Fun

Compass Mining Alerts Bitcoin Miners of Changes in Bitmain’s ASIC Design

News Feed - 2023-03-08 03:03:36

Compass Mining Alerts Bitcoin Miners of Changes in Bitmain"s ASIC Design


Compass Mining, a bitcoin mining firm, published a blog post stating that Bitmain, the company behind the application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) mining rig, has made changes to its design. The post advised miners to be aware of the changes as Compass Mining identified “three issues” with two different Antminer S19 series mining devices. Bitcoin Miner Compass Mining Identifies 3 Issues with Antminer S19 Series


Compass Mining, a bitcoin mining company, posted a blog post titled “Bitmain Changed Its ASIC Design. Miners Need to Be Ready,” highlighting changes in Bitmain’s ASIC design. Compass believes bitcoin mining facility operators should be aware of the changes, which could cause issues. For example, the firm identified three problems with the Antminer S19, producing 90 terahash per second (TH/s), and the S19 XP, offering 140 TH/s.


William Foxley of Compass Mining explains that the new machines lack a peripheral interface controller (PIC) on the ASICs, making it harder to control individual hashboards compared to those with a PIC. The devices use aluminum plating on the side of the mining rig, which Foxley believes may contribute to overheating issues. Additionally, there is a “consolidation of all components onto one side of the board, causing an increased chance of hashboard errors.” An Antminer S19 XP without the peripheral interface controller. Photo credit: Compass Mining.


Foxley explains that without a PIC, units cannot underhash on “one or two boards,” and hashboards made with aluminum plates may fail more frequently in hot climates like Texas than those made with printed circuit boards (PCBs). Additionally, Compass Mining believes non-Bitmain repair shops may face difficulty replacing damaged chips. The operations team discovered these issues within the last six months, and they “significantly affect a unit’s performance.”


In conclusion, Foxley notes in the blog post that third-party firmware could address the PIC issue and enable a miner to run on one or two boards. Third-party firmware can also lower specific variables to keep the ASIC mining rig cooler. The post suggests selecting the best environmental conditions as another solution. However, regarding the aluminum plating, Compass Mining views it as a net negative.


“We view the design decision to swap to aluminum-plating on hashboards as a net negative–one that will increase ASIC failure and underhashing while increasing service and maintenance costs,” Compass’s blog post concludes. “Paired with the lack of a PIC and increased difficulty of swapping out bad chips, we encourage miners to double down on their repair game as they onboard next generation units into their fleets.” Tags in this story aluminum plating, Antminer S19, Antminer Series, ASIC design, ASIC failure, Bitcoin mining, Bitmain, Bitmain rigs, Blockchain, BTC Mining, Compass Mining, Cryptocurrency, Digital Assets, environmental conditions, fleets, hashboard errors, Hashboards, hot climates, miner, Mining BTC, Mining Devices, Mining Industry, mining operators, net negative, next-generation units, overheating issues, PCBs, peripheral interface controller, PIC, printed circuit boards, repair game, service and maintenance costs, Texas, third-party firmware, underhashing


What do you think of Bitmain’s decision to change its ASIC design? Share your thoughts in the comments section below. Jamie Redman


Jamie Redman is the News Lead at Bitcoin.com News and a financial tech journalist living in Florida. Redman has been an active member of the cryptocurrency community since 2011. He has a passion for Bitcoin, open-source code, and decentralized applications. Since September 2015, Redman has written more than 6,000 articles for Bitcoin.com News about the disruptive protocols emerging today. Terawulf Energizes First Nuclear-Powered Bitcoin Mining Facility in the US, Plans to Expand Operations MINING | 1 day ago While Bitcoin"s Hashrate Remains Sky-High, Merge-Mined Crypto Asset Networks Benefit MINING | 2 days ago


Image Credits: Shutterstock, Pixabay, Wiki Commons, Compass Mining Previous articleRussian Crypto Industry Association Asks Putin to Help With Regulations Next articleMetacade Token Sale Advances to Stage 6 with $9․3m Sold and Only 2 Stages Left Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only. It is not a direct offer or solicitation of an offer to buy or sell, or a recommendation or endorsement of any products, services, or companies. Bitcoin.com does not provide investment, tax, legal, or accounting advice. Neither the company nor the author is responsible, directly or indirectly, for any damage or loss caused or alleged to be caused by or in connection with the use of or reliance on any content, goods or services mentioned in this article. Read disclaimerShow comments More Popular NewsIn Case You Missed ItTony Hawk"s Latest NFTs to Come With Signed Physical Skateboards


