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Topic: Should i get APW3-12-1600 or other PSUs? - page 2. (Read 3333 times)

legendary
Activity: 3822
Merit: 2703
Evil beware: We have waffles!
I've been using Bitmains PSU's for over 2 years now. Currently have 24 of them running s7's and s9's 24x7x365 with most in 85-90F ambient, zero problems. Frankly, I love them. Pure plug and play with miners.
newbie
Activity: 32
Merit: 0
If you're looking for another alternative, I offer IBM 2880W PSU's with breakout boards and cables, they are being used to power 2x S9's or S7's without any drama.  Plus, if you ever do develop PSU problems, the boards and cables are re-useable.  Shipping PSU's to you from North America would be very expensive, but if you can find a cheap supply of the IBM 2880's (model AA23920L) in your area, send me a PM and we can work out pricing on boards and cables.  I have supplied many mines and data centres with PSU's that are plug & play (unlike some server PSU's that require modification),  my customers have been very pleased with the product.

Good luck

Hey Finksy, that looks like a very good alternative. Was actually looking at a 1600W PSU for 300USD, with 5 years local warranty. Hard decision for me. I'm actually leaning towards 5 years local warranty, due to the reason that i'm not sure whether PSUs breakdown easily, and their usual life span after being used. What do you think?

Hi MiningRonnie.

Looks like the Server PSU's are expensive in your part of the world.
I just ordered two more for £19.00 the pair from eBay with free shipping!

If you get stuck I can see if I can source in the UK and ship over to you, just a thought.

Hey buddy, thanks for the great offer! I'll actually consider that. What PSU are you actually talking about for 19pounds a pair?

The APW3 vs other non-bitmain PSU debate is something I've been mulling over. As of right now i've got 4 APW3's working great, all are putting out 12.23~ volts. I've ordered a 2000 watt IBM blade center PSU ($30 refurb) and a breakout board kit with cables from holybitcoin. Costs me $60 less than ordering APW3 from china, I'll report back my findings once everything comes in  Grin

Great! Will be waiting for your findings then. Which PSU to use is actually a big decision for me  Undecided

Never had issues with bitmain's PSU.... running 408v 3 phase 220v single phase... all connections running stable on all miners... then again we do have power factor correction and stable voltage 24x7x365...

Did a google search on power factor correction. Is that something that helps on saving electricity? Do you mind explaining how it works? Thank you!

I have not had any issue's with APW3's.  They are what Bitmain recommends with S7/S9.   I personally have followed this and not had any issues on the PSU side.  They have kept working for quite a while now on some as I sold S7's and kept the APW3's.    They can power even the batch 1 S9's which had the highest hashrate's.

There will always be market of server PSU's with breakout boards out there.  But until I have a problem I will keep using APW3's as far as S9's at this point.   I am not knocking some of kit's out there as I have not tested them.   So just making clear not knocking them just saying what has worked good for me.

At this point a lot of my ATX psu's I had laying around from previous gen miner's went to mining Ether.   I have had a decent variety of PSU's over the year's.  If you have the 205V+ it is the one I would go for.    If under the 205V then I would look at the EVGA Supernova 1600 you mention, as EVGA does have some great highend PSU's.

Thanks for your input. Can i ask how long have you been using those APW3s? The reason why im afraid to use APW3s is because i'm afraid that it would breakdown after the warranty expires.

I actually have 240V over here. I'm actually leaning towards APW3s now after hearing your input. Decisions...
legendary
Activity: 1456
Merit: 1000
I have not had any issue's with APW3's.  They are what Bitmain recommends with S7/S9.   I personally have followed this and not had any issues on the PSU side.  They have kept working for quite a while now on some as I sold S7's and kept the APW3's.    They can power even the batch 1 S9's which had the highest hashrate's.

There will always be market of server PSU's with breakout boards out there.  But until I have a problem I will keep using APW3's as far as S9's at this point.   I am not knocking some of kit's out there as I have not tested them.   So just making clear not knocking them just saying what has worked good for me.

