NOOB - Have I understood correctly?

[SD449]

Hi Everyone!

I am thinking about jumping on the Bitcoin train as its leaving the station...

From my research it seems I need;

Antminer S9 (or multiple)
AP3++ PSU
UK Kettle Lead
Ethernet Cable
Join a pool (Slush Pool?)
Mining Software (BFGMiner?)
A wallet (?)

I assume I plug the Ethernet into my Router and then connect to the unit via IP address to install software or is the software install on my laptop?

Is that is?  From what I've read its fairly automatic, plug it in and away it goes.

From what I understand I need to factor in high energy usage, big upfront layout for hardware and the risk of the market for BTC crashing?  Anything else I have missed apart from difficulty increasing?

Thank you for reading and any replies.

[1714912790]

1714912790

[1714912790]

1714912790

[latoxine34]

Hi ( you drive on the wrong way of the road ! )


You have all right except the good news you don't need a miner software as it is include in the miner S9. ( plug and play )
You just need to set one page on the miner dashboarb about the pool, a lot of tuto are available, and slushpool is a good choice as it is clear and easy.


You connect to the miner with your browser, using the ip you took from a litle free software that scan ips, OR you can just catch it from your router  ( what I do ) where you see all the devices connected.( it will be called antminer )

Et voila...

 

[SGMPhil]

If you decide to go with multiple miners, make sure you have planned your power requirements properly. Miners use a lot of power and need adequate power feeds. Also plan for dealing with the noise and heat, these things generate a lot of both

[SD449]

Thank you both for your helpful replies.

Regarding power, do they not simply plug into a normal outlet?  Obviously I wouldn't be plugging 2 or 4 into 1 socket with an extension lead.

I assume I just have to put up with the noise and make sure the room is at a nice temperature, not to hot or cold.

Biggest question is can I buy it safely from eBay or is it best to always buy direct from bitmain and wait for their next available batch?

[ccgllc]

The APW3++ power supply you mentioned requires 220V power, not 110V.  It will start with 110V, but will not provide the required wattage to run all 3 cards on the S9.  

Don't underestimate the power draw, the associated heat, and the noise.  Think of them as space heaters on high with the sounds of a bad vacuum cleaner running.  The space heater analogy is actually pretty close, except that most space heaters draw a little less power!

e.g.  If you put one of these things in a bedroom without ventilation, your going to create a dry sauna within hours, and cook your investment.

Bitmain vs. Amazon/E-bay is a risk/reward issue.  You will only get a (semi-worthless) warranty from Bitmain.  Their warranty's are not transferable through 3rd parties (e.g. You need the unit serial number AND the order number for them to honor the warranty.  "semi-worthless" because you need to ship the unit back to China (California if your in the USA), and potentially be without it for 3 months while its repaired.)

Personally, I only buy from Bitmain.

While you wait for your delivery, go out and buy a cheap 1300+ watt space heater (like at $39 one), and figure out your ventilation needs.

[latoxine34]

Yes he's right, and buy from bitmain,

AND


you can buy too to some people, who are tired of the noise and the heat of the miner.I did.

 I've seen a lot of s9 sold in UK from ebay, sure you will find them on...euh...?! ( I don't know how you call it in UK, like craig list in US I think ?! ) and buy them directly.

good luck.

[boxalex]

Hi Everyone!

I am thinking about jumping on the Bitcoin train as its leaving the station...

From my research it seems I need;

Antminer S9 (or multiple)
AP3++ PSU
UK Kettle Lead
Ethernet Cable
Join a pool (Slush Pool?)
Mining Software (BFGMiner?)
A wallet (?)

I assume I plug the Ethernet into my Router and then connect to the unit via IP address to install software or is the software install on my laptop?

Is that is?  From what I've read its fairly automatic, plug it in and away it goes.

From what I understand I need to factor in high energy usage, big upfront layout for hardware and the risk of the market for BTC crashing?  Anything else I have missed apart from difficulty increasing?

Thank you for reading and any replies.

On first read you have more or less all you need, but you have to consider a bit more things bevor investing in several S9 in my opinion.

- As allready mention the power consumption is high. About 1350 Watt per hour. While this is not such a big problem if its only 1x S9 it is when you want to setup several at home. Let's say you want to have 5, makes ~ 6.750 Watt per hour and not all home circuits are fit for such usage, having in mind you use other electrical items too. Have as well in mind that you electricity bill will come in most cases bevor you cashed out whatever. 6.750 Watt per our, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, due the math how much you bill will be monthly.

- Allready mentioned, heat, S9's are the hottest of all i have so far. Coolest i get them without much afford is 60C, if you are not ventilated they will go easy over 75C in no time. No idea where you live and what temps are there in summer, but have in mind that temperatures over 80C in the S9 are critical. While in the first 15 minutes you might think the hot air is ok to heat your home, this will change in latest 1 hour later, lol, when you feel like in a sauna.

