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Author Topic: [BOUNTY] PCB designer & More, for project ToFu ( For dead V2 blades )  (Read 4722 times)
TerraHasher (OP)
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December 24, 2013, 07:11:27 AM
 #1

Got a dead V2 blade?
Me too !

Ladies, Gentleman, and lower earth dwelling life forms, It is with great pleasure that i announce the start of what i call project ToFu. What is to follow is probably a page of me rambling trying to make this all make sense. So to start off on the right... or is it left...... foot, i will summarize first then get into detail.

What we need: An experienced PCB designer well known in the community. ( * this is me winking at you Mr Teal and Chip Geek )
                      A community accepted Escrow holder with a proven track record of delivering what is pomised
                     The backing of the bitcoin community holding those dredded dead V2 blades or AM chips.
                     Someone to help me write the assembly instructions
                     An experienced software / firmware developer


The Project: Design a PCB for a 2 AM chip DIY USB miner.

Now the story, explanation, and endless ramble, feel free to stop reading whenever you want. Just donate to our designers. Smiley

How many of you are holding dead V2 blades? How many of you have noticed the sudden up-rise of posts with people having problems with dead V2 blades? How many of you like zebra cakes? ok that last part was for my own fascination.

At last estimated count just on this forum alone, i estimate there are about 5000 viable chips on dead V 2.01 boards floating around these days, and that number increases daily. The one thing i see in common with every post about a dead blade on this and other forums is the want to find a PCB for our viable chips, and the kicker is THERE IS NONE..... True, you can spend days triaging your board, make several posts on the forum, hope, pray, cuss a little, wish, then finally cuss some more, put it in a box and then on a shelf. or if you are like me, you pray to find another dead Sapphire miner on ebay for a couple dollars and you harvest a chip and fix the USB miner. But the truth is for the majority of the community, once you have a dead board it gets put up, or sold on ebay for pennies on the dollar in hopes of getting back a small part of your investment.

So what is project ToFu?

Project ToFu hopes to harness the collective knowledge of a great community to resolve a common problem that many of us are suffering from. Project ToFu aims to design, prototype, and test a DIY kit, and instructions on how to harvest your ASIC chips from your dead V2 blade and assemble a 2 chip USB miner which is viable to start (slowly) mining bitcoin again and reclaim a small portion of your investment on your original purchase.

What the final product aim's to include:

1x PCB board ready for you to start to assemble
1x shopping list for parts you will need to order to finish the board ( hopefully with item numbers from digikey )
1x assembly manual giving you step by step instructions on how to harvest your chips, and assemble the board
1x micro SD card containing the firmware for the board
1x project ToFU thermal color changing sticker for your heat sink.
You will need to provide your own chips.

People and positions we need to fill:

Escrow Manager: This person will hold the donations as they accumulate towards the bounties we will offer to a few of the key developer's needed to complete this project and then release the bounty once their portion of the project is complete. The escrow manager must have a long and well documented history of successful escrow transactions and must have the full support of the community. The Escrow Manager will receive 2% of the total bounty/donations received for their services.

PCB Designer/Engineer (s): This person, or these persons will be the lead designers and engineers of the PCB itself, The PCB designer(s) must have a well document history in PCB design involving bitcoin ASIC miners, and must have a fair amount of time to invest into the project / design of the board. This person / people will receive a yet to be determined bounty payment for their time and services.

Firmware Designer: This person will be in charge of coding the firmware and drivers for the Project ToFU DIY board and must have experience working with ASIC firmware. This position will as well receive a yet to be determined bounty payment for their time / services. I myself will be helping with this in my spare time, but will require no payment for my time.

Instruction manual writers: These people will all collectively work together to write a simple, small, step by step instruction guide for how to remove chips from bad boards, and how to assemble all the components of the new Project ToFu USB miner. These positions are volunteer positions and we will rely on the community to help get this step done.

Graphic Designer: This person will be in charge of designing a logo for project ToFu, this logo will be used on the packaging and the color changing sticker for the heat sink. This position is a volunteer position and we will again rely on the help of the community to find a suitable logo for our little pet project.

