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

[alh]

Thanks for the discussion on Power Supplies, and the Newegg link. My only comment is that it might be worth considering a larger more capable supply, in anticipation a future mining device. It seems that many folks purchased a "way over the top" PSU in the past, and just continue to use it when they upgrade to a newer mining device. It looks now like the PSU is the "long term" part of mining, while the specific ASIC gadget has a much shorter "life span" in terms of how long it stay connected to your purchased PSU.

Thanks again.

[mavericklm]

It's been like that for a lot of time!
Even in pc's i kept a case and psu for 5 years but the rest of hardware was changed monthly

[visdude]

Thanks for the discussion on Power Supplies, and the Newegg link. My only comment is that it might be worth considering a larger more capable supply, in anticipation a future mining device. It seems that many folks purchased a "way over the top" PSU in the past, and just continue to use it when they upgrade to a newer mining device. It looks now like the PSU is the "long term" part of mining, while the specific ASIC gadget has a much shorter "life span" in terms of how long it stay connected to your purchased PSU.

Thanks again.

I have a small collection of Corsair CX500s that I got for dirt cheap collectively as I've mentioned on my last post on the prior page that have continuously been powering a variety of miners since the BFL days and none of them have failed yet.  I still have a few spare left and I intend to use them to power S5 miners (one for each hashing board) if and when I do get them.  Even if an extremely OC'd S5 draws 700WAC at the wall, that would still give each CX500 a very comfy headroom of about 35%.  Since I already have them, there's no point in investing in pricey overkill PSUs considering the low BTC price coupled with overpriced miners.  I think the ultimate goal is still and has always been to achieve ROI as soon as possible.

[Furio]

Thanks for the discussion on Power Supplies, and the Newegg link. My only comment is that it might be worth considering a larger more capable supply, in anticipation a future mining device. It seems that many folks purchased a "way over the top" PSU in the past, and just continue to use it when they upgrade to a newer mining device. It looks now like the PSU is the "long term" part of mining, while the specific ASIC gadget has a much shorter "life span" in terms of how long it stay connected to your purchased PSU.

Thanks again.

I have a small collection of Corsair CX500s that I got for dirt cheap collectively as I've mentioned on my last post on the prior page that have continuously been powering a variety of miners since the BFL days and none of them have failed yet.  I still have a few spare left and I intend to use them to power S5 miners (one for each hashing board) if and when I do get them.  Even if an extremely OC'd S5 draws 700WAC at the wall, that would still give each CX500 a very comfy headroom of about 35%.  Since I already have them, there's no point in investing in pricey overkill PSUs considering the low BTC price coupled with overpriced miners.  I think the ultimate goal is still and has always been to achieve ROI as soon as possible.

Would you mind selling one?

[visdude]

Thanks for the discussion on Power Supplies, and the Newegg link. My only comment is that it might be worth considering a larger more capable supply, in anticipation a future mining device. It seems that many folks purchased a "way over the top" PSU in the past, and just continue to use it when they upgrade to a newer mining device. It looks now like the PSU is the "long term" part of mining, while the specific ASIC gadget has a much shorter "life span" in terms of how long it stay connected to your purchased PSU.

Thanks again.

I have a small collection of Corsair CX500s that I got for dirt cheap collectively as I've mentioned on my last post on the prior page that have continuously been powering a variety of miners since the BFL days and none of them have failed yet.  I still have a few spare left and I intend to use them to power S5 miners (one for each hashing board) if and when I do get them.  Even if an extremely OC'd S5 draws 700WAC at the wall, that would still give each CX500 a very comfy headroom of about 35%.  Since I already have them, there's no point in investing in pricey overkill PSUs considering the low BTC price coupled with overpriced miners.  I think the ultimate goal is still and has always been to achieve ROI as soon as possible.

Would you mind selling one?