At this point a lot of my ATX psu's I had laying around from previous gen miner's went to mining Ether.   I have had a decent variety of PSU's over the year's.  If you have the 205V+ it is the one I would go for.    If under the 205V then I would look at the EVGA Supernova 1600 you mention, as EVGA does have some great highend PSU's.
newbie
Activity: 45
Merit: 0
Never had issues with bitmain's PSU.... running 408v 3 phase 220v single phase... all connections running stable on all miners... then again we do have power factor correction and stable voltage 24x7x365...
sr. member
Activity: 324
Merit: 250
The APW3 vs other non-bitmain PSU debate is something I've been mulling over. As of right now i've got 4 APW3's working great, all are putting out 12.23~ volts. I've ordered a 2000 watt IBM blade center PSU ($30 refurb) and a breakout board kit with cables from holybitcoin. Costs me $60 less than ordering APW3 from china, I'll report back my findings once everything comes in  Grin
full member
Activity: 196
Merit: 100
Hi MiningRonnie.

Looks like the Server PSU's are expensive in your part of the world.
I just ordered two more for £19.00 the pair from eBay with free shipping!

If you get stuck I can see if I can source in the UK and ship over to you, just a thought.
legendary
Activity: 1022
Merit: 1003
If you're looking for another alternative, I offer IBM 2880W PSU's with breakout boards and cables, they are being used to power 2x S9's or S7's without any drama.  Plus, if you ever do develop PSU problems, the boards and cables are re-useable.  Shipping PSU's to you from North America would be very expensive, but if you can find a cheap supply of the IBM 2880's (model AA23920L) in your area, send me a PM and we can work out pricing on boards and cables.  I have supplied many mines and data centres with PSU's that are plug & play (unlike some server PSU's that require modification),  my customers have been very pleased with the product.

Good luck
newbie
Activity: 32
Merit: 0

I see. They came up with a second batch. However, the PSUs only have 90day warranty. What are your thoughts about that?
newbie
Activity: 32
Merit: 0
I purchased a total of 15 S7LN from Bitmain and got three bad power supplies. I was able to fix one of them but 20% failure rate is not impressive. I could tell several of the working supplies had also been opened up and worked on before they ever got to me.

A good PSU breakout board is pretty much foolproof. A lot of them nowdays have the same power jacks as the miner will, so to mess up cabling is almost impossible. Just plug everything together (it'll only go one way), flip the switch and you're on.

Thanks for the update. I guess i'm glad that i didnt go with S7 - LN.

Hi.

I run in the UK at 230 volt.
I have never purchased a Bitmain PSU. I started using IBM Server Power Supplies a couple of years ago on my Spondoolises SP20's.
I carried these over to the S7's and the S9's.
Just two pins to solder together to get the PSU to run up and I use 1/4" Lucar Crimps to connect the wires onto the PSU.
I use two per miner, both rated at 1300W, they are DPS-1300 PSU's and have always been reliable for me.

https://ip.bitcointalk.org/?u=https%3A%2F%2Fi.imgur.com%2F3YfHs4w.jpg&t=566&c=Ck25dXn1-L2bWA

I think that it is not economic if we were to use 2 PSU to 1 miner, unless you already have the PSU. is that right? For eg : 2 power supply rated 1000w = $200 each. 1 power supply rated 2000w = $300 each.

I purchased a total of 15 S7LN from Bitmain and got three bad power supplies. I was able to fix one of them but 20% failure rate is not impressive. I could tell several of the working supplies had also been opened up and worked on before they ever got to me.

A good PSU breakout board is pretty much foolproof. A lot of them nowdays have the same power jacks as the miner will, so to mess up cabling is almost impossible. Just plug everything together (it'll only go one way), flip the switch and you're on.
PCIe jacks on the breakouts may make things easy BUT I'll take your terminal strip and cables with spade lugs any day. Since the PCIe plugs/jacks are the weak point in the power chain, losing one set is great.

One thing that needs mentioning is that these connectors have a mating-cycle rating and most of the time it is surprisingly a low number: often just several 10's up to maybe few hundred at best.... Each time they are plugged/unplugged the connector gripping tension becomes weaker and plating is scraped off of the pins eventually leading to increasing contact resistance/heating/failure.