Donors: Any and all of you that can contribute even .00000001 BTC to the bounty pool to reward the lead designers, Once we settle on a person to hold our escrow, a donation address will be set up, as well as a donation mining account on BTCguild where you will be able to donate even 10 minutes of use on your miners to help the cause. all mined donations will pay directly to the escrow address. More details to come.

If you are interested in filling any of the positions above, please message me with your qualifications (and payment requirements if it is a position with bounty)

Now for every pre-teen's favorite game... NO not 7 minutes in heaven, get your dirty minds out of the gutter..... 21 QUESTIONS


Q: Why a USB board instead of just a new 10.7 GH/s design?
A: The several chip design is what got us in this situation in the first place. a small cheap DIY USB will be easy to assemble, easy to diagnose if there are problems, small, and have very few components to break, and in the worst case scenario if it does break, you lose two chips a very little hashing power. Also, USB's make great gifts to help attract new people to bitcoin. Besides, lets face it, the more hashing power and nodes we keep in our control and out of the hands of cloud mining companies, the more control we have over keeping bitcoin the way it is.

Q: How much is this going to cost me?
A: We are hoping to keep the cost of the Project ToFu kit between $10 and $15 usd. or free. lesser the actual PCB, its up to you.

Q: How do we know this isn't just a way for you to make money?
A: Because i am not selling these, In the end we will all either go in on a group buy from a PCB manufacturer to have the boards made, or leave it to others in the community to have them made. this whole project will be open source, and if you know a PCB manufacturer you will be able to have them make the board for you, but rest assure you will pay a ton for 10-15 boards where as a group buy we can probably get the boards for a few dollars each. Furthermore, for testing purposes, someone has to pay for rapid prototyping on the board to test them before finalizing the design, that person will probably be me, and a few other donors i am sure.

Q: When do you expect to have these done?
A: I have no idea, we have just launched this project today 12/24/13, and are still looking for designers, engineers, and programmers. I will update as each spot is filled.

Q: Why did you call it Project ToFu
A: because we all have a ton of blades that are Totally Fu**ed

Q: (Reserved for your questions)
A: ( Reserved for answers to your questions)

Q: (Reserved for your questions)
A: ( Reserved for answers to your questions)

Q: (Reserved for your questions)
A: ( Reserved for answers to your questions)

More updates coming soon, If you are interested in helping fill any of the needed positions, please message me directly and we will get something figured out.

Donation address will be posted once we find an escrow manager.

Donations: 1A8anGihV3pvHeuhqzGsAjt2S71WY2qea4
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TerraHasher (OP)
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December 24, 2013, 07:17:48 AM
 #2

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sidehack
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December 24, 2013, 09:30:49 AM
 #3

Watching. Not sure what skills or resources I'll have available by the time this is moving, but I'll do what I can.

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December 24, 2013, 08:18:21 PM
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Watching and reserved. I would have applied but my PCB/digital electronics skills are still limited and related more to the theoretical than the practical.
TerraHasher (OP)
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December 24, 2013, 11:46:57 PM
 #5

Thank you for the support guys, even if you cannot contribute to the design itself, everyone can help with this, the more awareness we can get to this project the better the chance we have at finding all the people needed to make it happen. I have just gotten off a 5 hour phone call with a PCB designer who has never worked with bitcoin and gotten prices on what it would cost to have the board designed. If all else fails and we cannot make this happen as a community and get the price point in where we want it. then i will just foot the bill and start selling the kit at around $30 - $40 each, not to be the corporate American greed monger like all these other companies, but without community development there are a lot of bills to be paid, and i at least have to get my initial investment back. So anything you can do to help spread the word about the project would help greatly, i have priced out manufacturing a small board like this, and we could actually get the board itself made for roughly $1 each even with a small order of 10,000 units. which would put the kit in at around $5.00 and cost of additional components yet to be determined but probably around $10, which means if we get community development, we could essentially use our dead V2 blades to make a USB miner for about $15 per miner. So please, lets keep this cheap, fun, and a community project. spread the word, tell everyone, sooner or later we will get a designer, escrow person, and firmware developer to stand up and help for a bounty. even if we cannot find the firmware developer i can do that myself, the big hurdle is getting the PCB designed. 

