Topic: ANTMINER S3+ Discussion and Support Thread - page 508. (Read 710164 times)

KnC is pumping 420W through ONE PCI-E while cooling the plastic part of the connector with a fan.
I wouldn't try it, unless it is a high current connector.
~180-200W should be OK in most cases from a reliable PSU because this is what a single blade of mildly overclocked S1 gets from PSU through the single PCI-E, but how reliable it would be-I don't know.
Edit: here is some discussion of limits:
http://www.jonnyguru.com/forums/archive/index.php/t-7212.html

6-pin PCI-E standard specification is 75W...could sustain up to 125W...BitMain is trying to fit these specs with 2 6-pin PCI-E ...IMHO...

ZiG

You guys need a new hobby.  S3's are flying off the shelf.  There is exactly ZERO incentive for Bitmaintech to do anything to 'bump' sales.  To even make such a statement is laughable.

A lot of people buying already have PSU's from their S1's or other hardware they bought that didn't come with one.
You can buy Server PSU's from Ebay for $10-20 that will run two miners
I'd like them to be $50 cheaper too
I think you are being way over pessimistic on the calculator you are using, but thats just me

As interested as am in the S3, I just can't bring myself to do it. Even with free power (I have access to a data center), two S3's plus a PS will never ROI.

I know that this is not news to anyone, and that people have strategies for making up the difference, including selling the hardware in a few months. But that's a PITA.

All I want is to buy some hardware, have some fun, and make a little profit supporting the network.

If these units were only $50 cheaper, then the cost of 2 units plus a decent power supply (est. $150) and free power would mean a possible fiat ROI in a couple hundred days and maybe a small profit in 12 months. This is with the coinish calculator, 1.2% per day difficulty rise, 1% pool fee, and 30 day delivery (because these things never ship on time).

As much as I want to feed my mining habit, I just can't do it. It's too bad because it wouldn't take much to win me over.

Bitmain, I understand that you have to maximize your profits. But if you calibrated your pricing so that miners made a little money, you would sell a lot more units. The people like me that are sitting on the sidelines would jump at an opportunity to break even, or make a little profit.

yes, but if you truly need 4 connectors per S3 for a mild overclock to 390W (I doubt it), then you need to have 4 more connectors (EVGA has 8 total). I solved it by ordering splitters: there is an awful lot of discussion whether splitters with 16awg wires are needed or 18awg is enough. According to this:
http://www.stayonline.com/reference-circuit-ampacity.aspx
each wire can carry 7amps, so for three wires it is 21ampsX12v=252W carrying capacity for 18awg wires in PCIe splitter. there is a debate how much wattage can plastic connectors take, but at least 18awg wires seems to be able to take it.

order 16awg from cablez here:
https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/m.7579936

or 18awg
http://www.amazon.com/StarTech-com-PCIEXSPLIT6-6-Inch-Express-Splitter/dp/B004NNTVT6/

yeah it is a stud psu.  has done 3 s-1's overclocked to freq 393 and 405 watts pulled 1215 at the k-watt meter.  for 40 days in a row .. I recently down volted and down clocked my s-1's I am a big believer in this psu.

 six cables separate  pcie  very nice gear.  fan is a bit loud when doing 1215 watts.  but the s-1's were loud so I did not care.

Again, assuming that each S3 draws 390WAC at the wall, the EVGA SuperNOVA 1300G2 would give you around 19% headroom (81% load) with 3x S3s.

Yes, power specs-wise definitely. You can overclock them too.

Available PCI-e output-wise, probably. From the picture, I see that it has more than 4 PCI-e cables. That's good. There seems to be some more but I can't tell from the picture. Either way, this PSU would easily work for you.

Would this PSU support (3) S3's:

EVGA SuperNOVA 1300G2 ATX12V/EPS12V 1300W 80Plus Gold Power Supply 120-G2-1300-XR
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00COIZTZM/ref=oh_details_o01_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I think the logic behind this statement is that if one overclocks the S3 and uses two PSUs for some reason, each PSU must "exclusively" power the same blade (i.e. two PCIe connectors from one PSU should be connected to the two PCIe ports on one blade and not two PSUs each splitting PCIe power connection between two blades).  This way, if a PSU fails, the other one would still be able to sufficiently power the other blade and keep it running and not be overloaded by two overclocked blades.

I have a few molex to pcie adapters with  adequate wiring but most are flat out wrong.   plus you need to take into account the quality of the actual cable coming from the psu. 18 guage is rare  … if your psu has 18 gauge and you use two cables it may be okay if you are doing 4 cables into the s-3.

  for me  I am an overkill psu guy with over head to spare and good cables.


 I am more of buy  one these and don't worry anymore.  for 10 years!  long warranty

  https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/m.7639510

I'm not a big fan of converting molex to PCIe.  It would be adequate for general GPU/light gaming application which doesn't demand high loads 24/7 like an ASIC miner does.  A molex connector only has one +12V wire compared to PCIe which has three +12V pinouts.

yes but melting cable danger with a shitty one.    you need one that has 2x molex to 1 pci-e  and you need to use each molex to a separate  psu molex cable.  many psu's have two molex cables with 3 or 4  connectors each.

Yes it is possible as long as you are paying attention to your PSU's power specs.

So, it´s possible to use molex to PCI-e adapter ?

Per Bitmain specifications, the S1 and the S3 draw about the same wattage at the wall (360WAC and 366WAC respectively at stock clocks).  In reality however, the S1 pulls around 385WAC and up to 395WAC on a very hot day with a CX500 (never complains and barely gets warm), an 80 Plus Bronze PSU (around 85% efficient at 75% load) similar to the CX750 which has a maximum of 744WDC (62A) on its single +12V rail as shown on the label.  Assuming that the S3 is subject to the same at-the-wall power consumption understatement by the manufacturer (all of them do) and draws around 390WAC, 2x S3 would require 663WDC (780WAC*85%) from the CX750, thereby exerting a load of 89% (663WDC/744WDC).  It has been the consensus that 80% load should be the maximum especially for a 24/7 operation with a constant high load.  The question is: are you comfortable with only an 11% headroom?  It's all relative to your personal tolerance.  Personally, the sweet spot for me is between 50% and 65%, closer to peak efficiency which is at 50% (less wasted energy, therefore less heat generated and longer PSU life).  I'd go as high as 70-75% if I have no other option.  I hope this helps.

Since I already have a bunch of CX500 PSUs, I'd use one for each S3 blade if I do decide to overclock.  But first, Bitmain has to price the S3 sensibly so I could pull the trigger.

So each connector is rated is 75w so 2x this is way lower that what bitmain are saying is needed.  I must be mis calculating.

Hope they send S3s fast enough to have them mining ASAP