You're better off watching for rebates at the Egg for the CX500.  They offer them pretty regularly and if you time your purchase at a reduced sale price with a rebate and possibly an instant promo code offer, you hit the jackpot.  The key is to keep monitoring the product listing and watch for these deals.  Instant promo codes usually appear/disappear overnight and in some instances, they last for a day or two (I think).  I suggest to avoid the modular (CX500M) version which usually cost more anyway.  The single modular PCIe harness that cascades into 2 PCIe connectors gets hotter than I'm comfy with.

Currently at the Egg, a CX500 is priced at $64.99 ($44.99 after $20 rebate offer which expires on 1/9/15):

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139027

[viriat0]

Nice review!

Thanks for share!

[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.

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 .

Will wait and hope someone with a free review miner uses it as a test in case it does not work as planned.

[MrTeal]

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.

I'd nuke the Logisys from the list. That's why I excluded some PSUs from my search; I don't want to deal with cable issues. The Logisys only has two PCIe cables, and trying to pull 20A+ through each connector on a PSU designed to pinch pennies is a recipe for disaster. On the S1 it was easy because you could just chop the end off a 4 or 8 pin EPS cable, but it's not so easy anymore.
Also, I'm not sure why you included the cheap Logisys but excluded Rosewill, but the Rosewill Capstone 750W is extremely well rated. It's only $80 for the non-modular version, which is cheaper than all the ones you had listed except the Thermal take, which was only $5 cheaper.

Just trying to stay within brands is a little silly though. For instance, Antec has 7 PSUs between 750W and 900W, and the Gold is the cheapest.
Antec
ThermalTake has 9 in that range, and it is a $20 to move from a Bronze to a Gold PSU (plus you get a 140mm fan and modular cables)
ThermalTake
Rosewill (11 in the 750W-900W range) is a $10 difference
Rosewill
Seasonic - $10 difference
EVGA - $25 difference

Even Corsair is only a $25 difference between the cheapest Bronze and the cheapest Gold (CSM), along with all the other benefits you get like modular cables.

I would definitely agree with that you can pick up cheap units if you're only looking at a couple, though that pertains to better rated ones as well. Really, I don't disagree with most of what you're saying, I just disagree that it will cost as much as you suggested to move to Gold from Bronze, or that it would take ~2 years to recoup the difference in most cases. Given an average cost to move up to gold at ~$20, if you're pulling 600W at an efficiency difference of just ~3% (most Bronze exceed spec by more than most Gold), you're looking at 18W which is a 385 day payback on power. Worth it IMO to get other benefits you often see in a better PSU like modular cables and especially moving away from group regulated designs like many Bronze PSUs are.

[visdude]

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.

I'd nuke the Logisys from the list. That's why I excluded some PSUs from my search; I don't want to deal with cable issues. The Logisys only has two PCIe cables, and trying to pull 20A+ through each connector on a PSU designed to pinch pennies is a recipe for disaster. On the S1 it was easy because you could just chop the end off a 4 or 8 pin EPS cable, but it's not so easy anymore.
Also, I'm not sure why you included the cheap Logisys but excluded Rosewill, but the Rosewill Capstone 750W is extremely well rated. It's only $80 for the non-modular version, which is cheaper than all the ones you had listed except the Thermal take, which was only $5 cheaper.

Just trying to stay within brands is a little silly though. For instance, Antec has 7 PSUs between 750W and 900W, and the Gold is the cheapest.
Antec
ThermalTake has 9 in that range, and it is a $20 to move from a Bronze to a Gold PSU (plus you get a 140mm fan and modular cables)
ThermalTake
Rosewill (11 in the 750W-900W range) is a $10 difference
Rosewill
Seasonic - $10 difference
EVGA - $25 difference

Even Corsair is only a $25 difference between the cheapest Bronze and the cheapest Gold (CSM), along with all the other benefits you get like modular cables.

