New Version (unoverclockable) ASICMiner Blade Overclock Kit - IN STOCK

[sidehack]

Kits will start shipping today, 12/18

I had enough questions from people having difficulty keeping overclocked blades cool and efficient, that I'll be including parts to run three different overclocks - the same ~13GH overclock from V1 blades, a ~14.4GH overclock and the maxed-out 15GH like the original kit. Basically just find the one you're able to keep stable and use that.

Selling for flat 0.025BTC per kit, as many as you want shipped for 0.01BTC

I'll also be offering upgrade service with return shipping and next-business-day turnaround for 0.085BTC per unit.

I also have a couple overclocked Blades I'm looking to sell if anyone's in the market. They're retailing for 0.38BTC in the group buys, I'll sell these for 0.43BTC which includes USPS Priority shipping and insurance. One's a 14.9GH, one's a 14.4GH


To place orders, submit payment to address 1EpQdQgAs2CrF2TYRTmdAasE5vQNPWwQCs
PM me with your desired shipping address and a link to the transaction block of your payment. I'll respond with a confirmation that your order has been received, and a tracking number for the shipment when it ships.


Instructions on applying the kit
http://www.gekkoscience.com/be_ins/blade_ins.html

More details farther down. If anyone has any further questions regarding specifics or things I've overlooked, feel free to PM.


I'm also currently developing additional overclock for ASICMiner Cubes, as well as working on standalone high-efficiency power supplies for them and other devices (including GPUs) that use PCIe 12V connectors. The next few weeks should be interesting.

[rammy2k2]

good job for developing these, im sure there are some serious buyers out there

[viriat0]

Good job!

Watching

[sidehack]

It really doesn't take a lot, thinking something like 0.1BTC for the base kit shipped, 0.15 for the full kit shipped. Sometime soon (it's been a hectic weekend, and will continue to be a hectic week) I'll have an actual build log posted - gotta get a webserver up first though.

For reference, the stock rates at about 10.7GH; with the base kit applied mine was reporting about 14.6 and after adding parts to the VRM output (which greatly dropped line noise) it's been reporting around 15GH (which is actually higher than theoretical expectations, go figure). Running stable for 13 hours now, no X chips and no heating issues.

That would include USPS Priority shipping in the US. Bulk orders would be negotiable, and shipping outside the US researchable.

[CroverNo01]

It really doesn't take a lot, thinking something like 0.1BTC for the base kit shipped, 0.15 for the full kit shipped. Sometime soon (it's been a hectic weekend, and will continue to be a hectic week) I'll have an actual build log posted - gotta get a webserver up first though.

For reference, the stock rates at about 10.7GH; with the base kit applied mine was reporting about 14.6 and after adding parts to the VRM output (which greatly dropped line noise) it's been reporting around 15GH (which is actually higher than theoretical expectations, go figure). Running stable for 13 hours now, no X chips and no heating issues.

That would include USPS Priority shipping in the US. Bulk orders would be negotiable, and shipping outside the US researchable.

Looking forward to this, will be a UK Buyer Have 10 Blades that could do with the upgrade

[sidehack]

That amount would get you a bulk discount, but additional (international) shipping may eat it up. Either way we'll keep it reasonable.

[Vl4dim1r]

I would consider this as well, for 3 blades.

[sidehack]

Stuff should be ready to ship on Friday. I'll have some pictures and screenshots up later so's to verify the numbers I'm seeing. Definitely keep you guys in the loop. Had a lot of fun hacking on the USB Block Erupters, was a bit worried at the scale of the blade but everything's working well, especially with the added VRM filtering. Might have been a fluke, but taking out some line ripple and HF noise (the added filtering quartered noise and ripple) I saw about a 100-200MH increase in steady-state hashrate, and that should also reduce strain on the chips which is nice with an overvolt.

As a note, this kit is a fixed-voltage overvolt and fixed-frequency overclock (of about 35%). But I will be working on an adjustable clock source and see just how far these things can be pushed at a given voltage, which should be fun.

[innovation]

need more evidence!

[Tong]

I'm putting together a basic DIY kit for overclocking ASICMiner new-version Blades (the ones without OC adjustments built in), taking the stock up to around 14.6GH.

Looking at two versions of the kit, one with just the basic parts to overclock/overvolt and one with additional power supply components to reduce line ripple and noise for more stable operation.

Neither kit will include advanced cooling options; I'll let you guys figure that out yourselves. The kits will include requisite parts and printed instructions for what gets swapped with what. This will require soldering skills.