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December 25, 2013, 05:49:26 PM
 #6

Is the hardware spec for the chips actually published? I have a rough pinout from testing V2 blades, but nothing official especially regarding I/O pins and protocol.

Cool, quiet and up to 1TH pod miner, on sale now!
Currently in development - 200+GH USB stick; 6TH volt-adjustable S1/3/5 upgrade kit
Server PSU interface boards and cables. USB and small-scale miners. Hardware hosting, advice and odd-jobs. Supporting the home miner community since 2013 - http://www.gekkoscience.com
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December 25, 2013, 08:39:54 PM
 #7

Has anyone tried to repair their blades?
Seems the easiest thing to do would be to just repair your blade.
If there is not enough information to repair your blade then there is not enough information to make a new design.
Maybe there is a common design weakness so if the problem were found a lot of blades could be repaired.
Repair seems like it might be less costly solution.
YMMV
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December 25, 2013, 09:12:58 PM
 #8

Less costly, and also less awesome. And since AM is no longer producing the USB BE, there's not a lot of low-entry-point mining options anymore so a $10-$20 dual-chip miner would be pretty sweet for noobs to play with.

Cool, quiet and up to 1TH pod miner, on sale now!
Currently in development - 200+GH USB stick; 6TH volt-adjustable S1/3/5 upgrade kit
Server PSU interface boards and cables. USB and small-scale miners. Hardware hosting, advice and odd-jobs. Supporting the home miner community since 2013 - http://www.gekkoscience.com
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December 25, 2013, 09:20:54 PM
 #9

Will the design of the PCB be published and open-source, so anyone can hack away and suggest improvements?
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December 25, 2013, 11:17:51 PM
 #10

Less costly, and also less awesome. And since AM is no longer producing the USB BE, there's not a lot of low-entry-point mining options anymore so a $10-$20 dual-chip miner would be pretty sweet for noobs to play with.

I am broke newb, and would love the "heathkit" aspect of it, hashing to the masses Smiley Some fun assembly to boot !

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TerraHasher (OP)
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December 26, 2013, 01:47:53 AM
 #11

Fasmax we have all repaired a blade or two in our day, the problem is the amount of components on the blade itself and the massive amount of things that can go wrong, the problem is the blade design, not the chips, a simple 2 chip usb design would be easy peasy with only a handful of components, and some of us just like to tinker and have the satisfaction of DIY just to say "i made this". One way or another, this is going to happen, i am going to give it a few more weeks to see if we can get an engineer to step up and design the PCB for a bounty, and if nobody steps up as part of a community project, i am going to cut a check to an engineer i know i texas and have him design them. The difference is, if this is a community project and all bounties are paid as part of a community contribution to someone who steps up to help make it happen, the price point of this kit will be about $10-$15. Where as if i have to start cutting checks myself, i need to recoup at least my initial investment and then this turns into just another "i made something let me charge you double what its worth so i can make money" kind of thing. which is the direct opposite of what i want this to be. This would be a great item at $15, but cutting checks myself, a $30 product is the same as buying a sapphire miner off ebay. There are thousands of us, almost a quarter million on this forum. There has to be a few engineers in here besides Mr. Teal and Chip Geek that will step up and make a little BTC in the process since we cannot get either of them to volunteer.

The truth is, if we cannot pull it together as a community, then there really is no point even though i am going to do it anyways. There are to many, as a matter of fact ALL companies selling hardware right now that are doing nothing more then RAPING us, the end consumer. Pre-order BS. "let us start a company and make you fund it, then build a ton of machines, hook them all up, drive up the difficulty while we make hundreds of bitcoin, then when we are done, finally deliver them to you." or even companies that have items in stock now. " let me order 1,000 units from hong kong for $500 each, then turn around and retail them to you for $7,000 for 200 GH/s today."

