Rig down per day while sleeping or at work
8 hrs = $2-3 per Rig x 30 days = $60 - 90 opportunity loss.  

Now if you're on Vacation for 1 week and you have  1-2 rigs down.  That essentially pays for the entire SRR and ruin your entire vacation which cost even more.  I also know many people that use hosting facility and many times their SLAs are crap.  Those idle time waiting for someone to fix your rigs add up very fast.  I know at least 2 friends that are dying to get the SRR to their hosting site as they lost hundreds if not thousands due to idle and issues.

I get zero compensation for pushing SRR and I can't wait for the Expansion board to be available as I'll be the first person ordering.  This Product is Amazing.  You simply can't go wrong with this device.  I would even argue that it may be silly to be mining with 8 rigs or more without this.  The reason for that is there will always be HOT new coins and those new mining software will always be flakey.  If you have automation, you're up more and are able to be making much more.

[takagari]

Those pico are pretty awesome and a wicked solution honestly.
I'm still searching for good pci-e risers.
lots of pico options out there but 1 month an din china is a bit much.