ANTMINER S4 Discussion and Support Thread

[dogie]

Doesn't help in the EU anyway, you have to pay VAT whether you are importing goods or buying them locally.

Unless you are VAT registered. Then you can reclaim the VAT paid, and there is no VAT due on mining revenue [In the UK at least]. This isn't the reason I'm VAT registered, its just a side effect.

According to my accountant and HMRC you cannot claim VAT back on mining machines UNLESS you are buying them in to resell.

The simple version of the rule is that you can't claim an input unless it generates an output, which because as you say there is no tax due on bitcoins mined or sold means you can't claim it back on the hardware used to produce them, this also means that you cannot claim the VAT portion of your electric bill either.

If your accountant says different it might be worth clarifying which position is correct, as you are no doubt aware errors made in regards to tax are not treated lightly here.

Every bitcoin miner is bought and later sold. What happens between it being bought and sold. Mining happens in between.

But anyway, that's also not how VAT works. You can reclaim VAT back [with exceptions] on goods and services purchased for business activities. In the same way you buy a stapler for your desk - you don't have to be putting that stapler into stock for resale. The same applies for electricity - is it a business expense? If yes, you can reclaim the VAT on that portion of the bill [its only 5% so negligible really].

Regarding the argument that it didn't produce an output, well, it did. That output just happens to be not applicable to VAT.

[1713908444]

1713908444

[Prelude]

Anyone can generate an MD5 too......I can't find anything from Bitmain saying they have verified this as genuine.......maybe you can post the complete email?

You mustn't have looked too far because all the information is in this very thread a few pages back.

https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=796839.msg9088372#msg9088372

[IYFTech]

Anyone can generate an MD5 too......I can't find anything from Bitmain saying they have verified this as genuine.......maybe you can post the complete email?

You mustn't have looked too far because all the information is in this very thread a few pages back.

https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=796839.msg9088372#msg9088372

That's not Bitmain. BitmainWarranty? 14 posts? How can someone who apparently works for Bitmain not be able to upload it to his own website? And it still don't work? Still like to see the email too, sounds dodgy as fook to me.......

[dogie]

If you want to avoid VAT, you can host your miners with Bitmain on checkout. Also avoids delivery.

How does that work, please?  Is it a viable option?  What if you later decide you want the machines delivered after all?
Cheers.

On checkout there are two delivery types, there is some information you can read there.

[dogie]

As of 10/10/2014 - this is the firmware listed on the bitmain support site:

initramfs.bin.SD-20141003.tar.gz

Do I unpack it or just point the S4 at the tar.gz and it uploads and decompresses it
and deals with the whole thing?

Thx.

Unless bitmain has gotten around to uploading the working firmware, you'll need to use this:

The latest firmware on the site is the fixed one, I just tried it and it flashed fine.

https://bitmaintech.com/support.htm?pid=00720140930114518599JXGHWWD80660

[IYFTech]

Right, the one that doesn't fix anything then. Still, at least it's possible to flash this time, that's an improvement......

I don't know what's worse, uploading firmware that doesn't fix any issues - or being promised firmware to fix issues & not bothering to upload it, as is the S2 situation.

What an abortion.

[mindtrip]

hello everybody,
I've paid for 2 s4 batch 1 that received last friday. Both of them were working ok with default parameters (not overclocked yet) until yesterday night that one of them was powered down and now I'm not able to power on it again. I've tried unplug the wire, changing the wires between them, but the result continue to be that this machine doesn't work.
Any suggestion please?
Thanks in advance.

I had a power unit go down last weekend. 
Contact Yoshi at Yoshi@bitmaintech.com, or call.  They are working out of Denver:

Bitmain Warranty
3700 Quebec St. #100239
Denver, Colorado 80207

Tel: 844-248-6246

They will help you get your unit fixed.

I had an S4 Power supply fry on me already as well I am waiting on bitmain to send me a new one right now

[Prelude]

As of 10/10/2014 - this is the firmware listed on the bitmain support site:

initramfs.bin.SD-20141003.tar.gz

Do I unpack it or just point the S4 at the tar.gz and it uploads and decompresses it
and deals with the whole thing?

Thx.

Unless bitmain has gotten around to uploading the working firmware, you'll need to use this:

The latest firmware on the site is the fixed one, I just tried it and it flashed fine.

https://bitmaintech.com/support.htm?pid=00720140930114518599JXGHWWD80660

Good to know, removed the file from my dropbox.

