Topic: Which USB hub to use with Block Erupters | NanoFury NF1 | BPMC Red Fury | Ant U1 - page 9. (Read 128592 times)

49 port hubs would be nice in a massive erupter farm.

My experiences with usb hubs and power supplies for us 'regular mortals', makes me think,  "to many eggs in a basket"

A failure on one of these hubs means 49 devices offline for, "how long" to replace or repair?

It looks like a 49-port Cambrionix (that's already in the beware list) in a different packaging.

Thank you fractalbc, good info.  How long did it take to get the 5/5 from CHINA?

I started with a http://www.ebay.com/itm/5V-4A-AC-to-DC-Adapter-GT-4201DA-05-5-5mm-OD-2-5-ID-10mm-Barrel-length-Mobility-/190872018045?pt=Laptop_Adapters_Chargers&hash=item2c70dbdc7d with a 5.5x2.5 to 5.5x2.1 plug adapter and a dlink dhub7.  7 ports mining with room to spare.

I then upgraded to a http://www.ebay.com/itm/New-Genuine-EADP-25NB-C-Power-Supply-AC-adapter-5V-5A-5000mA-for-Delta-/390584483726?pt=US_Enterprise_Router_Power_Supplies&hash=item5af0a63f8e plus a cheap chinese 10 port hub using only 9 of them.  That delta would stay cooler than the 4 amp supply running 7 erupters on the dlink.

I now have the parts to make molex to barrel plug cables for when I have time to solder them up to switch to an 80+ rated supply with better efficiency.

edit: added need for plug adapter with the 4 amp power supply.

Thanks for the response Nemo.

I studied your setup some time back and may go that route in the future.  Also, good to know about the Rosewill/D-Link Adapter interchangeability.  What I was wanting to do for my current(no pun) requirement was to buy some of the slightly more robust/powerful power adapters with barrel plugs to replace what seems to be failed OEM supplied ones.  I have read the thread and have noted the recommended ones but I have not seen/read any posts detailing specific experience with my contemplated plan with my specific hubs.  Perhaps that information is in here but I missed it?

Have read of hubs being disassembled but not how best to disassemble them.  I hope someone will comment on that because I believe many here could benefit from that information.  I know I would.

Again thanks for the reply and for creating this extremely useful thread.

Asicminer is releasing a 49 port hub btw, could be handy:   https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=99497.14440

@OldDutchman777: I know for sure that Rosewill and D-Link wall adapters are interchangeable. Tried that myself. Other than that, I don't use wall adapters any more. All cables have been spliced onto Molex and gobbling power from ATX/AT PSUs. (see my earlier posts)

@lanelander: The hubs/BEs can be really choosy where you connect them. A few examples from my experiments:
- D-Link connected to USB 3.0 port on one PC will have every second BE recognised.
- D-Link connected to USB 2.0 port on the same PC as above ad all7 BEs recognised
- A single BE connected to the USB 3.0 port on the above PC was recognised.

- D-Link connected to USB 3.0 port on another PC had all 7 BEs recognised.

- 1 BE connected to a USB 3.0 port on a laptop was not recognised
- 1 BE on USB 2.0 port on the same PC was recognised.

- 10 D-Link hubs connected through 1 Rosewill muster hub work like a charm.

You might want to go through the clean-up procedure that I described here:
https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/windows-many-usb-hubs-and-besfuries-clean-up-in-your-devices-manager-300638

Make sure that you don't have gaps between COM port numbers in the UART to COM port bridges: Bfgminer can misbehave if you have large gaps.

Two Questions:

1. What is the best way to open up hubs and power bricks-specific hubs/bricks of interest below.

2. What specific experience, specific recommendations for replacement power bricks for hubs below.

GEARMO 10 Port

ANKER 9+1

AITECH 10 Port

ROSEWILL 10 Port

Really hoping for input from those that have actually opened these specific hubs and bricks in a way that does not cause damage, limits damage.

For input on replacement power bricks again hoping for responses from those that have replaced power bricks on these specific hubs. 

Really appreciate any help on this issue-TIA

As I stated in my post above, I couldn't get my BE array with MCM-type hubs to work with my gaming/HTPC rigs which have decent specs but works just fine with my lowly old Gateway netbook.  The rigs have W7 64-bit and the netbook runs on the 32-bit version.  Perhaps, this made the difference.  I dunno.  Anyway, the following is my "ritual" to get it running on my netbook:

1.  Without power, plug all the BEs into the hubs but do not connect the 1st level host hub to the host computer yet.

2.  Power the hubs all at once and let all the BEs initialize (the LEDs blink around four or five times and then become solid).

