S-5 review. It has arrived some info is in!

[aurel57]

I am working on an undervolting solution.

some info here

https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=872014.msg10069844#msg10069844


the hope is it will be ready for testing in 3 weeks.

 I would get a unit to review and run an s-5 from the builder.  The builder is a forum member and well respected.

it would allow you to plug in an atx psu like the evga 1300 g2 and dial it down from 12 volts to a 11 to 7 volt range.  with only a 5% loss of efficency.

 if it works maybe 800gh at 240 watts for an s-5   maybe 800 gh at 300 watts for an s-5.

 right now the s-5 does 800 gh at 400 watts. 

Sounds interesting Phil. So far I am happy with my S5 but know the time will come to do some undervolting.

[Biodom]

For those who have a mixed miner set (S5 and SP20): I replaced the stock fan on S5 with Noctua 120mm 3000 PWM, which is quieter and OK for freq 325 at up to 30C ambient (maybe OK for freq 350 if your ambient is colder), but interestingly, Noctua is a little whiny alone, however when I put both S5 with Noctua and SP20 (at setting 20) together, the most annoying frequencies of both seem to cancel each other out and the whole setup (two Sp20 and two S5) "sounds" better. So, maybe Noctua-S5 produce an 'anti-noise" to SP20 noise or vice versa.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Active_noise_control

[Zich]

.................

Look like there are two unused connector in controller. I wonder is you can use them for another board in case fail controller.

[philipma1957]

.................

Look like there are two unused connector in controller. I wonder is you can use them for another board in case fail controller.

I only had 1 machine but I am almost certain that is possible.  I wonder if a 2x s-5 owner has tried to do that.

[Zich]

Look like there are two unused connector in controller. I wonder is you can use them for another board in case fail controller.

I only had 1 machine but I am almost certain that is possible.  I wonder if a 2x s-5 owner has tried to do that.

Will be interesting if it's work 

[kano]

I am working on an undervolting solution.

some info here

https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=872014.msg10069844#msg10069844


the hope is it will be ready for testing in 3 weeks.

 I would get a unit to review and run an s-5 from the builder.  The builder is a forum member and well respected.

it would allow you to plug in an atx psu like the evga 1300 g2 and dial it down from 12 volts to a 11 to 7 volt range.  with only a 5% loss of efficency.

 if it works maybe 800gh at 240 watts for an s-5   maybe 800 gh at 300 watts for an s-5.

 right now the s-5 does 800 gh at 400 watts. 

From what I heard from Bitmain, it's as simple as supplying 9V instead of 12V on the PCIe connectors.
9V PSUs are a different issue all together.
... and the 12V to 9V step downs I found were not all that cheap either since you'd need 4 of them.

I suspect this may be appropriate (times 4):
http://www.amazon.com/VvW-Waterproof-Converter-Die-cast-aluminum/dp/B00J6ODYKY

But I'm no hardware guy so someone else would have to make suggestions about what and how.

[visdude]

Hello there,

I'm from Russia and have ordered 1 x ANTMINER S5 BATCH 4.
Now I need some advice from you ...
I have a new out of the box PSU Fractal Design NEWTON R3 80PLUS® Platinum
http://www.fractal-design.com/home/product/power-supplies/newton/newton-r3-600w
and I'll going in anyway to connect it to S5.
Which are the potential minuses I'll get if use the PSU NEWTON R3 with Antminer S5? Please list all if it possible.
Thanks.

At 600W draw at the wall, that'll only give you around 10% headroom.  If you're comfy with that (also keeping in mind that it's a Platinum PSU), then that's your call.  I'd monitor it very closely for the first few days.  Also, make sure that the PCIe cables don't get too hot especially during the hottest ambient temperature that you could possibly have.

I'd get a 750W/800W PSU if it were me though and overclock to heart's content without worrying about power requirement.

[aurel57]

Phil I just seen where Bitmain crossed out the 9V feature on the S% sells thread? I guess this is no longer something for us to look at in the future?



Notes
1.   Power consumption figures vary with your PSU’s efficiency, the ambient operating temperature and the accuracy of the power meter.
2.   PSU: A power supply unit is not included, and you will need to provide an ATX PSU. There are 4 PCI-e connectors for +12V DC input and all four are required. Do not connect more than one PSU to the same hashing board.
3.   When better power efficiency is needed in the future due to higher network difficulties, you may want to buy some special PSUs 9V DC with more than 10A output, which will allow you to have a 0.2J/GH mining efficiency, but at lower hashing speed.

[alh]

Apparently when Bitmain revised the initial posting for the S5 for 9V feature, they also struck another part regarding the 1 fan cooling solution, though they didn't fix the entire posting. One part still extolls the virtue of a single fan that keeps the miner "cool and quiet". I think everybody agree the 1 fan keeps it cool, though by most accounts it's quite loud in doing so.