[mazedk]

3. how to upgrade latest firmware  to S2?
 Now the latest firmware for S3 and S4 is ready to be released soon, that one for S2 is being developed. Stay tuned here.

This statement is 8 days old. Are we going to see the new firmware for our S3 units soon?

[IYFTech]

3. how to upgrade latest firmware  to S2?
 Now the latest firmware for S3 and S4 is ready to be released soon, that one for S2 is being developed. Stay tuned here.

The statement is 8 days old. Are we going to see the new firmware for our S3 units soon?

Actually, it's 2 months old......Here's a copy of an email I sent them earlier:

Bitmain & BitmainWarranty,

Why have you left it so long before contacting the cgminer developers?

Why didn't you work with them from the very beginning instead of trying to fork your own version using the older, vulnerable version?

In response to your "I will look into the S2 firmware" - this is the same as you've been telling the community for the last two months - IT DOES NOT TAKE THAT LONG!!

Bitmain has made no effort whatsoever to fix the redirect issue since May when it was first fixed. There have been 3 firmware releases since you promised to update your firmware - two for the S3 & one for the brand new S4 - all of which were still using the older cgminer version, so to say that "Bitmain has no intention of leaving the redirect open" is an absolute lie.

Bitmain hardware users are losing hashrate on a daily basis, and have been for the last 5 months because of your insistence on using version 3.12.0 - there can be no other reason for you doing this than to take advantage of the security vulnerability..

Why else would a miner manufacturer knowingly use this software?

Time to stir them up into doing something about it.

[moss]

If you want to avoid VAT, you can host your miners with Bitmain on checkout. Also avoids delivery.

How does that work, please?  Is it a viable option?  What if you later decide you want the machines delivered after all?
Cheers.

On checkout there are two delivery types, there is some information you can read there.

Thanks. I've done that now. They show this formula for calculating the hosting fee:

Fee = Power consumption * operating hours * electricity cost ($.13/KWh).  Edit: So for an S4, that would be approx $127 a month (30 days).

I appreciate that I would have to pay for delivery, but I can't see anything about any additional costs, so I assume that's the extent of it, i.e. no management fees or other nasty surprises?

I haven't been able to find anything on the forum about other members experiences with this, unfortunately.

[unrealized]

Updated to the new firmware -- everything works great!

For people wondering when you go to update/flash the new firmware --  select the entire .tar.gz file using the webgui.

One thing I noticed is when rackmounting -- the screws for the rackmount ears stick out too much (when sliding into the rack you'll need to force it in) and sometimes the screw holes don't align with the ear bracket. You need to unscrew the top, reseat it so the holes line up, then screw the ears on.

Has anyone gotten decent results with overclocking?

I have a couple units that are only averaging 1.75TH/s on ghash, while my others get between 2.0 - 2.4 average.  Any ideas on how to get the low performers up to regular hash rate?

[captainpugwash]

B10 is up now: https://bitmaintech.com/productDetail.htm?pid=00020140917060843699l3bEXYxL06C0

But now they're charging $135 (USD) for UPS shipping.  Such Wow not.

They are charging me £214 for my S3 delivery to the UK + the import duty + VAT @ 20%

I know I cant compete in mining BTC which I why I have stuck with the alt coins and trading them like mad to earn BTC.

I can see the end is nigh for me mining, this will be the last batch of miners for me.

With now crazy prices and DOA miners from the last batch of S3's I bought it's time to get out

Are you sure? When I add a pair of S3's to cart for UK it gives me:
0.65 via DHL or ~0.42 via UPS. That should be £144 or £92.

The import duty is usually £7 via UPS or DHL and is paid regardless if you order a box of air or a box of diamonds - its a handling charge.
The VAT @ 20% is charged by the government and is nothing to do with Bitmain.

I added 3 to the cart and delivery via DHL was 0.948 BTC.



I've bought over a dozen S1's and S3's and normally only in pairs, each time VAT/import duty was between £80 and £180 for each pair.

In a few cases the $ value Bitmain put for the item was higher much than the actual BTC $ value so I ended up paying more (only happened on 2 deliveries).

Got my shipping info but still gutted I ended up with 3 and not the planned 5 S3's I was hoping for.

Would be useful to get Bitmain to put on the S3 product listing that delivery is extra.