3.  Connect the 1st level host hub to the host computer's USB 2.0 port and let the OS install the driver.  In my case, I get the familiar task bar animation and the message ballon that says "Installing drivers for your device" (or something like that) and beeps as it installs the driver for each hub and each BE.  When done, another message ballon appears that indicates the driver was successfully installed and that the devices are ready.  This can then be verified via "Devices and Printers" on the Windows Start menu.  If everything installed without a hitch, you should see the total number of Silicon Labs devices matching the total number of BEs.  Otherwise, the final message ballon off the task bar would say "Driver installation was unsuccessful" (or something like that).

4.  Start your mining software.

5.  Good luck!

Edit:  BTW, I cut off the +5V VBUS wire (red) in the USB cable that connects the 1st level host hub to the host computer to protect its USB controller circuitry.  Better safe than sorry.

Interesting.  The hubs shown on the image in my post that you originally quoted are all exactly the same MCM hubs that you have and all BEs on them were hashing.  Anyway, I'm glad that you're now up and running.

The BEs are temperamental and picky SOBs.  I have a few gaming/HTPC rigs with fairly decent components (Intel 4670K Haswell/Z87 Mini-ITX, AMD FX-8120/FX990, Intel i7-950/X58 and Intel C2D E6600/G41 Micro ATX) yet I couldn't get my array of 70 BEs to work with any of them...but a lowly, old Gateway netbook has done it (and then some) with nary a complaint.  Go figure.

If it comes from China, test it before you use it, some are excellent manufacturers, providing good quality at a good price,
but some are complete rip-offs, they will print anything on a label to make a sale, supplying dangerous crap.

I figured it out. It is the power supplies that come with them. While they have 5v 3.5a printed on them, they are not. I used a 5v 3a from a different hub and the mcm hub ran 6 easily. I tried them on windows 7 and 8.1, connecting them straight to my pc, connecting them through a d link hub, plugged in one hub at a time, , basically every way possible. Once I switched power supplies they ran with no problems.

If theses not listed here in list I would like to add to list

Orico P10-U3 10 Port USB 3.0 Hub via Chipset VL812 & 12V 4A Power Adapter Black

Work perfectly fine 100% no problems with all 10 ports used. Currently using for my 30 usb sticks and have a nice asic Christmas Tree lights disco lol.

If anyone is looking to get these cheaper than the retail price of around £40 to £36.00 feel free to contact me as I can get them at a reduced  price


ebay listing. http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Orico-P10-U3-10-Port-USB-3-0-Hub-via-Chipset-VL812-12V-4A-Power-Adapter-Black-/290992374479?pt=UK_Computing_USB_Cables&hash=item43c07f42cf

I bought 4 off the guy and hes a pretty sound guy to deal with. However I got a nice discount for collecting them. Well worth the drive down to them

They're all over the Bay.  Search keyword: "swivel rotate flexible twist usb adapter".  I can't recommend them though.  They barely hold a USB device's angled position and tends to droop towards the direction of gravity which is downwards.  They're also very cheaply made; they tend to come apart at the seams.  It's a great idea.  I just wish they were more solidly built.

It would probably help us assess your situation if you post the details such as:

1. host machine
2. OS version
3. miner software
3. usb hub used as host of the miner hubs
4. decription of your current BE initialization procedure/steps/ritual
5. anything else that may be pertinent

The D-link hub should have enough space for 4 BlueFury's using ports 1,3,5 & 7
But it should have enough power for 5 devices, then I will use ports 2,4 & 6 normally and ports 1 & 7 with extenders.

I bought 2 similar hubs from hong kong, psu was 5v 1.5a, and failed to power anything.

Do not buy the 7 port hubs from MCM Electronics! I bought 6 and could only power 3 erupters on each. The psu they came with says 5v 3.5a right on it, that can not be true. I used a 5v 3a psu, from a dlink hub,  with the mcm hubs and it ran 6 with no problems. I feel scammed....p

I have a feeling that all the ports on that hub will need extenders

I'm looking to try to fit 5 BlueFury's to a D-link 7 port hub.

Ports 1 & 7 need an extender, then 2,4 & 6 will work as normal.