How to make a farm for Ethereum mining – assembly

Ethereum Mining Farm is a high-powered equipment used to mine ETH. Today, miners have two options (including self-assembly) – creating a farm on video cards or using more efficient equipment (ASIC miners). Below we will consider the features of each of the options, the potential costs, as well as the payback.

How to make a farm for mining Ethereum on video cards

Despite the growing complexity of mining virtual coins (3.05 РХ / s) and a relatively small block reward (3 ETH), network members actively mine Ethereum using video cards. Immediately, we note that this method bears high costs, and the payback period is long. In the situation with Bitcoin, a similar situation has developed. As of November 2021, BTC mining is relevant only with the use of ASICs and cloud services, and the other options have lost their meaning.

If, nevertheless, the option with a GPU is chosen, in order to increase efficiency, you need to mine the ETH cryptocurrency on several video cards – from 6-8 or more. As far as the GPU manufacturer is concerned, there is no fundamental difference between AMD or Nvidia. Finding a motherboard that can work with 6-8 GPUs is not difficult, and the cost of video cards has dropped significantly lately. Let’s talk about how to make a farm for mining Ethereum on a GPU, what equipment is needed, and how much such activity will bring an Ethereum miner per month.

Component parts

To construct a mining farm on a GPU, you need:

• Video card. This is the most important and costly element. When buying, you need to focus on hashrate and cost. Optimal products are GeForce GTX 1080Ti (33 to 37 MH / s) and Radeon RX Vega 64 (37–46 MH / s). The cost of both video cards is approximately the same and will cost about $ 800-850. If we consider that there will be 8 such “levels”, the total expenses increase to 6.4-6.8 thousand dollars. You can choose a more budgetary option, for example, Geforce GTX 1070 ($ 500) or GeForce GTX 1060 ($ 380), but then the hash rate will be lower (about 24-30 MH / sec).

• Frame. When assembling a farm for Ethereum mining, you need to provide a structure on which all the necessary equipment will be installed. We choose one of two ways – to assemble the structure on our own or purchase a finished product. The second option is more preferable, especially since the price of the product is 15–25 dollars, no more. You can find the option you need on the online message boards. As a last resort, you can assemble the structure with your own hands (we will consider how to do this below).

• Motherboard. Assembling a farm for Ethereum mining requires a “motherboard” with the appropriate number of connectors. The best options are ASRock H110 Pro BTC +, ASUS B250 MINING EXPERT. Both boards will cost around $ 130. ASUS PRIME Z270P can be used. Its price is about $ 120.

• CPU. There are no special requirements for this element. You can buy a CPU in the mid-range, for example, the AMD Ryzen 3 2200G, which will cost $ 110-120. The main thing is that the processor is immediately supplied with a cooler. In this case, overheating can be avoided during long-term operation of the device. We note right away that the type of processor does not affect the efficiency of mining. The main thing is compatibility with the rest of the equipment.

• HDD. The instructions for building an Ethereum mining rig generally recommend using an SSD. HDD format drives are gradually becoming a thing of the past and are not suitable for mining ETH. This is the component that it is better not to save on (it will be more expensive in the future). Of the options, you can use TRANSCEND TS240GSSD220S 240GB, 2.5, SATA III (it will cost about $ 60). If you do not save, a drive with a margin will do, for example, the Kingston SSDNow A400 480 GB. Here costs are about $ 90. However, remember that when using a “heavy” wallet on a PC, you will have to install additional memory or use a light wallet. This is due to the fact that the size of the Ether blockchain is 667.1 GB (as of September 15, 2018).

• RAM. There are no strict requirements here, but it is necessary that the “RAM” be of the same type as the connector on your “motherboard”. Optimal solution Kingston 8 GB DDR4 2400 MHz HyperX Fury Black (HX424C15FB2 / 8). The price of the device is about $ 90-100. This manufacturer has shown itself to be on the good side and, in the opinion of the miners, the option is quite worthy. However, PATRIOT PSD44G240082 DDR4 (4GB 2400, DIMM, Ret) can also be used. The price of this “RAM” is about $ 40.

• Power Supply. In the matter of power supply, it is better not to experiment. It is recommended to take goods from a trusted manufacturer and preferably three at once (or 2, at least – Corsair CX750M. The cost of the device is about $ 105, but taking into account the fact that there will be three power supplies, the costs increase to almost $ 350.

Profitability and return on investment

Knowing how to set up a mining farm for Ethereum can help you get the job done from home without having to resort to outside help. But first, it is important to calculate the profitability of such an event. Below are the calculations for one Bitmain Antminer E3 asic miner as of November 15, 2021.

Excluding electricity, the Antminer E3 ASIC miner brings in about $ 100-109 per month. This means that the full payback occurs on average in a year. If you use two or more ASICs, the amount of profit will be higher, but electricity costs, as well as initial costs, will also increase. In addition, before creating a farm, you need to take into account a number of factors – forecasts for changes in the exchange rate and complexity.

Verdict

Summing up, it can be seen that the creation of a farm for ASIC miners has more prospects. Such equipment is characterized by high performance, and the cost of purchasing it is lower than creating a farm for mining Ethereum on a GPU. This is why more and more network participants are switching to ASICs. This approach, in turn, leads to an increase in the complexity of the network, which is why the use of GPUs for mining ETH is no longer relevant. A similar situation has already happened with Bitcoin.