Best configuration of FPGA/ASIC Miner using BFL 50 GH/s Single ASIC

dtt

Hi there, Fab. I've been using MacMiner for a couple days now. Thanks for making this package available to all of us. My question is about the best Miner Settings for a BFL 50GH/s Single ASIC setup, or perhaps questions about the various options.

-I have "Enable debug output" checked -- where do I see this output? Does it have anything to do with the API Output window?

-Since I don't want to enable the GPU on my iMac, I don't have "Enable GPU" checked.

-Should I enable Quiet Output, or is that unnecessary since I'm running off the BFL ASIC?

Is there a way for me to see how many cores are functioning on my BFL ASIC? The light on my BFL ASIC is blinking, which leads me to believe that it's throttling down. Butterfly Labs' support has been horrendous, and I have no idea if the blinking is really due to throttling or something completely normal. I just want to see how many cores are active and their speed, but I don't know if that's possible through MacMiner.

Strangely enough, I was getting 50GH/s while using the de facto BFL PSU. However, I decided to NOT use the BFL PSU due to problems I've read about (namely, reports of catching fire, and the noise level). I switched to a 700W PSU with 2 PCI-E 6-pin connectors. The noise level has come down quite a bit off the PSU, but the speed dropped down to 43GH/s, which is quite a drop. Not sure if I can attribute that to the PSU, or if something else is amiss, leading back to my question about checking the cores and their speeds.

Thanks for all your help. I'm not expecting you to answer questions about the BFL ASIC, of course, but thought I'd mention it just to give context to my questions.

Dan

FabulousPanda

Thanks Dan, extra info is always helpful! debug/quiet output applies to the logs that show up under the main part of the miner window. Quiet output is best unless you're looking for problems.

the text in the bottom pane of API Output might help you with how many cores are enabled - if it's any consolation my blinking LED BFL unit is the one with the least HW errors…

Is your PSU Gold/Platinum rated? I use the stock PSU for it personally… can you link me to a catching fire story please?

dtt

Hi, Panda. FWIW, here's a link on BFL's own forums:

https://forums.butterflylabs.com/bfl-forum-miscellaneous/5295-throw-away-your-bfl-single-power-supply-hazardous.html

BFL has made no announcement in the thread to allay any fears, so I'm not taking chances. Unfortunately, the PSU I'm using is *not* gold/plat certified, however, it's only a temporary PSU until my gold certified Corsair RM Series 650W PSU arrives.

I'm curious -- what are your HW errors among your BFLs, particularly the one with the blinking LED?

Not sure if I'm seeing where the number of cores is showing in the API Output window. Here's a dump of what my API Output screen shows:

Reply was 'STATUS=S,When=1387244436,Code=9,Msg=0 GPU(s) - 1 PGA(s) - 0 CPU(s),Description=bfgminer 3.8.1|PGA=0,Name=BFL,ID=0,Enabled=Y,Status=Alive,Temperature=58.00,Device Elapsed=486,MHS av=40602.348,MHS 5s=44122.898,Accepted=186,Rejected=0,Hardware Errors=13,Utility=23.134,Stale=0,Last Share Pool=0,Last Share Time=1387244435,Total MH=19718194.8513,Diff1 Work=4517,Work Utility=558.066,Difficulty Accepted=4094.06247044,Difficulty Rejected=0.00000000,Difficulty Stale=0.00000000,Last Share Difficulty=29.00044251,Last Valid Work=1387244436,Device Hardware%=0.2870,Device Rejected%=0.0000|'

[STATUS] =>

(

   [STATUS] => S

   [When] => 1387244436

   [Code] => 9

   [Msg] => 0 GPU(s) - 1 PGA(s) - 0 CPU(s)

   [Description] => bfgminer 3.8.1

)

[PGA0] =>

(

   [PGA] => 0

   [Name] => BFL

   [ID] => 0

   [Enabled] => Y

   [Status] => Alive

   [Temperature] => 58.00

   [Device Elapsed] => 486

   [MHS av] => 40602.348

   [MHS 5s] => 44122.898

   [Accepted] => 186

   [Rejected] => 0

   [Hardware Errors] => 13

   [Utility] => 23.134

   [Stale] => 0

   [Last Share Pool] => 0

   [Last Share Time] => 1387244435

   [Total MH] => 19718194.8513

   [Diff1 Work] => 4517

   [Work Utility] => 558.066

   [Difficulty Accepted] => 4094.06247044

   [Difficulty Rejected] => 0.00000000

   [Difficulty Stale] => 0.00000000

   [Last Share Difficulty] => 29.00044251

   [Last Valid Work] => 1387244436

   [Device Hardware%] => 0.2870

   [Device Rejected%] => 0.0000

)

FabulousPanda

Sorry, I was speculating without checking. If you put debug output on though, you'll see something like this in FPGA/ASIC Miner window:

 [2013-12-17 02:07:45]   THEORETICAL MAX: 29636 MH/s

 [2013-12-17 02:07:45]   ENGINES: 126

 [2013-12-17 02:07:45]   FREQUENCY: 274 MHz

 [2013-12-17 02:07:45]   CRITICAL TEMPERATURE: 0

 [2013-12-17 02:07:45]   TOTAL THERMAL CYCLES: 0

 [2013-12-17 02:07:45]   XLINK MODE: MASTER

 [2013-12-17 02:07:45]   XLINK PRESENT: NO

 [2013-12-17 02:07:45]   DEVICE: BitFORCE SC

 [2013-12-17 02:07:45]   FIRMWARE: 1.2.9

 [2013-12-17 02:07:45]   IAR Executed: NO

 [2013-12-17 02:07:45]   CHIP PARALLELIZATION: YES @ 16

 [2013-12-17 02:07:45]   QUEUE DEPTH:40

 [2013-12-17 02:07:45]   PROCESSOR 0: 16 engines @ 249 MHz -- MAP: FFFF

 [2013-12-17 02:07:45]   PROCESSOR 1: 16 engines @ 244 MHz -- MAP: FFFF

 [2013-12-17 02:07:45]   PROCESSOR 2: 15 engines @ 255 MHz -- MAP: DFFF

 [2013-12-17 02:07:45]   PROCESSOR 3: 16 engines @ 249 MHz -- MAP: FFFF

 [2013-12-17 02:07:45]   PROCESSOR 4: 16 engines @ 247 MHz -- MAP: FFFF

 [2013-12-17 02:07:45]   PROCESSOR 5: 16 engines @ 242 MHz -- MAP: FFFF

 [2013-12-17 02:07:45]   PROCESSOR 6: 16 engines @ 239 MHz -- MAP: FFFF

 [2013-12-17 02:07:45]   PROCESSOR 7: 16 engines @ 247 MHz -- MAP: FFFF

 [2013-12-17 02:07:45]   PROCESSOR 8: 15 engines @ 246 MHz -- MAP: FFFE

 [2013-12-17 02:07:45]   PROCESSOR 9: 15 engines @ 238 MHz -- MAP: FFFE

 [2013-12-17 02:07:45]   PROCESSOR 10: 15 engines @ 248 MHz -- MAP: FFFE

 [2013-12-17 02:07:45]   PROCESSOR 11: 15 engines @ 231 MHz -- MAP: FFFE

 [2013-12-17 02:07:45]   PROCESSOR 12: 15 engines @ 240 MHz -- MAP: FFFE

 [2013-12-17 02:07:45]   PROCESSOR 13: 15 engines @ 240 MHz -- MAP: FFFE

 [2013-12-17 02:07:45]   PROCESSOR 14: 15 engines @ 240 MHz -- MAP: FFFE

 [2013-12-17 02:07:45]   PROCESSOR 15: 15 engines @ 248 MHz -- MAP: FFFE

 [2013-12-17 02:07:45]   THEORETICAL MAX: 60262 MH/s

 [2013-12-17 02:07:45]   ENGINES: 247

 [2013-12-17 02:07:45]   FREQUENCY: 274 MHz

 [2013-12-17 02:07:45]   CRITICAL TEMPERATURE: 0

 [2013-12-17 02:07:45]   TOTAL THERMAL CYCLES: 0

 [2013-12-17 02:07:45]   XLINK MODE: MASTER

 [2013-12-17 02:07:45]   XLINK PRESENT: NO

 [2013-12-17 02:07:45]   DEVICE: BitFORCE SC

 [2013-12-17 02:07:45]   FIRMWARE: 1.0.0

 [2013-12-17 02:07:45]   MINIG SPEED: 7.18 GH/s

 [2013-12-17 02:07:45]   PROCESSOR 3: 15 engines @ 241 MHz

 [2013-12-17 02:07:45]   PROCESSOR 7: 13 engines @ 280 MHz

 [2013-12-17 02:07:45]   ENGINES: 28

 [2013-12-17 02:07:45]   FREQUENCY: 266 MHz

 [2013-12-17 02:07:45]   XLINK MODE: MASTER

 [2013-12-17 02:07:45]   CRITICAL TEMPERATURE: 0

 [2013-12-17 02:07:45]   XLINK PRESENT: NO

You'll probably want to increase your log length in preferences before you do that ^^

Thanks for the link, needless to say I'll be switching over to a PSU right away! Luckily I have one with some spare capacity sitting right next to them.

My HW errors are as seen in the API Output window here:

http://fabulouspanda.co.uk/macminer/screenshots/

PGA 1-3 are BFL - but both single and LS actually blink

dtt

Hi, Panda. So I got my PSU and just wanted to report that the speed is back to almost 50GH/s. FWIW, it's a Corsair RM650 that I got for $110 on Amazon. I'm a happy camper now. The miner is working at the claimed speed, and I got a much safer (and significantly quieter!) PSU driving it.

FabulousPanda

That's much better, it's always worth going the extra mile for a well rated PSU! Did you take the case off your single? Those grills make the units sound horrible! 

dtt

Yeah, I took the case off completely and turned the fans situated above the heatsinks to blow air -down- into the heatsinks instead of up and away (the default position).  And taking the case off reduced the sound tremendously. With the case on, the sound was unbearably loud, and I was *not* a happy camper. But I scoured the inter-web and came across the case removal trick. Now I'm much happier. The only downside is that the internals are exposed, so I'll have to make sure there are no dust bunnies collecting, but given that it's sitting in a climate controlled room, 24/7, I don't think it'll be much of a problem.

darquer

I also took the case off completely because I couldn't deal with the noise. I am using the case as a stand. I have a couple of USB fans aiding the cpu fans and I am running the BFL 50 Gh/s and an AntMiner 180 Gh/s off a single Corsair 650. The temp on the BFL is 68F.

I did order some replacement fans and will post back depending on the performance. If I rebuild it with the new fans and it makes it bearable while in the case, I will post the details of the parts, etc.