That sounds complicated. Can i ask what is the difference between PSU + breakout board and PSU from bitmain?

What is a mating-cycle rating? Did a search on google for those terms and understood a little, but didnt get the last paragraph.

Hi MineRonnie.

I buy ALL the power supplies from eBay, generally from computer recyclers.
I have never paid more than £15 for a Power Supply, normally around £12 to £14 each.
That makes a pair of power supplies max £30.00.

The IBM 1300W power supplies are very reliable and although I have one which is a little noisy on start up, they just run really reliable.
Just eBay search for IBM 1300W and you should recognise them.
If you look at my photo with the power strip at the bottom, solder bottom LH and the pin directly above it.
Power supply just runs straight up on power up.

Have fun!

Thanks flameruk, that's a very good suggestion BTW, to buy used PSUs at such price is worth considering. However, after some searching on eBay, it costs around 120USD for 2 PSUs + Shipping. With that, i think i'd go for bitmain's PSU as they come with 1 year warranty too. What do you think?

I'll toss in my 2c - I never skimp on buying PSU's.  Of all the things you'll be buying when you're mining, PSU's are probably the only thing that will last your mining lifetime, and be the same value when you sell it as when you bought it (assuming we're talking server PSU's with breakouts).  There are several great breakouts - the ones I've used and really like are Optimizer's and Sidehacks (Gekkoscience), they're both on the top end in terms of quality and workmanship.  Oh, and don't skimp on power cables either - 16 AWG all the way and you'll never have any problems.

That is what im considering too. Miners come and go, but PSUs will be used again and again.

What is a mating-cycle rating? Did a search on google for those terms and understood a little, but didnt get the last paragraph.
It is how many times a connector can be plugged and unplugged. Google gave this as top search, http://www.cirris.com/learning-center/product-articles/other-products/227-connector-life-cycles and it pretty much describes it in detail.

As for the effects of wear, as the metal plating wears off and/or the contacts begin to loosen contact resistance goes up. That leads to the connector pins heating up which starts to increases oxidation, which in turn increases resistance, etc. It's a vicious cycle.

Oh, i apologize for not finding that and thanks for the explaination.

It's advertising a server PSU and breakout board which is, overall, better than Bitmain's PSU. The conversion efficiency is a few percent lower but the total power, reliability, flexibility and price beat it.

If you're in the US and wanting to buy S7 from Bitmain, I can probably hook you up with undervolted units that run 85% hashrate at under 70% power versus stock units, with a power supply, for about the same price you can get just a new S7 shipped from Bitmain. This makes 'em more efficient than an S7-LN and can also be run on 120V.

I've read the post again.. Is the PSUs mentions DPS2000BB ?

Also, why would we need the breakout board in addition to the PSU?

I'm actually located in Southeast Asia, Thank you for the offer though  Wink



240V Ac in SEA Roll Eyes  malaysia? singapore? or brunai?

few months ago i tried to search for those used server DELL/IBM psu but the price +shipping is way too expensive Sad 

you better order Bitman PSU directly from https://shop.bitmain.com/productDetail.htm?pid=000201505040743496917U7kGsCm0694

usd140 + shipping usd30 total usd170 with 12 month warranty.



Location shall be kept a secret until one day we're ready to open up to hosting  Tongue

i agree with your calculations too. But im afraid that bitmain's PSU would breakdown easily, and from what i gather from forums, their warranty takes a loooong looooong time.
full member
Activity: 143
Merit: 100
It's advertising a server PSU and breakout board which is, overall, better than Bitmain's PSU. The conversion efficiency is a few percent lower but the total power, reliability, flexibility and price beat it.

If you're in the US and wanting to buy S7 from Bitmain, I can probably hook you up with undervolted units that run 85% hashrate at under 70% power versus stock units, with a power supply, for about the same price you can get just a new S7 shipped from Bitmain. This makes 'em more efficient than an S7-LN and can also be run on 120V.