I would definitely agree with that you can pick up cheap units if you're only looking at a couple, though that pertains to better rated ones as well. Really, I don't disagree with most of what you're saying, I just disagree that it will cost as much as you suggested to move to Gold from Bronze, or that it would take ~2 years to recoup the difference in most cases. Given an average cost to move up to gold at ~$20, if you're pulling 600W at an efficiency difference of just ~3% (most Bronze exceed spec by more than most Gold), you're looking at 18W which is a 385 day payback on power. Worth it IMO to get other benefits you often see in a better PSU like modular cables and especially moving away from group regulated designs like many Bronze PSUs are.

Like I said, it's ultimately a matter of how one justifies it.  We can debate to eternity and still would not be able to come up with a definitive conclusion that we could both agree on as there are a variety of factors that are difficult if not impossible to accurately and consistently quantify.  In other words, it is a very relative and subjective topic.  At least, I attempted to have some sort of controlled comparison by isolating complicating factors to the best of my ability/knowledge and providing numbers/computation.  That's all we can do in this matter.  If you're happy with the justification of your PSU choice and I'm happy with mine, that should be good enough.

Detailed PSU 80 Plus certification results here:

http://www.plugloadsolutions.com/80PlusPowerSupplies.aspx#

[philipma1957]

I like the evga 1300 g2's for 10 year warranty.
They work well.

 really like that they can run 2 s-5's or 2 sp20's if I down clock.

I like that they make less wires and space. then 2 or 3 smaller psu's

lastly they come with a trick switch for the psu to turn on.

My evga's have

1 run my s-1's
2 run my s-3's
3 now run my sp20's

Since I have 4 of them I have spare wires and such for them.

visdude has also offered a few ideas on the go cheap as you can route they can work for some and not for others

as my evga 1300 g2 pick can work for some not others.

[MrTeal]

Like I said, it's ultimately a matter of how one justifies it.  We can debate to eternity and still would not be able to come up with a definitive conclusion that we could both agree on as there are a variety of factors that are difficult if not impossible to accurately and consistently quantify.  In other words, it is a very relative and subjective topic.  At least, I attempted to have some sort of controlled comparison by isolating complicating factors to the best of my ability/knowledge and providing numbers/computation.  That's all we can do in this matter.  If you're happy with the justification of your PSU choice and I'm happy with mine, that should be good enough.

Detailed PSU 80 Plus certification results here:

http://www.plugloadsolutions.com/80PlusPowerSupplies.aspx#

I'm not at all disagreeing with your method, just that your numbers don't match with my experience in terms of the average price difference. It's not a matter of justifying my choices at all, I don't actually use ATX PSUs at all for mining, other than for some testing. I don't need the minor rails so I generally just buy server PSUs. It's hard to beat the value of a 2450W Platinum PSU for $50.

[visdude]

I like the evga 1300 g2's for 10 year warranty.
They work well.

 really like that they can run 2 s-5's or 2 sp20's if I down clock.

I like that they make less wires and space. then 2 or 3 smaller psu's

lastly they come with a trick switch for the psu to turn on.

My evga's have

1 run my s-1's
2 run my s-3's
3 now run my sp20's

Since I have 4 of them I have spare wires and such for them.

visdude has also offered a few ideas on the go cheap as you can route they can work for some and not for others

as my evga 1300 g2 pick can work for some not others.

That's why there's a thing called "cable management".  To some, it's a worthwhile challenge that's rewarding when done successfully.

Convenience (non-essential features) is not a function of effectiveness (performance).

Edit:  None of my cheap PSUs has conked out yet.

[visdude]

Like I said, it's ultimately a matter of how one justifies it.  We can debate to eternity and still would not be able to come up with a definitive conclusion that we could both agree on as there are a variety of factors that are difficult if not impossible to accurately and consistently quantify.  In other words, it is a very relative and subjective topic.  At least, I attempted to have some sort of controlled comparison by isolating complicating factors to the best of my ability/knowledge and providing numbers/computation.  That's all we can do in this matter.  If you're happy with the justification of your PSU choice and I'm happy with mine, that should be good enough.