It is without a doubt that it is FAR PAST time that we start to pull together as a community and DO IT OURSEVLFS. I mean, come on, i just bought 25 rolls of avalon chips for $1.89 each direct from china, tell me it costs $5,000 to make a 200 GH/s machine. Black Arrows Minion..... around $45 do have made. and the truth of these matters is, these companies in Hong Kong dont give a crap about NDA's and non-compete. The company i ordered my avalon chips from told me directly when i contacted them " we cannot sell the avalon chip direct to consumers, but we can put whatever name on it you want and sell you as many as you want"

Moral of the story, lets stop getting in line to get raped, and make this happen, then lets move on to the next community designed miner, i have the connections to get anyone chips to build any miner for next to nothing. If we stop allowing them to rape us, they all die, and we all are back in control of the markets.

If you can not help as a developer, or our escrow or graphic designer, even if you cannot donate a single uBTC, refer everyone you can to this thread, be the voice of reason. do your part to make the members of this forum a real community. help everyone become US not a bunch of me's, and lets make this happen, it can only get better once we get past the first project. Imagine 1 TH/s for $800. Trust it can be done with a community behind it.

Has anyone tried to repair their blades?
Seems the easiest thing to do would be to just repair your blade.
If there is not enough information to repair your blade then there is not enough information to make a new design.
Maybe there is a common design weakness so if the problem were found a lot of blades could be repaired.
Repair seems like it might be less costly solution.
YMMV

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January 04, 2014, 05:16:19 AM
 #12

I am in. I know nothing about the hardware nor the software but I am a graphics designer / screen printer/ vinyl sticker guy. Let me know what you need I like the way you think.

DIY is the best way to go because now only the rich is playing in a game that was designed to be a level playing field. I've seen people populate boards with ease so I don't see why it would not be able to be done. Like i said before I know nothing about the hardware and the software but with the proper write up I think I can make it work.



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TerraHasher (OP)
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January 04, 2014, 06:38:45 AM
 #13

I am in. I know nothing about the hardware nor the software but I am a graphics designer / screen printer/ vinyl sticker guy. Let me know what you need I like the way you think.

DIY is the best way to go because now only the rich is playing in a game that was designed to be a level playing field. I've seen people populate boards with ease so I don't see why it would not be able to be done. Like i said before I know nothing about the hardware and the software but with the proper write up I think I can make it work.

Thanks grumpy, Still waiting on a PCB designer to step fourth, I have recently invested $500,000 usd in a hardware order for a group buy to get some hashing power in the hands of the masses before the march surge. but as soon as i recoup that if i have not found a PCB designer i am going to move forth with the 2 chip design for project ToFu  on my own dollar. Although with me having to foot the bill on a ton of it, I will not be able to offer it for the projected price nor will i be able to make the design open source. I was really hoping to get a little more community support to help everyone as a whole, and really did not want to come at this with a business approach but it appears that a business approach is the only option at this point. i should know more in a few weeks once all the 400 GH/s units i ordered are sold.

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January 05, 2014, 03:54:51 AM
 #14

I think people wanna see results and or pay a lot of mony to make money. Kind of sucks if u ask me. I have seen something similar happening for brushless gimbals. They are spearheaded by someone and unless people see results no one wanna jump in. I just wish I had more money and or knoledge to drop into this game. It would be sweet if I can make a strong miner from home so we can shut people up on the ROI game.



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sidehack
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January 05, 2014, 04:07:15 AM
 #15

I'm still wondering if anyone has the actual interface data and whatnot required to drive the chips. Board design can't happen until you know the actual logic and signalling required; makes no sense to start at step 2.

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January 05, 2014, 05:59:39 AM
 #16

I'm still wondering if anyone has the actual interface data and whatnot required to drive the chips. Board design can't happen until you know the actual logic and signalling required; makes no sense to start at step 2.

I already have the I/O data sidehack, but you made a valid point.

I'm still fairly certain that i am just going to fund this and mark up the price to cover the cost of design. I dont have the time to do the design myself. Who knows. maybe i'll just abandon the project and let people keep paying thousands too much for their hardware.

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January 05, 2014, 06:29:33 AM
 #17

Ah, well nifty. Carry on sir. Not sure what time I'll have to assist, but I could probably (eventually) assist with resources and/or assembly.

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January 05, 2014, 06:49:17 AM
 #18

I'm still wondering if anyone has the actual interface data and whatnot required to drive the chips. Board design can't happen until you know the actual logic and signalling required; makes no sense to start at step 2.