I've read the post again.. Is the PSUs mentions DPS2000BB ?

Also, why would we need the breakout board in addition to the PSU?

I'm actually located in Southeast Asia, Thank you for the offer though  Wink



240V Ac in SEA Roll Eyes  malaysia? singapore? or brunai?

few months ago i tried to search for those used server DELL/IBM psu but the price +shipping is way too expensive Sad 

you better order Bitman PSU directly from https://shop.bitmain.com/productDetail.htm?pid=000201505040743496917U7kGsCm0694

usd140 + shipping usd30 total usd170 with 12 month warranty.

legendary
Activity: 3822
Merit: 2703
Evil beware: We have waffles!
What is a mating-cycle rating? Did a search on google for those terms and understood a little, but didnt get the last paragraph.
It is how many times a connector can be plugged and unplugged. Google gave this as top search, http://www.cirris.com/learning-center/product-articles/other-products/227-connector-life-cycles and it pretty much describes it in detail.

As for the effects of wear, as the metal plating wears off and/or the contacts begin to loosen contact resistance goes up. That leads to the connector pins heating up which starts to increases oxidation, which in turn increases resistance, etc. It's a vicious cycle.
hero member
Activity: 687
Merit: 511
I'll toss in my 2c - I never skimp on buying PSU's.  Of all the things you'll be buying when you're mining, PSU's are probably the only thing that will last your mining lifetime, and be the same value when you sell it as when you bought it (assuming we're talking server PSU's with breakouts).  There are several great breakouts - the ones I've used and really like are Optimizer's and Sidehacks (Gekkoscience), they're both on the top end in terms of quality and workmanship.  Oh, and don't skimp on power cables either - 16 AWG all the way and you'll never have any problems.
full member
Activity: 196
Merit: 100
I purchased a total of 15 S7LN from Bitmain and got three bad power supplies. I was able to fix one of them but 20% failure rate is not impressive. I could tell several of the working supplies had also been opened up and worked on before they ever got to me.

A good PSU breakout board is pretty much foolproof. A lot of them nowdays have the same power jacks as the miner will, so to mess up cabling is almost impossible. Just plug everything together (it'll only go one way), flip the switch and you're on.

Thanks for the update. I guess i'm glad that i didnt go with S7 - LN.

Hi.

I run in the UK at 230 volt.
I have never purchased a Bitmain PSU. I started using IBM Server Power Supplies a couple of years ago on my Spondoolises SP20's.
I carried these over to the S7's and the S9's.
Just two pins to solder together to get the PSU to run up and I use 1/4" Lucar Crimps to connect the wires onto the PSU.
I use two per miner, both rated at 1300W, they are DPS-1300 PSU's and have always been reliable for me.



I think that it is not economic if we were to use 2 PSU to 1 miner, unless you already have the PSU. is that right? For eg : 2 power supply rated 1000w = $200 each. 1 power supply rated 2000w = $300 each.

I purchased a total of 15 S7LN from Bitmain and got three bad power supplies. I was able to fix one of them but 20% failure rate is not impressive. I could tell several of the working supplies had also been opened up and worked on before they ever got to me.

A good PSU breakout board is pretty much foolproof. A lot of them nowdays have the same power jacks as the miner will, so to mess up cabling is almost impossible. Just plug everything together (it'll only go one way), flip the switch and you're on.
PCIe jacks on the breakouts may make things easy BUT I'll take your terminal strip and cables with spade lugs any day. Since the PCIe plugs/jacks are the weak point in the power chain, losing one set is great.

One thing that needs mentioning is that these connectors have a mating-cycle rating and most of the time it is surprisingly a low number: often just several 10's up to maybe few hundred at best.... Each time they are plugged/unplugged the connector gripping tension becomes weaker and plating is scraped off of the pins eventually leading to increasing contact resistance/heating/failure.

That sounds complicated. Can i ask what is the difference between PSU + breakout board and PSU from bitmain?

What is a mating-cycle rating? Did a search on google for those terms and understood a little, but didnt get the last paragraph.

Hi MineRonnie.