[Hexor]

BUYERS BEWARE...I was one of the first to purchased (2) S4 miners B1 that should have been shipped 9/29/14 and still haven't received my miners!
Currently Bitmain is holding my Bitcoin ransom...
I have emailed many of times asking for my miners or refund of my Bitcoin...
Bitmain claims I ordered hosting which I assured them I didn't...
I have an email from Bitmain stating they changed the interface after my purchase to make a correction...
Bitmain has stopped all communication and will not respond to my emails...
I have since emailed all of Bitmain partners and called Bitmain North America twice now and still nothing...
I'm still out 2 S4 Miners and A LOT of BITCOIN not to mention I'm Losing money everyday...
I thought Bitmain was a reputable company and this is by no way my first purchase from Bitmain...
I have used just about everyone of there products that has been made available to the public & many other companies miners...

I would like to have my miners or my Bitcoin transferred back to my bank!

CAN ANYONE BE OF ANY ASSISTANCE?

Please send your bitcoin payment as follows:
Amount (BTC):   
7.253
Address:   
1BWxzg2iyrYx1Gw4ddTBrHGDnir6164dyW
QR Code:   

Pay Details
Pay   7.253 BTC
Pay Confirm   7.253 BTC
Date   2014-09-25 22:53:26
Send Details
Unshipped
Order Details
Product   Total
ANTMINER S4 -B1 × 2
2900 USD ( 7.056 BTC )
Coupon
Shipping
顺丰
0.197  BTC


HeXoR
1PPWe6kZwyMRhz66GJKBykyEtfuAve9Jbv

[unrealistic]

so they decided to be unfair like many other companys ?

[Tupsu]

BUYERS BEWARE...........Bitmain claims I ordered hosting which I assured them I didn't...


Shipping
顺丰
0.197  BTC

You ordered the shipping to Umisoo Hosting
Shipping cost to Umisoo Hosting  for today   -  2x Antminer S4 - 0.226 BTC  (1 BTC = 359.59 USD)

Be more careful in the future .

[dogie]

B10 is up now: https://bitmaintech.com/productDetail.htm?pid=00020140917060843699l3bEXYxL06C0

But now they're charging $135 (USD) for UPS shipping.  Such Wow not.

They are charging me £214 for my S3 delivery to the UK + the import duty + VAT @ 20%

I know I cant compete in mining BTC which I why I have stuck with the alt coins and trading them like mad to earn BTC.

I can see the end is nigh for me mining, this will be the last batch of miners for me.

With now crazy prices and DOA miners from the last batch of S3's I bought it's time to get out

Are you sure? When I add a pair of S3's to cart for UK it gives me:
0.65 via DHL or ~0.42 via UPS. That should be £144 or £92.

The import duty is usually £7 via UPS or DHL and is paid regardless if you order a box of air or a box of diamonds - its a handling charge.
The VAT @ 20% is charged by the government and is nothing to do with Bitmain.

I added 3 to the cart and delivery via DHL was 0.948 BTC.

I've bought over a dozen S1's and S3's and normally only in pairs, each time VAT/import duty was between £80 and £180 for each pair.

In a few cases the $ value Bitmain put for the item was higher much than the actual BTC $ value so I ended up paying more (only happened on 2 deliveries).

Got my shipping info but still gutted I ended up with 3 and not the planned 5 S3's I was hoping for. Would be useful to get Bitmain to put on the S3 product listing that delivery is extra.

As I said, UPS is about 60% of the price for UK - choose that option.

[dogie]

Updated to the new firmware -- everything works great!

For people wondering when you go to update/flash the new firmware --  select the entire .tar.gz file using the webgui.

One thing I noticed is when rackmounting -- the screws for the rackmount ears stick out too much (when sliding into the rack you'll need to force it in) and sometimes the screw holes don't align with the ear bracket. You need to unscrew the top, reseat it so the holes line up, then screw the ears on.

Has anyone gotten decent results with overclocking?

I have a couple units that are only averaging 1.75TH/s on ghash, while my others get between 2.0 - 2.4 average.  Any ideas on how to get the low performers up to regular hash rate?

Can you upload a screenshot of your slot unit

[Hexor]

You're telling me to be more careful and Bitmain is trying to trick people into hoisting that are buying miners?

In the shipping NOTES I even added specific address for shipping...
 
Can you please explain MY CURRENT ORDER STATUS of the (2) S4 B1 miners I purchased that should have shipped 9/29/14?

Also why Bitmain has stopped all email communications & have forced me to air my business to the Bitcoin community?

Bitmain claims I purchased hosting....I actually logged into that host site Bitmain claimed my miners were @...linked my Bitmain account to the hosting site... and found NO miners! I even took a screenshot with todays date...

Please send me the 2 S4 B1 miners I purchased or transfer my BTC back into my bank!