I already have the I/O data sidehack, but you made a valid point.

I'm still fairly certain that i am just going to fund this and mark up the price to cover the cost of design. I dont have the time to do the design myself. Who knows. maybe i'll just abandon the project and let people keep paying thousands too much for their hardware.


Here is a guy who designed his own PCB and seems he did it for kicks, very professional looking board.
Has a siliconrelic tag on the PCB
Contact him to see if he can help you design the dual chip PCB.
And since he owns siliconrelic I think you found a real name for your project.

https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=394700.msg4256260#msg4256260

einzeln
https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=profile;u=136807

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January 05, 2014, 07:07:30 AM
 #19

Thanks freddy, i am sending him a message now. Heres to hoping he is interested.

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January 06, 2014, 10:49:39 PM
 #20

1. USB2.0 devices should not consume more than 500mA. It's unlikely that someone can power one single chip to its max (2000mA) with a USB powered solution. Correct me if I'm wrong.

2.
Quote
The PCB designer(s) must have a well document history in PCB design involving bitcoin ASIC miners, and must have a fair amount of time to invest into the project / design of the board
I've not the profile but I would design a PCB for free if someone was willing to sell me just a few chips.
I'm a software programmer but I designed a PCB last year as a hobbyist : http://postimg.org/image/k9cdmciqt/
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January 07, 2014, 12:58:48 AM
Last edit: January 08, 2014, 09:28:55 PM by freddyfarnsworth
 #21

On the USB hub current,,,

Alot of us have built/rewired hubs to use 5vrail off of ATX P/S up to 30a or so.
Just have to read a bit to learn how. The stock USB PCB in the hub cannot handle the current.
So we buy the cheapest ones and mod em. (run 14ga wires to all the 5v usb pins for each socket).

Or use the 49port hub built by asicminer as it will deal with a total 20 or so 1-2a devices.

Also we are severing the "red" 5v line from the computers hub connection in the USB signal cable to stop High amp current shorts or surges from backflowing to USB hubs/circuits in puter used for running the miners.

Not sure if all this matters for blades, they are setup different.

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January 07, 2014, 02:28:00 AM
 #22

1. USB2.0 devices should not consume more than 500mA. It's unlikely that someone can power one single chip to its max (2000mA) with a USB powered solution. Correct me if I'm wrong.

2.
Quote
The PCB designer(s) must have a well document history in PCB design involving bitcoin ASIC miners, and must have a fair amount of time to invest into the project / design of the board
I've not the profile but I would design a PCB for free if someone was willing to sell me just a few chips.
I'm a software programmer but I designed a PCB last year as a hobbyist : http://postimg.org/image/k9cdmciqt/

Mozi, you dont have to buy chips mate, i have thousands of AM chips stacked up already from dead blades. I found a guy on ebay a while back with 30 dead blades alone that he sold me for $400. not to mention the few dozen blades of my own that have died beyond repair and other people who just keep giving me dead blades because they have given up on them. I've fixed and made a lot of good blades, but still have thousands of chips left. so just message me your address where you want them sent and i will send them out.

Do you already have the I/O specs for the AM chips? or do you need them?

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January 07, 2014, 04:11:33 AM
 #23

Freddyfarnsworth, Sure it can works this way but it bothers me a bit not using USB as the standards defines it.

TerraHasher. I have this link  : http://downloads.canaan-creative.com/hardware/A3255/datasheet/A3255Q48-131113-V05-EN.pdf

Anyway I think that using USB for such a thing is a bit too heavy and result in higher costs and less reliability. Is there a particular need for USB ?
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January 07, 2014, 04:35:17 AM
 #24

Freddyfarnsworth, Sure it can works this way but it bothers me a bit not using USB as the standards defines it.

TerraHasher. I have this link  : http://downloads.canaan-creative.com/hardware/A3255/datasheet/A3255Q48-131113-V05-EN.pdf

Anyway I think that using USB for such a thing is a bit too heavy and result in higher costs and less reliability. Is there a particular need for USB ?


