My BFL unboxing and setup experience - Single SC

[r3animation]

MY LS arrived the other day and I have to agree, its almost as loud as a hair dryer.  Maybe not THAT loud.  I think its about on par with my Dyson vacuum cleaner.  I think a hair dryer is louder then that.  I tried changing out fans with a nice Noctua, but the Noctua couldn't keep the temp down low enough.  In the end I went back to a stock fan and I'm dealing with the noise.

There is no way to sleep with this thing in the same room.  I had it 2 rooms away with doors closed and I could still hear it a little from where I was sleeping. 

I agree its pretty loud. I got my Single a few days ago and tore it apart.

I'm using 2 120mm gentle typhoons (1850rpm and whisper quiet) blowing down on the heatsinks. That's about it. They do run a little hotter at 62C compared to 57C but I'll trade the temp increase for the quiet.

[rupy]

So what are the dimensions of the original heatsink fans? Can you post a photo?

Also how are you powering your singles? Does the brick have a fan in it?

[trichome]

• There's a good chance when you get your package your shit will be broken. It is packaged exceptionally poorly for such an expensive piece of equipment.
• If your shit is broken you probably won't get a replacement for several months at which point your investment will no longer be of any value.
• Just go ahead and go buy a power supply and have it ready for when your product arrives and save yourself the headache.
• Whichever pool you're on, if it's not specifically set up for ASIC mining, you probably won't be able to hash at full speed because getworks will be too slow so pick a pool that is specifically for ASIC mining.
• The Single SC is VERY LOUD. It sounds like a salon grade hair dryer. You'll want to put it somewhere that you won't be sleeping.

1) If you're PSU is broken, send them an email. One of my Little Single PSUs was dead, and they sent me a replacement. No big deal.
2) That said, I did configure a server PSU to have a bunch of PCIe power connectors, so I can power 4 SC Singles off one PSU. Best part? It only cost me $60.
3) The stock PSU should work fine, and has been working for me for several months.
4) See here: https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=104664.0 If you're not using a pool that's "ASIC Ready", you need a new pool.
5) The SC Single us loud, but it's not hair dryer loud. Yes, I have slept in the same room as 2 of them going, and it's not unreasonable. You can minimize the noise by running it outside of it's case and without the side fans, but that's a more advanced and extreme measure. Your best bet? Stick it somewhere cool and isolated where you don't have to listen to it. Obv I don't run all of mine in the middle of my living room, but instead somewhere secure and separate, where I barely notice the noise.

You must sleep like a fucking overweight beer ready for hibernation...I Have a log house with a fully finished insulated basement with hvac and i can hear it through the floors in the morning making coffee.  Glad i just sold mine as for the power consumption compared to the 2 gh block erupters...

[r3animation]

So what are the dimensions of the original heatsink fans? Can you post a photo?

Also how are you powering your singles? Does the brick have a fan in it?

The 2 original fans on the heatsinks are 90mm I think. The other 2 on the sides are 120mm (which I don't use anymore).

I'm using my own PSU instead of the BFL supplied PSU and yes the BFL PSU does have a fan in it.

[rupy]

which psu do you have?

[r3animation]

which psu do you have?

http://www.super-flower.com.tw/products_detail.php?class=2&sn=8&ID=2&lang=en

[rupy]

Ok, so which connector is it on the back of the single? 8-pin or 6-pin? I'm going to need 4 since I have 2 singles coming... would really like a powersupply that has connectors on the back only so I can avoid the cable mess. Are the connectors 6+2 pin PCI-E?

[r3animation]

Ok, so which connector is it on the back of the single? 8-pin or 6-pin? I'm going to need 4 since I have 2 singles coming... would really like a powersupply that has connectors on the back only so I can avoid the cable mess. Are the connectors 6+2 pin PCI-E?

2 x 6pins per single. Something like 850w and above should be suffice to power both at the same time. Definitely buy a reputable PSU brand with Gold or Platinum rating and modular so you can avoid the cable mess.

[rupy]

Ok, I'm starting to settle for this one:

http://www.corsair.com/us/power-supply-units/ax-series-power-supply-units/ax760-atx-power-supply-760-watt-80-plus-platinum-certified-fully-modular-psu.html

But how can I trick this PSU to start without having to connect the 24-pin ATX cable with the shortcut in it?

I need a female-female single pin cable... also can you disconnect the shortcut after the PSU has booted or does it need to stay in?