Anybody know if there is a revision to the fans on the S5?

[philipma1957]

Phil I just seen where Bitmain crossed out the 9V feature on the S% sells thread? I guess this is no longer something for us to look at in the future?



Notes
1.   Power consumption figures vary with your PSU’s efficiency, the ambient operating temperature and the accuracy of the power meter.
2.   PSU: A power supply unit is not included, and you will need to provide an ATX PSU. There are 4 PCI-e connectors for +12V DC input and all four are required. Do not connect more than one PSU to the same hashing board.
3.   When better power efficiency is needed in the future due to higher network difficulties, you may want to buy some special PSUs 9V DC with more than 10A output, which will allow you to have a 0.2J/GH mining efficiency, but at lower hashing speed.

not so according to dogie's thread.  dogie said since 9 volt psu's are rare and you kind of need to know what you are doing. they crossed it off.

I must remind everyone I have yet to see any demo on this 9v setup so I AM IN THE THE DARK SO FAR. This is a hoped for solution .

[efx]

Hello there,

I'm from Russia and have ordered 1 x ANTMINER S5 BATCH 4.
Now I need some advice from you ...
I have a new out of the box PSU Fractal Design NEWTON R3 80PLUS® Platinum
http://www.fractal-design.com/home/product/power-supplies/newton/newton-r3-600w
and I'll going in anyway to connect it to S5.
Which are the potential minuses I'll get if use the PSU NEWTON R3 with Antminer S5? Please list all if it possible.
Thanks.

At 600W draw at the wall, that'll only give you around 10% headroom.  If you're comfy with that (also keeping in mind that it's a Platinum PSU), then that's your call.  I'd monitor it very closely for the first few days.  Also, make sure that the PCIe cables don't get too hot especially during the hottest ambient temperature that you could possibly have.

I'd get a 750W/800W PSU if it were me though and overclock to heart's content without worrying about power requirement.

Agreed.

I've found the relative differences between certifications to often be pretty much immaterial, often a case of a few percentage points that could be re-claimed elsewhere for less.

Considering the base efficiency of these devices, I would aim for higher capacity over slightly better PSU efficiency at this time, as you said. Also, based on what I know of average electricity rates in Russia, I expect he would benefit from OC as you suggested.

[philipma1957]

Hello there,

I'm from Russia and have ordered 1 x ANTMINER S5 BATCH 4.
Now I need some advice from you ...
I have a new out of the box PSU Fractal Design NEWTON R3 80PLUS® Platinum
http://www.fractal-design.com/home/product/power-supplies/newton/newton-r3-600w
and I'll going in anyway to connect it to S5.
Which are the potential minuses I'll get if use the PSU NEWTON R3 with Antminer S5? Please list all if it possible.
Thanks.

At 600W draw at the wall, that'll only give you around 10% headroom.  If you're comfy with that (also keeping in mind that it's a Platinum PSU), then that's your call.  I'd monitor it very closely for the first few days.  Also, make sure that the PCIe cables don't get too hot especially during the hottest ambient temperature that you could possibly have.

I'd get a 750W/800W PSU if it were me though and overclock to heart's content without worrying about power requirement.

Agreed.

I've found the relative differences between certifications to often be pretty much immaterial, often a case of a few percentage points that could be re-claimed elsewhere for less.

Considering the base efficiency of these devices, I would aim for higher capacity over slightly better PSU efficiency at this time, as you said. Also, based on what I know of average electricity rates in Russia, I expect he would benefit from OC as you suggested.

what I have found is the units scale well using a good 12 volt psu.

Ie they use about .5 or .51 watts per gh at freq

250
 275
300
325
350 stock
375
400
412 my highest test.

So if you can keep it cold and do freq 400 it does the same watt per gh as freq 250  .

 i tested between freq 250 to freq 412 with a platinum seasonic  760 watt psu. 

My best was .495 my worst was .512 per gh. this make the miner good if you can manage your sound issues.

[Furio]

I got mine in totally different packing, some see true hard plastic, but not the usual white box, strange...

[MyRig]

Usual white Box???

I got mine in totally different packing, some sue true hard plastic, but not the usual white box, strange...

[MrTeal]

I got mine in totally different packing, some see true hard plastic, but not the usual white box, strange...

They went away from the sytrofoam packaging to inflatable air filled packaging. I like the new stuff a lot better, actually.

[aurel57]

Usual white Box???

I got mine in totally different packing, some sue true hard plastic, but not the usual white box, strange...

I think he means the white foam. And yes mine came also in hard bubblewrap.

[wh00per]

Agreed.

I've found the relative differences between certifications to often be pretty much immaterial, often a case of a few percentage points that could be re-claimed elsewhere for less.