Mozi, it works trust me, its how the sapphire miners run, and no different than the Bi-Fury miners with 2 bitfury chips. Most anyone who uses USB uses a hub, If you dont have enough USB's to fill half a hub, your not really mining, your just burning electricity for a pretty little flashing light show from time to time.

Send me your address and i will get you some chips. if you make progress i will pay for rapid prototyping on a board or a few for you to test out, or if you want me to do the assembly and test i can do that too. I assume you can write the drivers? if not let me know, i can for sure do that once we have a design.

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January 07, 2014, 05:16:25 AM
 #25

Quote
if you want me to do the assembly and test i can do that too
I could send you some PCBs, the more we are working on it, the sooner we'll be mining, and from where I live you'll may receive them before me.

Quote
I assume you can write the drivers?
I think I can but if someone has better experience than me... also it depends on hardware design...
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January 07, 2014, 06:30:38 AM
 #26

Isn't this for AM BE100 chips? That datasheet you linked looks quite a bit like something else.

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January 07, 2014, 06:52:22 AM
 #27

Isn't this for AM BE100 chips? That datasheet you linked looks quite a bit like something else.

That datasheet was for avalon gen 2 chips.

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January 08, 2014, 02:38:15 AM
 #28

Isn't this for AM BE100 chips? That datasheet you linked looks quite a bit like something else.

That datasheet was for avalon gen 2 chips.

Good catch, i just noticed it myself. Chips will be on their way in a day or so, and i have included a sd card with all the AM chip data sheets and needed info. Once we get a PCB design near complete i will work on the drivers for it, wont take that long at all. We will work out the fine details once the board design is nearing complete. The company i use can have up to 10,000 boards done with 48 hour turn around time so if we get it to work as a prototype i could have DIY kits ready to go less than 5 days (shipping time is the extra 3 days), we would also need someone to write the assembly manual. I'm kind of busy in court dealing with paypal at the moment. 

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January 08, 2014, 06:47:20 AM
 #29

I am in. I know nothing about the hardware nor the software but I am a graphics designer / screen printer/ vinyl sticker guy. Let me know what you need I like the way you think.

DIY is the best way to go because now only the rich is playing in a game that was designed to be a level playing field. I've seen people populate boards with ease so I don't see why it would not be able to be done. Like i said before I know nothing about the hardware and the software but with the proper write up I think I can make it work.

Someone will have to make the solder paste masks templates or the whole thing.
If you get the boards made professionally, they will come about 16 per card. Silkscreening the paste is done at that time.
Mylar can be used, stainless is best for long run.
That would be a option for buyers of the kit who want whole cards to make many at a time.
So burning screens, laser engraving silkscreen tech would all come in handy.
I ran some silkscreen presses when I was a kid, semi automated. But learned the trade.

One at a time it is not needed.


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January 08, 2014, 06:14:47 PM
 #30

If you can get the layout and functionality of the board done i have about two free weeks until things heat up on my lawsuit against paypal, which should allow me time to do the solider masks and all of that other stuff. i planned on ordering a few thousand boards off the back just to have to let people get their hands on for a few dollars each, i will also probably have a handful of them bumped with everything but the AM chips ready to go as well so some of the less technically inclined only have to worry about installing the chip and flashing the device.

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January 08, 2014, 06:55:43 PM
 #31

I would love to be one of the guine pigs on populating the boards. I have seen plenty of people do it. I have not done it myself but I do have the tools to do it at home.



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January 08, 2014, 09:31:54 PM
 #32

I would love to be one of the guine pigs on populating the boards. I have seen plenty of people do it. I have not done it myself but I do have the tools to do it at home.

Me too Smiley

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January 20, 2014, 08:32:17 AM
 #33

What kind of solder station does one need to work with these chips?

Where does one find the spec for the chips?

I'm interested in this project as the blades I have, that are supposed to be new, are dying.

I have them in a air conditioned room with plenty of air flow yet they still are dying slowly, if the cubes use the same chip I suspect they will do the same.

Anyone make a test jig for the chips once pulled?

8 )

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January 20, 2014, 04:16:42 PM
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This may be a dead topic..