Detailed PSU 80 Plus certification results here:

http://www.plugloadsolutions.com/80PlusPowerSupplies.aspx#

I'm not at all disagreeing with your method, just that your numbers don't match with my experience in terms of the average price difference. It's not a matter of justifying my choices at all, I don't actually use ATX PSUs at all for mining, other than for some testing. I don't need the minor rails so I generally just buy server PSUs. It's hard to beat the value of a 2450W Platinum PSU for $50.

I think you are drifting towards debating semantics.  Let's leave it at "relative and subjective" while we're ahead and not digress.

Just in case you missed it, I did qualify my original post with "For example:".  I did not intend or claim it to be a definitive presentation.  I'm not sure why you're nitpicking it.  It was merely to show one of many possibilities and I had to come up with a price difference of $40 which is sound, valid and reasonable to base my computation on.  You contended that it is less than $40 which is another possibility and that's fine; so is a figure above $40 as I have illustrated.  Again, "relative and subjective".

[philipma1957]

Like I said, it's ultimately a matter of how one justifies it.  We can debate to eternity and still would not be able to come up with a definitive conclusion that we could both agree on as there are a variety of factors that are difficult if not impossible to accurately and consistently quantify.  In other words, it is a very relative and subjective topic.  At least, I attempted to have some sort of controlled comparison by isolating complicating factors to the best of my ability/knowledge and providing numbers/computation.  That's all we can do in this matter.  If you're happy with the justification of your PSU choice and I'm happy with mine, that should be good enough.

Detailed PSU 80 Plus certification results here:

http://www.plugloadsolutions.com/80PlusPowerSupplies.aspx#

I'm not at all disagreeing with your method, just that your numbers don't match with my experience in terms of the average price difference. It's not a matter of justifying my choices at all, I don't actually use ATX PSUs at all for mining, other than for some testing. I don't need the minor rails so I generally just buy server PSUs. It's hard to beat the value of a 2450W Platinum PSU for $50.

I wish the wife would let me run a 220 line for a pair of them. oh well

[captjrc]

Like I said, it's ultimately a matter of how one justifies it.  We can debate to eternity and still would not be able to come up with a definitive conclusion that we could both agree on as there are a variety of factors that are difficult if not impossible to accurately and consistently quantify.  In other words, it is a very relative and subjective topic.  At least, I attempted to have some sort of controlled comparison by isolating complicating factors to the best of my ability/knowledge and providing numbers/computation.  That's all we can do in this matter.  If you're happy with the justification of your PSU choice and I'm happy with mine, that should be good enough.

Detailed PSU 80 Plus certification results here:

http://www.plugloadsolutions.com/80PlusPowerSupplies.aspx#

I'm not at all disagreeing with your method, just that your numbers don't match with my experience in terms of the average price difference. It's not a matter of justifying my choices at all, I don't actually use ATX PSUs at all for mining, other than for some testing. I don't need the minor rails so I generally just buy server PSUs. It's hard to beat the value of a 2450W Platinum PSU for $50.

Is there an interface board available for the 2450W PSU?  I have a Delta DPS-2000BB with a Gekko Science breakout board, but I like the idea of a Platinum PSU.  If there isn't a interface board available, would you mind sharing how you wired yours?

[sloopy]

Do more people use the server power supplies or the standard ATX power supplies int heir home use?
It seems to me I hear about the PC ATX more, and I got a heck of a deal from a poster on another forum. The EVGA 1300G2 and Corsair AX1200 are running my pair of 'doolie SP20s. I bought those two, an EVGA 1000 G2 and a EVGA750 shipped for 350. They were used, but they were also spotless, so the guy cleaned them well or they were not used much except in a very clean environment.

[MrTeal]

Like I said, it's ultimately a matter of how one justifies it.  We can debate to eternity and still would not be able to come up with a definitive conclusion that we could both agree on as there are a variety of factors that are difficult if not impossible to accurately and consistently quantify.  In other words, it is a very relative and subjective topic.  At least, I attempted to have some sort of controlled comparison by isolating complicating factors to the best of my ability/knowledge and providing numbers/computation.  That's all we can do in this matter.  If you're happy with the justification of your PSU choice and I'm happy with mine, that should be good enough.