- Beside that, the noise. Do not underestimate the noise they make. Listen maybe to some good youtube voice records of antminers to get an idea. They are loud, like all Asics are. I personally can not imagine someone having them at home and living there, seriously. I bet there are such "fanatics" but for me personally that would be never an option.

- Your internet must be stable and reliable all the time.

- Where to buy? Buying from Bitmain seems the best opinon, but i know a lot of cases where even from Bitmain arrive Antminers without or missing hashboards, vaulty ones and so on. Additionally you have to wait for a given batch to be available. Means you buy today but get them maybe in 2 weeks, maybe in 1 month, maybe in 2 months, up to the Batch and model.
I personally bought a lot of Ants and Baikals from ebay. If you want to be on the sure side, only buy with pick up option or use paypal and creditcard or sepa which gives you the ebay buyer garantee at least. Other than that make sure bevor you buy that you get proof everything works on the given Asic mashine you buy. Can be done via video clip of the miner menu, the miner itself with a newspaper from today or whatever. Always be sure the lines with the hashboards are ok. If some seller does not want to provide a video clip, other proof or whatever, just do not buy, easy as that.

- Wallet. Its not only the wallet you need. I guess you want to cash out at some time, means you need an exchange, a buyer, or whatever. You have to make accounts on exchange and verify your identity in case you plan to operate with a bit higher sums or cash them out at some time. Do some research on that. Also give extra attention to the wallet. A wrong wallet and or lost password phases, security keys and and and can make you lose everything!!!!

- Make sure you have at least some basic knowledge on how to setup a network, ssh won't hurt either. If you do not have the basic skills you are lost at some time in my opinion.

- Make sure you pay taxes, up to where you live, but give it some attention upfront so you will not run into fatal problems later!

- There are for sure some more thing that deserve some attention but thats what first came into my mind.

[leowonderful]

Anything around 70-80c is actually pretty decent for S9s considering how they're designed and they're capable of hashing around or over 100c for extended periods of time. 115c is their temp cutoff point, and unless you're extremely limited with ventilation you won't hit that point. A reasonable goal is under 100 and it won't impact your miners significantly.

[ccgllc]

Anything around 70-80c is actually pretty decent for S9s considering how they're designed and they're capable of hashing around or over 100c for extended periods of time. 115c is their temp cutoff point, and unless you're extremely limited with ventilation you won't hit that point. A reasonable goal is under 100 and it won't impact your miners significantly.

Just recognize a basic aspect of physics:  All reactions speed double every 10C.  That holds for chemical reaction rates (and accounts for spontaneous combustion) as well as the lifetimes of circuits.  I won't argue with the poster that an S9 can run at 100C, but its going to do so for a much shorter time.  Might not be an issue if you plan on selling it in under and year (and a good reason not to buy used ones!), but if you plan on hanging onto it for awhile, I'd suggest cooler temps.

[leowonderful]

Anything around 70-80c is actually pretty decent for S9s considering how they're designed and they're capable of hashing around or over 100c for extended periods of time. 115c is their temp cutoff point, and unless you're extremely limited with ventilation you won't hit that point. A reasonable goal is under 100 and it won't impact your miners significantly.

Just recognize a basic aspect of physics:  All reactions speed double every 10C.  That holds for chemical reaction rates (and accounts for spontaneous combustion) as well as the lifetimes of circuits.  I won't argue with the poster that an S9 can run at 100C, but its going to do so for a much shorter time.  Might not be an issue if you plan on selling it in under and year (and a good reason not to buy used ones!), but if you plan on hanging onto it for awhile, I'd suggest cooler temps.

I've had experience running S9s and S7s near 100 and 105 during the summer months in South Carolina, and my S9 ran at temps around 80 regularly and 100 in the summer with no hiccups for a year and a half until I sold it locally recently. I know people worry about summer temps, and it's okay if you're not going to be running the units at near 100 for longer than a few months.

Most of the time when you're near those temps it's just ventilation that's the culprit, and it's not difficult to add more in most cases. Just a few large fans in and out should keep them at good temps.

[castiel0504]

Like most of people said. I would emphasize biggest point of all of them - Ventilation, electricity(outlets and so on). Each S9 on 220V uses around 7A, so mostly mine(outlets) are 16V, so i can plug only 2 per 1 outlet. So if you are thinking of going big, think in advance of numbers and is your electricity prepared to handle that. Rule says use 80% of your outlet maximum, dont load it at 100% bad things will happen.

Ventilation. Be sure that your space has windows, or fans to take additional heat out of room where your miners are. You can try using ducting with flexible hose, and take all heat from miners to other room/out depending of your setup.