I buy ALL the power supplies from eBay, generally from computer recyclers.
I have never paid more than £15 for a Power Supply, normally around £12 to £14 each.
That makes a pair of power supplies max £30.00.

The IBM 1300W power supplies are very reliable and although I have one which is a little noisy on start up, they just run really reliable.
Just eBay search for IBM 1300W and you should recognise them.
If you look at my photo with the power strip at the bottom, solder bottom LH and the pin directly above it.
Power supply just runs straight up on power up.

Have fun!
newbie
Activity: 32
Merit: 0
I purchased a total of 15 S7LN from Bitmain and got three bad power supplies. I was able to fix one of them but 20% failure rate is not impressive. I could tell several of the working supplies had also been opened up and worked on before they ever got to me.

A good PSU breakout board is pretty much foolproof. A lot of them nowdays have the same power jacks as the miner will, so to mess up cabling is almost impossible. Just plug everything together (it'll only go one way), flip the switch and you're on.

Thanks for the update. I guess i'm glad that i didnt go with S7 - LN.

Hi.

I run in the UK at 230 volt.
I have never purchased a Bitmain PSU. I started using IBM Server Power Supplies a couple of years ago on my Spondoolises SP20's.
I carried these over to the S7's and the S9's.
Just two pins to solder together to get the PSU to run up and I use 1/4" Lucar Crimps to connect the wires onto the PSU.
I use two per miner, both rated at 1300W, they are DPS-1300 PSU's and have always been reliable for me.

https://ip.bitcointalk.org/?u=https%3A%2F%2Fi.imgur.com%2F3YfHs4w.jpg&t=566&c=Ck25dXn1-L2bWA

I think that it is not economic if we were to use 2 PSU to 1 miner, unless you already have the PSU. is that right? For eg : 2 power supply rated 1000w = $200 each. 1 power supply rated 2000w = $300 each.

I purchased a total of 15 S7LN from Bitmain and got three bad power supplies. I was able to fix one of them but 20% failure rate is not impressive. I could tell several of the working supplies had also been opened up and worked on before they ever got to me.

A good PSU breakout board is pretty much foolproof. A lot of them nowdays have the same power jacks as the miner will, so to mess up cabling is almost impossible. Just plug everything together (it'll only go one way), flip the switch and you're on.
PCIe jacks on the breakouts may make things easy BUT I'll take your terminal strip and cables with spade lugs any day. Since the PCIe plugs/jacks are the weak point in the power chain, losing one set is great.

One thing that needs mentioning is that these connectors have a mating-cycle rating and most of the time it is surprisingly a low number: often just several 10's up to maybe few hundred at best.... Each time they are plugged/unplugged the connector gripping tension becomes weaker and plating is scraped off of the pins eventually leading to increasing contact resistance/heating/failure.

That sounds complicated. Can i ask what is the difference between PSU + breakout board and PSU from bitmain?

What is a mating-cycle rating? Did a search on google for those terms and understood a little, but didnt get the last paragraph.
legendary
Activity: 3822
Merit: 2703
Evil beware: We have waffles!
I purchased a total of 15 S7LN from Bitmain and got three bad power supplies. I was able to fix one of them but 20% failure rate is not impressive. I could tell several of the working supplies had also been opened up and worked on before they ever got to me.

A good PSU breakout board is pretty much foolproof. A lot of them nowdays have the same power jacks as the miner will, so to mess up cabling is almost impossible. Just plug everything together (it'll only go one way), flip the switch and you're on.
PCIe jacks on the breakouts may make things easy BUT I'll take your terminal strip and cables with spade lugs any day. Since the PCIe plugs/jacks are the weak point in the power chain, losing one set is great.

One thing that needs mentioning is that these connectors have a mating-cycle rating and most of the time it is surprisingly a low number: often just several 10's up to maybe few hundred at best.... Each time they are plugged/unplugged the connector gripping tension becomes weaker and plating is scraped off of the pins eventually leading to increasing contact resistance/heating/failure.
full member
Activity: 196
Merit: 100
Hi.