Last December, the renowned professional skateboarder Tony Hawk released his “Last Trick” non-fungible token (NFT) collection via the NFT marketplace Autograph. Next week, Hawk will be auctioning the skateboards he used during his last tricks, and each of the NFTs ... read more.SEC Risks Violating Admin Procedure Act by Rejecting Spot Bitcoin ETFs, Says Grayscale Survey: Adoption in Argentina Grows, With 12 out of 100 Adults Having Invested in Crypto Microbt Reveals Latest Bitcoin Mining Rigs — Machines Produce up to 126 TH/s With Custom 5nm Chip Design Ethereum Foundation"s Financial Report Discloses It Holds $1.6 Billion in Assets, 80.5% Held in Ether

News Feed

Tom Blackstone4 hours agoAragon Association to dissolve, will disburse $155M in assets to tokenholdersThe governing body for the aragonOS DAO-creation tool will wind down, transferring its assets to tokenholders.3716 Tot
Spending $276M in Ether — Colossal Ethereum Whale That Participated in the Genesis ICO Transfers 145,000 ETH
Spending $276M in Ether — Colossal Ethereum Whale That Participated in the Genesis ICO Transfers 145,000 ETH After three years of dormancy, a massive ethereum whale that particip
How low can BTC price go? Bitcoin analysis points to $45K
William Suberg10 hours agoHow low can BTC price go? Bitcoin analysis points to $45KBitcoin would still preserve its bull market even if the current BTC price retracement approaches -40%.10732 Total views19 Total sharesLi
Strong US Dollar Posts 5-Week High, Markets Price in a 75 bps Fed Rate Hike for June
Strong US Dollar Posts 5-Week High, Markets Price in a 75 bps Fed Rate Hike for June While precious metals, stocks, and cryptocurrencies saw a significant downturn this week, the U
How DePIN is poised to disrupt the cloud computing industry: Report
Cointelegraph Research5 hours agoHow DePIN is poised to disrupt the cloud computing industry: ReportCointelegraph Research uncovers how DePIN networks and SwanChain’s ecosystem are changing the cloud computing industry
Here Are Some Fun Things to Do With Bitcoin Cash
Here Are Some Fun Things to Do With Bitcoin Cash The best use for any currency would be to spend it on things you need or even better, enjoy. And spending has to be easy and inex
Bank of America, Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan, UBS Share Predictions About Further Fed Rate Hikes
Bank of America, Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan, UBS Share Predictions About Further Fed Rate Hikes Bank of America, Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan, and UBS have shared their predictions about t
BlackRock Brazil launching depositary receipts fund mirroring US BTC ETF
Derek Andersen3 hours agoBlackRock Brazil launching depositary receipts fund mirroring US BTC ETFThe Brazilian ETF will launch on March 1 on the B3 platform. There are already 13 Brazilian ETFs with crypto exposure.1459
Grayscale Investments Clears Out XRP in Its Digital Large Cap Fund
Grayscale Investments Clears Out XRP in Its Digital Large Cap Fund Grayscale has sold all of its XRP holdings to purchase bitcoin, ether, and other crypto assets
Brayden Lindrea8 hours agoCZ released on $175M bond, could return to DubaiBinance founder Changpeng “CZ” Zhao posted a $175 million bond with a condition he returns to the U.S. two weeks before his sentencing.5918 To
Bitpay Adds Shiba Inu Crypto as Petition to List SHIB on Robinhood Exceeds 545K Signers
Bitpay Adds Shiba Inu Crypto as Petition to List SHIB on Robinhood Exceeds 545K Signers Crypto payment firm Bitpay has added support for the meme cryptocurrency shiba inu. Followin
Adidas Originals NFT Compilation Enters Top 50 Collections by Volume, Close to $60M in Sales in 18 Days
Adidas Originals NFT Compilation Enters Top 50 Collections by Volume, Close to $60M in Sales in 18 Days Less than 20 days ago, the German multinational sneaker and sportswear corpo