Considering the base efficiency of these devices, I would aim for higher capacity over slightly better PSU efficiency at this time, as you said. Also, based on what I know of average electricity rates in Russia, I expect he would benefit from OC as you suggested.

Nice to know you're still around

[visdude]

Hello there,

I'm from Russia and have ordered 1 x ANTMINER S5 BATCH 4.
Now I need some advice from you ...
I have a new out of the box PSU Fractal Design NEWTON R3 80PLUS® Platinum
http://www.fractal-design.com/home/product/power-supplies/newton/newton-r3-600w
and I'll going in anyway to connect it to S5.
Which are the potential minuses I'll get if use the PSU NEWTON R3 with Antminer S5? Please list all if it possible.
Thanks.

At 600W draw at the wall, that'll only give you around 10% headroom.  If you're comfy with that (also keeping in mind that it's a Platinum PSU), then that's your call.  I'd monitor it very closely for the first few days.  Also, make sure that the PCIe cables don't get too hot especially during the hottest ambient temperature that you could possibly have.

I'd get a 750W/800W PSU if it were me though and overclock to heart's content without worrying about power requirement.

Agreed.

I've found the relative differences between certifications to often be pretty much immaterial, often a case of a few percentage points that could be re-claimed elsewhere for less.

Considering the base efficiency of these devices, I would aim for higher capacity over slightly better PSU efficiency at this time, as you said. Also, based on what I know of average electricity rates in Russia, I expect he would benefit from OC as you suggested.

Indeed, the difference between a Bronze and a Gold PSU (85% and 90% efficiency respectively) is really not that significant in terms of operational (electricity) cost savings over price difference justification.

For example: with a stock S3+ running at 30C ambient, the difference between an 85% and a 90% efficiency PSU of the same wattage rating (identical load %) would be around 21WAC at the wall which equates to 0.5kWh per day.  At a rate of $0.12/kWh, that's a difference of $0.06 per day in power cost savings when using a 90% PSU over an 85% PSU.  For the purpose of extrapolation, let's use $40 as an average full retail price difference between these PSUs.  That would then give us $40 / $0.06 = 667 days = 22 months = 1.8 years to recoup such a price difference.

Of course one could argue that Gold/Platinum PSUs can be had on sale + rebates.  That's true for the Bronze PSUs as well or any PSU for that matter.

[MrTeal]

Hello there,

I'm from Russia and have ordered 1 x ANTMINER S5 BATCH 4.
Now I need some advice from you ...
I have a new out of the box PSU Fractal Design NEWTON R3 80PLUS® Platinum
http://www.fractal-design.com/home/product/power-supplies/newton/newton-r3-600w
and I'll going in anyway to connect it to S5.
Which are the potential minuses I'll get if use the PSU NEWTON R3 with Antminer S5? Please list all if it possible.
Thanks.

At 600W draw at the wall, that'll only give you around 10% headroom.  If you're comfy with that (also keeping in mind that it's a Platinum PSU), then that's your call.  I'd monitor it very closely for the first few days.  Also, make sure that the PCIe cables don't get too hot especially during the hottest ambient temperature that you could possibly have.

I'd get a 750W/800W PSU if it were me though and overclock to heart's content without worrying about power requirement.

Agreed.

I've found the relative differences between certifications to often be pretty much immaterial, often a case of a few percentage points that could be re-claimed elsewhere for less.

Considering the base efficiency of these devices, I would aim for higher capacity over slightly better PSU efficiency at this time, as you said. Also, based on what I know of average electricity rates in Russia, I expect he would benefit from OC as you suggested.

Indeed, the difference between a Bronze and a Gold PSU (85% and 90% efficiency respectively) is really not that significant in terms of operational (electricity) cost savings over price difference justification.

For example: with a stock S3+ running at 30C ambient, the difference between an 85% and a 90% efficiency PSU of the same wattage rating (identical load %) would be around 21WAC at the wall which equates to 0.5kWh per day.  At a rate of $0.12/kWh, that's a difference of $0.06 per day in power cost savings when using a 90% PSU over an 85% PSU.  For the purpose of extrapolation, let's use $40 as an average full retail price difference between these PSUs.  That would then give us $40 / $0.06 = 667 days = 22 months = 1.8 years to recoup such a price difference.

Of course one could argue that Gold/Platinum PSUs can be had on sale + rebates.  That's true for the Bronze PSUs as well or any PSU for that matter.

The difference between a power supply for running a single S3 isn't going to be $40. You're looking at more like $15 or so.
Newegg Search
You can buy a 650W gold supply for only $75. The only other PSU Newegg carries that would work without cable splitters or leaving a PCIe connector unplugged that's cheaper is a $60 550W Bronze one or some refurb Corsair 750's.

