1GH/s, 20w, $700 (was $500) — Butterflylabs, is it for real? (Part 2)

[kjlimo]

Thanks Inaba, great report.

I wish BFL would come back onto the forums and give some "official" updates as to the progress beyond this loaner unit.

Yes, the question is when will get their first actual unit to keep?

The website still says 4-6 weeks.

What are people's best estimate of when someone would get a unit if they ordered via the website today (February 15, 2012)?

Do you think April 30, 2012 is possible?

Might be faster for my friends and I to try making our own?

[abeaulieu]

It's really bizarre that they mounted a heat sink onto the underside of the board. It's hard to believe that: 1) the FPGAs heat up the FR4 enough to require a heat sink and 2) that the PCB can actually transfers heat effectively through a heat sink enough to cool it.

[DeathAndTaxes]

It's really bizarre that they mounted a heat sink onto the underside of the board. It's hard to believe that: 1) the FPGAs heat up the FR4 enough to require a heat sink and 2) that the PCB can actually transfers heat effectively through a heat sink enough to cool it.

The device was originally designed to displace 20W of thermal load based on widely optimistic specs.  The only reason to put a heatsink on bottom is because you can't displace enough heat from the top.  The heatsink on the bottom is probably very inefficient but pulls just enough thermal energy to avoid internal temp of FPGA from getting critical.

Now you could say "just use a bigger heatsink" but there are problems with that.  As heatsink gets larger it disipates more heat but it isn't linear.  What matters is the temp at the core of the FPGA so while a larger heatsink may reduce the surface temp of the heat sink a lot it will have a smaller effect on the FPGA core.  The design of FPGA makes their ability to disipate heat limited.  Intel/AMD put a lot of design into making the chip package able to move heat to the heatspreader and then to the heatsink.

Each FPGA is dumping ~35W+, the board (designed when estimate was chips produce 6W) puts the chips side by side, which complicates effective cooling.

If they have a lot of these last gen chips I would imagine a redesigned board will be made eventually.  Seperating the chips and putting more clearance space around them would allow mounting a "CPU style" heatsink on each.   If they have a limited number it probably isn't worth a redesign as (just my guess) they will use the capital from this 65nm product to skip right to a 28nm product in late 2012.

[abeaulieu]

And I'm sure they sanded the part numbers off from the chips to increase thermal conductivity, right?   

[zefir]

Thanks a lot for this report, Inaba.

I've got an order in place and will sleep better now.

You did basically the PR that we Bitcoiners expected from BFL. I hope they will be fair enough and give you one BitForce to pay tribute for your hard efforts. Anyhow, please post your donation address.

[SysRun]

Thanks a lot for this report, Inaba.

I've got an order in place and will sleep better now.

You did basically the PR that we Bitcoiners expected from BFL. I hope they will be fair enough and give you one BitForce to pay tribute for your hard efforts. Anyhow, please post your donation address.

its 168Bgg6HL6bLiUxQDBbdmHRbXtSsMixYCT

check his signature.

[zefir]

Thanks a lot for this report, Inaba.

I've got an order in place and will sleep better now.

You did basically the PR that we Bitcoiners expected from BFL. I hope they will be fair enough and give you one BitForce to pay tribute for your hard efforts. Anyhow, please post your donation address.

its 168Bgg6HL6bLiUxQDBbdmHRbXtSsMixYCT

check his signature.

Thanks, I was thinking of a special BFL related one to support him personally and not his pool, but it maybe does not matter in the end...

[cuz0882]

They said now that they are shipping, refunds will not be given for cold feet.

[imsaguy]

They said now that they are shipping, refunds will not be given for cold feet.

Where did they say that?

[filharvey]

Now the magic question is, if they are shipping, what is their production run. Do new orders have to wait 4-6 weeks?

Phil

[kano]

They said now that they are shipping, refunds will not be given for cold feet.

I presume that 2nd part is only for people in the first batch ...

[imsaguy]

They said now that they are shipping, refunds will not be given for cold feet.

I presume that 2nd part is only for people in the first batch ...

Their website still says guaranteed shipment 4-6 weeks from order.  Obviously 'guaranteed' means nothing.

[kjlimo]

Thanks Inaba, great report.

I wish BFL would come back onto the forums and give some "official" updates as to the progress beyond this loaner unit.

Yes, the question is when will get their first actual unit to keep?

The website still says 4-6 weeks.

What are people's best estimate of when someone would get a unit if they ordered via the website today (February 15, 2012)?

Do you think April 30, 2012 is possible?

Might be faster for my friends and I to try making our own?

They said now that they are shipping, refunds will not be given for cold feet.

I presume that 2nd part is only for people in the first batch ...

Their website still says guaranteed shipment 4-6 weeks from order.  Obviously 'guaranteed' means nothing.

Now the magic question is, if they are shipping, what is their production run. Do new orders have to wait 4-6 weeks?

Phil

Agreed, want to start estimating when we would get a unit if we bought it today?

I'm thinking we'd get it by May 1st

[rjk]

I'm thinking we'd get it by May 1st

I was thinking April 1st, surely.

[kjlimo]

I'm thinking we'd get it by May 1st

I was thinking April 1st, surely.

So you have faith that they are really shipping as we speak & will be shipping more within the next 4-6 weeks?

[rjk]

I'm thinking we'd get it by May 1st

I was thinking April 1st, surely.

So you have faith that they are really shipping as we speak & will be shipping more within the next 4-6 weeks?

April 1st is April Fools Day...

That said, yes I think I'll get mine eventually. I waited a bit to order, so I may not actually be in the first group, so hopefully I won't get the ass-ugly fan-protruding-from-the-bottom design.

[kjlimo]

I'm thinking we'd get it by May 1st

I was thinking April 1st, surely.

So you have faith that they are really shipping as we speak & will be shipping more within the next 4-6 weeks?

April 1st is April Fools Day...

That said, yes I think I'll get mine eventually. I waited a bit to order, so I may not actually be in the first group, so hopefully I won't get the ass-ugly fan-protruding-from-the-bottom design.

heh, ya I wouldn't care what it looks like.  But I was asking what if you ordered one from the website today, when would you expect to receive it?

Hence, if you "pre-ordered" and you're thinking April 1, then I'm thinking I wouldn't be until May 1 or June 1 even...

This makes me want to learn how to make them on my own this weekend instead.

[Inspector 2211]

The silence is deafening - noone but Inaba has received a device yet.
Assuming they shipped out the first batch on Monday, surely some people in the mid-west would have received their unit by Wednesday evening, no?

[uck]

The fact is the most devices ever seen together in a photo is 3.  How about a picture of the boxes ready to ship with labels on them?

Also, we've never seen video of the device.

[Inaba]

Video of the device?  What do you want the video to show?  A box with a red light? heh