Detailed PSU 80 Plus certification results here:

http://www.plugloadsolutions.com/80PlusPowerSupplies.aspx#

I'm not at all disagreeing with your method, just that your numbers don't match with my experience in terms of the average price difference. It's not a matter of justifying my choices at all, I don't actually use ATX PSUs at all for mining, other than for some testing. I don't need the minor rails so I generally just buy server PSUs. It's hard to beat the value of a 2450W Platinum PSU for $50.

Is there an interface board available for the 2450W PSU?  I have a Delta DPS-2000BB with a Gekko Science breakout board, but I like the idea of a Platinum PSU.  If there isn't a interface board available, would you mind sharing how you wired yours?

https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=519943.msg7405286#msg7405286
I bought a crapload of 36" 16 gauge cables from klondike_bar, and used some C14 cables I had laying around for power. I actually included the proper connectors so I could remove the line and 12V cables along with a toggle switch to turn it on and off, but you don't have to. Minimum cost I could have been up and running for about an extra $20 for 8 PCIe plugs, which would be just about right for an SP20. You might want 12 cables to run 3 S5s per PSU though.

[valkir]

Hey all! About the fan, I found 2 or 3 fan that should do the trick with push pull installation!

http://www.silenx.com/quiet.fans.asp?sku=efx-12-15

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/searchtools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=3828304&SRCCODE=LINKSHARE&cm_mmc_o=-ddCjC1bELltzywCjC-d2CjCdwwp&utm_source=Linkshare&utm_medium=Affiliate&utm_campaign=je6NUbpObpQ&AffiliateID=je6NUbpObpQ-c9orRJQf.TqpKkMIhRBEfA

http://www.neweggbusiness.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=9B-35-226-013&nm_mc=afc-cjb2b&cm_mmc=afc-cjb2b-_-Case+Fans-_-SILENX-_-9B35226013&utm_medium=affiliates&utm_source=afc-VigLink

  I bought 2 of each of the 2 first. Will let you know when I receive the miner!

[philipma1957]

Hey all! About the fan, I found 2 or 3 fan that should do the trick with push pull installation!

http://www.silenx.com/quiet.fans.asp?sku=efx-12-15

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/searchtools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=3828304&SRCCODE=LINKSHARE&cm_mmc_o=-ddCjC1bELltzywCjC-d2CjCdwwp&utm_source=Linkshare&utm_medium=Affiliate&utm_campaign=je6NUbpObpQ&AffiliateID=je6NUbpObpQ-c9orRJQf.TqpKkMIhRBEfA

http://www.neweggbusiness.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=9B-35-226-013&nm_mc=afc-cjb2b&cm_mmc=afc-cjb2b-_-Case+Fans-_-SILENX-_-9B35226013&utm_medium=affiliates&utm_source=afc-VigLink

  I bought 2 of each of the 2 first. Will let you know when I receive the miner!

they will work with an underclock .  not with stock speeds or an overclock.

[valkir]

Hey all! About the fan, I found 2 or 3 fan that should do the trick with push pull installation!

http://www.silenx.com/quiet.fans.asp?sku=efx-12-15

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/searchtools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=3828304&SRCCODE=LINKSHARE&cm_mmc_o=-ddCjC1bELltzywCjC-d2CjCdwwp&utm_source=Linkshare&utm_medium=Affiliate&utm_campaign=je6NUbpObpQ&AffiliateID=je6NUbpObpQ-c9orRJQf.TqpKkMIhRBEfA

http://www.neweggbusiness.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=9B-35-226-013&nm_mc=afc-cjb2b&cm_mmc=afc-cjb2b-_-Case+Fans-_-SILENX-_-9B35226013&utm_medium=affiliates&utm_source=afc-VigLink

  I bought 2 of each of the 2 first. Will let you know when I receive the miner!

they will work with an underclock .  not with stock speeds or an overclock.

Because of the cfm ??