You might have $40 difference if you're looking at 850W or 1000W supplies, but you're probably looking at more than a 21W difference there.
I'd say that mining is far and away the best case for making up the cost difference between Gold and Bronze. It's probably closer to a year payoff the difference in cost just on electricity, but at the end of that year you're left with a likely better supply that has a higher resale value.

[visdude]

Hello there,

I'm from Russia and have ordered 1 x ANTMINER S5 BATCH 4.
Now I need some advice from you ...
I have a new out of the box PSU Fractal Design NEWTON R3 80PLUS® Platinum
http://www.fractal-design.com/home/product/power-supplies/newton/newton-r3-600w
and I'll going in anyway to connect it to S5.
Which are the potential minuses I'll get if use the PSU NEWTON R3 with Antminer S5? Please list all if it possible.
Thanks.

At 600W draw at the wall, that'll only give you around 10% headroom.  If you're comfy with that (also keeping in mind that it's a Platinum PSU), then that's your call.  I'd monitor it very closely for the first few days.  Also, make sure that the PCIe cables don't get too hot especially during the hottest ambient temperature that you could possibly have.

I'd get a 750W/800W PSU if it were me though and overclock to heart's content without worrying about power requirement.

Agreed.

I've found the relative differences between certifications to often be pretty much immaterial, often a case of a few percentage points that could be re-claimed elsewhere for less.

Considering the base efficiency of these devices, I would aim for higher capacity over slightly better PSU efficiency at this time, as you said. Also, based on what I know of average electricity rates in Russia, I expect he would benefit from OC as you suggested.

Indeed, the difference between a Bronze and a Gold PSU (85% and 90% efficiency respectively) is really not that significant in terms of operational (electricity) cost savings over price difference justification.

For example: with a stock S3+ running at 30C ambient, the difference between an 85% and a 90% efficiency PSU of the same wattage rating (identical load %) would be around 21WAC at the wall which equates to 0.5kWh per day.  At a rate of $0.12/kWh, that's a difference of $0.06 per day in power cost savings when using a 90% PSU over an 85% PSU.  For the purpose of extrapolation, let's use $40 as an average full retail price difference between these PSUs.  That would then give us $40 / $0.06 = 667 days = 22 months = 1.8 years to recoup such a price difference.

Of course one could argue that Gold/Platinum PSUs can be had on sale + rebates.  That's true for the Bronze PSUs as well or any PSU for that matter.

The difference between a power supply for running a single S3 isn't going to be $40. You're looking at more like $15 or so.
Newegg Search
You can buy a 650W gold supply for only $75. The only other PSU Newegg carries that would work without cable splitters or leaving a PCIe connector unplugged that's cheaper is a $60 550W Bronze one or some refurb Corsair 750's.

You might have $40 difference if you're looking at 850W or 1000W supplies, but you're probably looking at more than a 21W difference there.
I'd say that mining is far and away the best case for making up the cost difference between Gold and Bronze. It's probably closer to a year payoff the difference in cost just on electricity, but at the end of that year you're left with a likely better supply that has a higher resale value.

Fair enough and in that case, I could also contend that since the BFL days, I was able to purchase Corsair CX500s 80 Plus Bronze PSUs at the Egg at a final cost of as low as $9.99 ($39.99 listed sale price minus $20 rebate minus $10 instant promo code discount) and in turn, used those rebate cards to acquire more CX500s at virtually zero out-of-pocket cost.  They have powered BFL, Cube, S1 and currently, S3 miners without missing a beat.  My point is that we really can't mix in discounts, rebates, refurbished units, resale price, etc. and expect to have a controlled comparison (hence the last sentence of my last post).  I think the most sensible way to approach such comparison in order to have a modicum of control with such a variety of complicating factors is to compare the list price of a brand-new Bronze and a brand-new Gold PSU (not refurbs and excluding complex factors such as discounts, rebates, resale value, etc.) with identical/similar wattage rating within a brand as prices vary extensively across brands of identical/similar units.

Since this is an S5 thread, let's narrow it down to the 750W PSUs.  The following is a link to a comparison chart at the Egg with a sampling of five 750W Bronze and Gold PSUs ranging from the cheapest Bronze (Logisys @ $64.99) to the mid-higher end Gold (Seasonic @ $129.99).  Note that there are more Gold PSUs between $129.99 and $199.90 which makes the average price difference to be way more than just $40 across different brands.  But let's focus on the "within a brand" comparison which is between the Corsair CX750 Bronze @ $84.99 and the Corsair RM750 Gold @ $119.99 -- a difference of $35.  That's  almost $40:

Egg comparison chart of five 750W Bronze/Gold PSUs

In the end, it's how one justifies it.  I think it's more like a choice of either enjoying the savings now or enjoying it later when the price difference will have been recouped over a year or two later.