PSUs above 1300w

[sotiris.bos]

I am working on a litecoin mining rig and I am going to need a not extremely expensive way of providing my system with 1300-2000 watts almost all to GPUs. Should I buy a huge PSU and if yes, which one? Should I maybe use 2 smaller PSUs to power everything (is it safe and how can I do it)?

 

[SeekaX]

there is no PSU that can deliver ~2000W, better off with two HX1050 or smth similar

 

[dalewakelin]

Evga and rosewill do 1500w psu's, how many cards are you powering? Im guessing 4x7990s?

 

[sotiris.bos]

Evga and rosewill do 1500w psu's, how many cards are you powering? Im guessing 4x7990s?

I haven't gathered the hardware yet. I am going to start off with at least 2x 290s and work my way up. As I see it I will have 4 in it in the first month and maybe 5-6 a month after that if the PSU I get is powerful enough. You can only use 4x 7990s with Linux, right? I will be using windows 8.1, overclocking and undervolting.

 

[Josh Weston]

ASIC miners are being developed for Litecoin, no? Would they not be a more viable option?

 

[sotiris.bos]

ASIC miners are being developed for Litecoin, no? Would they not be a more viable option?

A single FPGA is being developed but each chip will have 500Kh/s hashrate (multiple chips in it) while an r9 290 has 900Kh/s. I also expect it to be quite expensive and reports say that GPU mining will still be more efficient than this model.

 

[Feronix]

Erhm... well, I would personally not do this but if it's really what you want; Enermax do some 1500 Watt models:

http://www.enermax.com/home.php?fn=eng/product_a1_1_1&lv0=1&lv1=52&no=191

http://www.enermax.com/home.php?fn=eng/product_a1_1_1&lv0=1&lv1=43&no=159

 

[Josh Weston]

A single FPGA is being developed but each chip will have 500Kh/s hashrate (multiple chips in it) while an r9 290 has 900Kh/s. I also expect it to be quite expensive and reports say that GPU mining will still be more efficient than this model.

Ah, well, my mistake then. I assumed that the custom-built stuff would be the best option.
If you ever get tired of mining, the Folding team would love to see what those cards would chuck out

Best of luck with your endeavors.

 

[sotiris.bos]

Erhm... well, I would personally not do this but if it's really what you want; Enermax do some 1500 Watt models:

Why not?

 

[Feronix]

Why not?

I meant the whole litecoin mining, dude. It's a lot of money to invest in components and the electricity bill.

But as I said, that's just ny opinion, and if you want to do it; go for it!

 

[WillSK]

I meant the whole litecoin mining, dude. It's a lot of money to invest in components and the electricity bill.

But as I said, that's just ny opinion, and if you want to do it; go for it!

Basically what I think Feronix is saying is that unless we see some ridiculous jump in value like the early bitcoin miners got, you will arguably be spending more on electricity than you will get back in currency. 2 steps forward and 4 steps back if you will.

 

[Feronix]

Basically what I think Feronix is saying is that unless we see some ridiculous jump in value like the early bitcoin miners got, you will arguably be spending more on electricity than you will get back in currency. 2 steps forward and 4 steps back if you will.

Spot on
And the expensive components, which will give little to no benefit for any use other than mining, of course. Unless he decides to fold with it, like Josh mentioned

 

[sotiris.bos]

Basically what I think Feronix is saying is that unless we see some ridiculous jump in value like the early bitcoin miners got, you will arguably be spending more on electricity than you will get back in currency. 2 steps forward and 4 steps back if you will.

At a maximum kwh price of 0,10252 euros per kwh I don't see how it is not profitable even with today's value...
Caclulation below includes 4 290s with exaggerated power consumtion of the system.

https://www.litecoinpool.org/calc?hashrate=2700&difficulty=1964.83427079&power=1600&energycost=0.10252&currency=EUR

 

[NeverBackDown]

Might want to consider watercooling if you are going to use 4 290s. Serious amount of noise and the heat builds up quickly when all the cards are that close together.

 

[alpenwasser]

Koolance used to make a 1.7 kW unit (as long as you have it running on 230 V ). I actually have
one of those (not using it though for the time being). They're hard to find and very pricey though,
probably not the best option.

 

[sotiris.bos]

Might want to consider watercooling if you are going to use 4 290s. Serious amount of noise and the heat builds up quickly when all the cards are that close together.

Of course I am considering it. I am waiting for more and cheaper waterblocks to come out. I am torn about getting 2 cards at first and watercooling them or getting 3 cards and placing the rig in a non heated room with all the windows open at a 10 degree or less celcius ambient for the winter. Does anyone know how much radiator real estate do I need for 2,3 and 4 cards respectively? (only the GPUs in the loop)

 

[ahimoth]

240mm per card 2x480mm radiators will do it. 60mm or 80mm in push or pull or push/pull

 

[NeverBackDown]

for 4 290s I would say a minimum of a 480mmx60mm thick rad should do it. With a CPU might want to consider another 240mmx60mm rad. 2 360mmx60mm rads will also equal the same amount of space.

 

[sotiris.bos]

Why 60 mm thickness?

 

[ahimoth]

Why 60 mm thickness?

It's a price/performance sweet spot. The thicker the radiator the more heat can be dissipated. I recommend Alphacool radiators, I think they're priced nicely and deliver great performance. They come in 30,45,60 and 80mm thickness.

To answer you power supply question:

Antec has a 1300W PSU and Silverstone has a 1500W PSU. They all have PSU's 1000 and above.