Kits may be available by the end of this week, at least to people in the United States. Just as an initial estimate, what would people be willing to pay for the parts to upspec a standard Blade by about 35%?

The real number would depend on time to complete project, but a 20% of purchase price of a blade to get a 35% increase in performance would not be obsurd... so for a real number figure, I'd be willing to do about .20 to .25 btc for a full kit shipped.  If the powerdraw doesn't increase substantially and the backplane could still be used, you're talking a gain of 40gh per full backplane, now that I can take to the bank.

[Tong]

Would you be willing to do this as a service too for those of us that don't have the needed skills??? Sending you a pm.

[sidehack]

Here's my test rig with all modifications in place. Running a core clock of 16.384MHz at 1.25V. The oscillator is a temp pulled from what I had on hand, and will be replaced by a proper-fitting part (of the same specifications) in the actual kit. The VRM switching transistors and inductor aren't warm to the touch and don't seem to have any trouble handling the drive current. The total board metered out at 12.35A consumption off the 12V rail, which is actually less than predicted.



Also notice the added components on the VRM power rails - this reduced line ripple and parasitic switching noise substantially, which should improve the reliability of the ASIC chips.
I also added topside chip heatsinks, but it's up to experimentation to determine if that's actually necessary since by design the majority of heat dissipation is through the board. I noted the ASIC chips were warmer running overstock voltage than standard and I added chip heatsinks, but the main heatsink is mostly cooled with indirect air so better direct cooling might negate the need for these. I will not be including advanced heatsinking parts in the kit because I don't know what each person will need to fit their existing setups.


Here's a screencap of the configuration page after running overnight. It had been functional for ~20 hours steady before starting this "session". The converged data rate reported is a little higher than I had been getting in steady-state, but is within acceptable margins for accuracy.



I mine at Ozcoin; the .1 and .2 workers are overclocked USB Block Eruptors. The blade is on a Stratum proxy credentialed under sidehack.0 and is the only device on this worker. Reported hashrates have ranged between about 12GH and 18GH depending on luck.



I haven't considered overmuch the requirements for doing the upgrade as a service - it's possible for a nominal fee. I know folks aren't going to want their machines out of service for long, so depending on location high-speed shipping options and turnaround guarantees will have to be worked out with cost in mind.

[guyver]

Great work

Can I ask what the power usage is after the upgrade

[sidehack]

The total board metered out at 12.35A consumption off the 12V rail

This equates to a shy 150W

[bobsag3]

How hard would this be for us to do our selves? Very interested

[sidehack]

The bulk of things can be done with a standard soldering iron and a careful hand. The oscillator, having four pads, will be the only iffy part. I used a hot air station to swap that out - did some oscillator swaps on BEs and had trouble removing them with just an iron. The pads on this one are larger and more accessible, so it should be easier.

I would recommend a hot air station for sure, but it should be possible for a well-practiced person to do with a basic iron. You'll probably want both fine and heavy tips though, because some of the pads tie directly to voltage/ground planes and take a lot of heat to flow, where some are very small and precision is needed.

All the work on mine was done over several stages with various tests inbetween, but to do one fresh start-to-finish would be the work of less than an hour even being careful.

[viriat0]

Good WORK!

Congrats.

[sidehack]

I should be able to start shipping parts kits on Monday for anyone looking at it. That'll give me time, I reckon, to work out some details on international shipping and a few more days to test, tweak and organize. And a few more days to work out payment and address verification requirements.

[h@shKraker]

GREAT work sir.  Please post how we pay you and how we get you shipping address information.  Thx for the work.

H@shkraker

[sidehack]

I'll be assembling kits starting tonight, but not all the parts will be in until probably Friday. Testing will continue through this weekend to make sure everything's top notch functional and I'll start delivering to the post office on Monday.


What I'm thinking is, after looking at all the costs associated, 0.2BTC for the full kit, USPS Priority shipping included. I can also offer upgrade service for folks that don't have their own skills or equipment, next-day turnaround and priority return shipping, for 0.4BTC
As long as that sounds reasonable that's what we'll do. I know it's a little higher than initial estimate, but it's calculated based on updated actual costs. International shipping cost/speed will have to be figured out on individual basis, and bulk discounts are available for folks buying more than 1 since shipping will combine.


I'll be setting up a wallet address specifically for this in order to keep track of things more readily, and a reasonable signed payment scheme. I know I'm sorta new to the forums, been a lurker for months but hadn't really ever posted anything. For any credibility concerns, I refurbish and sell electronics for a living - eBay/Amazon seller "midwestrefurb".