BUYERS BEWARE...I was one of the first to purchased (2) S4 miners B1 that should have been shipped 9/29/14 and still haven't received my miners!
Currently Bitmain is holding my Bitcoin ransom...
I have emailed many of times asking for my miners or refund of my Bitcoin...
Bitmain claims I ordered hosting which I assured them I didn't...
I have an email from Bitmain stating they changed the interface after my purchase to make a correction...
Bitmain has stopped all communication and will not respond to my emails...
I have since emailed all of Bitmain partners and called Bitmain North America twice now and still nothing...
I'm still out 2 S4 Miners and A LOT of BITCOIN not to mention I'm Losing money everyday...
I thought Bitmain was a reputable company and this is by no way my first purchase from Bitmain...
I have used just about everyone of there products that has been made available to the public & many other companies miners...

I would like to have my miners or my Bitcoin transferred back to my bank!

CAN ANYONE BE OF ANY ASSISTANCE?

Please send your bitcoin payment as follows:
Amount (BTC):   
7.253
Address:   
1BWxzg2iyrYx1Gw4ddTBrHGDnir6164dyW
QR Code:   

Pay Details
Pay   7.253 BTC
Pay Confirm   7.253 BTC
Date   2014-09-25 22:53:26
Send Details
Unshipped
Order Details
Product   Total
ANTMINER S4 -B1 × 2
2900 USD ( 7.056 BTC )
Coupon
Shipping
顺丰
0.197  BTC


HeXoR
1PPWe6kZwyMRhz66GJKBykyEtfuAve9Jbv

[Tupsu]

For shipping to umisoo hosting you had to accept the terms and conditions:

https://www.umisoo.com/about/terms.action
 Umisoo would like to apply for the authorization:

* View your email address

* View Bitmain Order ID and Order Content of which will be hosted at Umisoo

* View tracking number of the orders which will be hosted at Umisoo

Instruction

1. If you chose Umisoo Hosting Service, product will be delivered directly to the hosting center of Umisoo. Shipping dates can be found on bitmaintech.com .

2. Before you chose Umisoo Hosting Service, please found the Terms of Service of Umisoo Hosting Service at https://www.umisoo.com

3. You will be able to set up pool info, worker…etc, after Umisoo receives the products from bitmaintech.com .


 I have read, understood and accept the application of authorization

...

You're telling me to be more careful and Bitmain is trying to trick people into hoisting that are buying miners?

In the shipping NOTES I even added specific address for shipping...
 
Can you please explain MY CURRENT ORDER STATUS of the (2) S4 B1 miners I purchased that should have shipped 9/29/14?

Also why Bitmain has stopped all email communications & have forced me to air my business to the Bitcoin community?

Bitmain claims I purchased hosting....I actually logged into that host site Bitmain claimed my miners were @...linked my Bitmain account to the hosting site... and found NO miners! I even took a screenshot with todays date...

Please send me the 2 S4 B1 miners I purchased or transfer my BTC back into my bank!

BUYERS BEWARE...I was one of the first to purchased (2) S4 miners B1 that should have been shipped 9/29/14 and still haven't received my miners!
Currently Bitmain is holding my Bitcoin ransom...
I have emailed many of times asking for my miners or refund of my Bitcoin...
Bitmain claims I ordered hosting which I assured them I didn't...
I have an email from Bitmain stating they changed the interface after my purchase to make a correction...
Bitmain has stopped all communication and will not respond to my emails...
I have since emailed all of Bitmain partners and called Bitmain North America twice now and still nothing...
I'm still out 2 S4 Miners and A LOT of BITCOIN not to mention I'm Losing money everyday...
I thought Bitmain was a reputable company and this is by no way my first purchase from Bitmain...
I have used just about everyone of there products that has been made available to the public & many other companies miners...

I would like to have my miners or my Bitcoin transferred back to my bank!

CAN ANYONE BE OF ANY ASSISTANCE?

Please send your bitcoin payment as follows:
Amount (BTC):   
7.253
Address:   
1BWxzg2iyrYx1Gw4ddTBrHGDnir6164dyW
QR Code:   

Pay Details
Pay   7.253 BTC
Pay Confirm   7.253 BTC
Date   2014-09-25 22:53:26
Send Details
Unshipped
Order Details
Product   Total
ANTMINER S4 -B1 × 2
2900 USD ( 7.056 BTC )
Coupon
Shipping
顺丰
0.197  BTC


HeXoR
1PPWe6kZwyMRhz66GJKBykyEtfuAve9Jbv