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rarkenin
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January 21, 2014, 11:38:53 AM
 #35

The OP randomly disappeared from the forum.
ilesef
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January 21, 2014, 11:03:12 PM
 #36

hi im  an relativly new in this comunity ( im aware of bitcoint one mouth ago )
since then i fascineted with bitcoin i will make some projects for this comunity

once a week i dewlop some device with pic microcontroler
i write directly in assembler and do not use any library in that way only my fault mey result in failure of device
main adventage is that i cen do many things in cheap microcontrolers
mometaly i learn ewriting i need for btc structure and i will post a dyi project for hardware wallet with wery low cost meybe less the 7 eur Cheesy:D:D
that is my target

alredy writed asm code for sha256 for microcontrolers now write code for other crypto function


i do a lot of big led displays,cotrolers for cooling and heating  devices , sports scoreboard, a lot of devices for industry all on microcotrolers
all in assember and all my own pcb design more the 100 projects (but mosty on chep microcontrolers)

have experierience with pcb design i design pcbs for all my devices but this is mainly 2 layers

i do not know what is ur problem u do some patch on old devices please make me clear what wil be job to pcb dewelopwer

sorry for my bad english

mozi
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January 22, 2014, 01:53:50 AM
 #37

Quote
What kind of solder station does one need to work with these chips?
You can make your own oven but you can also solder them with a hot air rework station station. Also to desolder them you should use a hot air rework station i think.

Quote
I'm interested in this project as the blades I have, that are supposed to be new, are dying.
I have them in a air conditioned room with plenty of air flow yet they still are dying slowly, if the cubes use the same chip I suspect they will do the same.
I don't know but could the problem be tin whiskers ?


As I look to schemes using multiples chips, i see that their report_p and report_n output are all connected to the same wires, couldn't there be collision issues if 2 or more chips report at the same time ? I believe it works but I just need to understand.
sidehack
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January 22, 2014, 02:36:30 AM
 #38

Tin whiskers? Yeah none of my products will be RoHS compliant until they figure out how to make lead-free solder that actually works. Lead-free pretty much sucks for anything you want to actually keep working very long.

Regarding collision issues, that's likely a lot of the issue with all-X boards is a single chip hosing up the shared IO lines. I've brought a few back to life that all-X'd with only one bad chip. Just sucks finding the bad one, I don't have a better method than guess-and-check unless something is obviously wrong.

Cool, quiet and up to 1TH pod miner, on sale now!
Currently in development - 200+GH USB stick; 6TH volt-adjustable S1/3/5 upgrade kit
Server PSU interface boards and cables. USB and small-scale miners. Hardware hosting, advice and odd-jobs. Supporting the home miner community since 2013 - http://www.gekkoscience.com
TerraHasher (OP)
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February 10, 2014, 12:15:08 AM
 #39

The OP randomly disappeared from the forum.

Yes its a dead topic, i took on the design myself to get my chips back up and hashing Got about 700 out of 1,300 chips on boards and plugged into the 49 port hubs. This forum is enough to drive a preacher to swear so i left, only reason i came back today was to get in on a group buy that i didnt want to miss out on.

Donations: 1A8anGihV3pvHeuhqzGsAjt2S71WY2qea4
memoryx
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March 01, 2014, 11:19:25 PM
 #40

Did you design the 2-chip stick mining board for the Avalon 2 chip? I have 50K Avalon 2 chips and would like to build them into stick miners. It seems to me that a 2-chip design would require too much power for the USB port. Each chip is rated at 2000mA. Maximum chip on a board could be one only.
mozi
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March 06, 2014, 04:58:26 PM
 #41

I did a design, yet not usb, just a breadboard, but which would allow me to try different overclocking, chaining configurations...
But guess what ? I've been waiting for chips that never arrived !
Here it is : http://s27.postimg.org/fvyszi9tv/avalon.jpg
Sorry for the quality, but as it'll probably end in thrash, I didn't take time to make a good picture. And by the way, why do laptop cams are so crap ? Looks like a picture taken with a year 2001 phone.
And yes memoryx, as I stated earlier, USB is not meant to drive high current. Doing this is bad and could even be dangerous.
poochone
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March 15, 2014, 06:00:46 PM
 #42

any news i got 5-6 dead blade

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