I run in the UK at 230 volt.
I have never purchased a Bitmain PSU. I started using IBM Server Power Supplies a couple of years ago on my Spondoolises SP20's.
I carried these over to the S7's and the S9's.
Just two pins to solder together to get the PSU to run up and I use 1/4" Lucar Crimps to connect the wires onto the PSU.
I use two per miner, both rated at 1300W, they are DPS-1300 PSU's and have always been reliable for me.

legendary
Activity: 3374
Merit: 1859
Curmudgeonly hardware guy
I purchased a total of 15 S7LN from Bitmain and got three bad power supplies. I was able to fix one of them but 20% failure rate is not impressive. I could tell several of the working supplies had also been opened up and worked on before they ever got to me.

A good PSU breakout board is pretty much foolproof. A lot of them nowdays have the same power jacks as the miner will, so to mess up cabling is almost impossible. Just plug everything together (it'll only go one way), flip the switch and you're on.
newbie
Activity: 32
Merit: 0
Most of the PSU's I use in my farm are Bitmains, have 26 of them and with the oldest ones being almost 2 years old so far zero problems.

I also have used the IBM DPS-2000 w/ breakout boards (needed because the PSU has no wires coming out of it), also very good and yes a bit cheaper than Bitmain's PSU's but it does a take a bit of time and effort to get everything together (PSU, breakout, PCIe cables) whereas Bitmains are totally plug-and-play.

I am actually not very good in electronics, so i guess i will be going with bitmaintechs PSU. Im afraid that i might mess up on breakout boards  Cheesy

It's advertising a server PSU and breakout board which is, overall, better than Bitmain's PSU. The conversion efficiency is a few percent lower but the total power, reliability, flexibility and price beat it.

If you're in the US and wanting to buy S7 from Bitmain, I can probably hook you up with undervolted units that run 85% hashrate at under 70% power versus stock units, with a power supply, for about the same price you can get just a new S7 shipped from Bitmain. This makes 'em more efficient than an S7-LN and can also be run on 120V.

I've read the post again.. Is the PSUs mentions DPS2000BB ?

Also, why would we need the breakout board in addition to the PSU?

I'm actually located in Southeast Asia, Thank you for the offer though  Wink



Based on your location and parts availability you are best off with bitmaintech.

If you were USA based I would say go with the dps-2000 and set up that way.

But  your location means the bitmaintech psu is easier.

Sidehack's  modded s-7's and his power supply is also really good, but once again cross shipping  China to usa to asia is an issue.


Why do want s-7's do you have cheap power?

Thanks philipma, i will go with your recommendation!

And Yes, we actually have very cheap power. The USD/TH for s7 makes more sense to us as compared to s9. We decided to go for S7-LN as it came with power supply, but it went out of stock. Rang bitmain up yesterday and they told me to wait till next week for news if S7-LN will be coming again.

I realized that the power supply for s7-ln is only 1000w, and cant power s7/s9 and thus i decided to go for s7 instead.

Another thing, i'd like to thank you and NotFuzzyWarm as i have learnt alot in the forums from you guys!

The S7-LN seem to come in and go out of stock on BitMain, they might be back.  Did you check the Hardward for sale here, I saw yesterday sidehack had a modded S7-LN for sale.

He's also got  a few modded S7's for sale.  Better than ordering directly from BitMain.  https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/fs-undervolted-s7s-37-4th-870-1050w-024jgh-with-psus-1556664

Bitmain told me over the phone to wait for news on S7-LN next week. They might come up with a new batch. But i have heard from some users that they are clearing the old power suppliers from S2, so they came up with S7-LN. we shall see next week if they will come up with a new batch
sr. member
Activity: 338
Merit: 250
The S7-LN seem to come in and go out of stock on BitMain, they might be back.  Did you check the Hardward for sale here, I saw yesterday sidehack had a modded S7-LN for sale.

He's also got  a few modded S7's for sale.  Better than ordering directly from BitMain.  https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/fs-undervolted-s7s-37-4th-870-1050w-024jgh-with-psus-1556664
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