Finally, I'm thinking of putting both my singles naked (pcb and heatpipes on small risers for bottom heatsinks) side by side and having one 200mm fan on silent speed cooling both.

http://www.nzxt.com/product/detail/122-fz-200mm-non-led-case-fan.html

http://www.zalman.com/global/product/Product_Read.php?Idx=206

What do you think about that?

[r3animation]

Ok, I'm starting to settle for this one:

http://www.corsair.com/us/power-supply-units/ax-series-power-supply-units/ax760-atx-power-supply-760-watt-80-plus-platinum-certified-fully-modular-psu.html

But how can I trick this PSU to start without having to connect the 24-pin ATX cable with the shortcut in it?

I need a female-female single pin cable... also can you disconnect the shortcut after the PSU has booted or does it need to stay in?

Finally, I'm thinking of putting both my singles naked (pcb and heatpipes on small risers for bottom heatsinks) side by side and having one 200mm fan on silent speed cooling both.

http://www.nzxt.com/product/detail/122-fz-200mm-non-led-case-fan.html

http://www.zalman.com/global/product/Product_Read.php?Idx=206

What do you think about that?

That looks like a good PSU but since you have 2 singles, probably a 850+ watts PSU would be better. Just to be on the safe side if there is a overclocking mod for the Single, you'll need some headroom.


This will trick the PSU into switching on.

Never remove/disconnect a PSU power cable when it's on. You'll probably do something do the PSU or at worse, your miner or at worst, yourself. Just like you would never remove your hdd or graphics card when your computer is on. Bad things will happen.

That's an interesting idea on the 200mm fan but you'll need to check if it can push air through the heatsink fins efficiently.

[rupy]

I prefer silence to revenue, so I will not overclock. The 760 watt corsair is alot more silent than the 860.

I know how to trick a non modular PSU, I just wonder how to trick a modular one... but I think I have just the cable out in the country house.

My question about removing was only the red cable in your picture, how much current is going through that cable?

I'm thinking about replacing the termal pads with paste; but I will have to check how leveled the chips are, has any1 done that already?

[rupy]

Ok FYI, corsair/seasonic made it harder to jump these modular PSUs without the mess of 24 to 18+10 ATX cable:

You need 2 short cables:

Not only do you need to short 24P-16 to any GND, but 24P-3 is GNDs too, so:

10P-3 goes to 10P-5
18P-4 goes to 18P-6

Does anyone know if you should short the other 3V3s, 5Vs and 12Vs too; to avoid the house burning down?

Also does anyone know how much current that is going through these 2 cables, will I need them to be thick?

[Unacceptable]

Just PM this guy,he's got the switch you need 

https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=74397.0

[Cablez]

The only pins you need to worry about for this PSU are pins 3 and 5 on the small 10 pin female connector. You do not need to worry about pins 4 and 6 on the 18 pin connector as that is just a double used ground wire. Considering this a newer digital conversion PSU you also do not need loads on the 3.3 or 5v lines as well because all voltages come from the 12v line.

I can make a switch that will work for this, just PM me.

[rupy]

You do not need to worry about pins 4 and 6 on the 18 pin connector as that is just a double used ground wire.

Without that short the PSU stops after 1-2 seconds.

I think it is about security = engineers don't want you to "short use" the PSU.

Do you know if I should short the 12Vs too; to avoid the house burning down?

Also how much current is going through these cables, will I need them to be thick?

[Rival]

I had some setup issues with CGminer, so tried BFGminer and that went smooth as silk. Used Stratum with a diff of 32 to keep them well loaded. The Little Single 30gh/s have been busting out 32.5Gh/s each as reported by BTC-guild for well over 2 months now.

Simply impressive. Rock solid. I may buy a few more on ebay since they occasionally go cheap.

[Cablez]

You do not need to worry about pins 4 and 6 on the 18 pin connector as that is just a double used ground wire.

Without that short the PSU stops after 1-2 seconds.
I think it is about security = engineers don't want you to "short use" the PSU.
Do you know if I should short the 12Vs too; to avoid the house burning down?
Also how much current is going through these cables, will I need them to be thick?

That is really interesting as I have never heard of that before.  Why would bridging a ground wire to itself keep the PSU on?

If you are just turning the PSU on for external miners then you will not need to short the 12V lines either.  The amount of current on the PSU_ON pin is very small as it is just a signal line. Regular 18AWG wire is more than sufficient.