12 GPU rig power consumption (Biostar TB250-BTC PRO)

RobcisRobcis Member Posts: 23
edited July 2017 in Mining
I ordered a few of the new Biostar TB250-BTC PRO motherboards with 12 x PCI-E slots and I'm just wondering how much electricity this rig is going to consume. I'll be running 12 RX470 8GB cards and Intel Celeron G3900 (rated to consume 54w) on this system. As reported by the mining community, a rig with 6 RX470s consumes just below 800w of power so just to stay on the safe side, my idea was to feed the motherboard, it's components and 6 GPUs with a 1000w power supply and the remaining 6 GPUs with another 850w power supply. Now would that suffice?


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Comments

  • tedytedy Member Posts: 26
    With 12 gpus especially from the same manufacturer ,amd in this case, will be hard to work.
    Maybe in simpleminer with some adjusting it's going to be ok.
    From what i know. In windows you are limited to 6 gpus and in linux to 8.
    That motherboard was designed to work with 6 amd gpus and 6 nvidia gpus.
    But to answer your question. An rx 470 can pull from the wall,i think in the worst case like 150w (modded) . So doing the math from gpus you'll consume like 1800w . Plus cpu plus mobo and other peripherals let's say 1900w in the worst case and in the best case as you stated something like 1600w.
    I think that the 1000w plus 850w psu will be sufficient if their quality is good. But using 2 psu you'll have to connect the ground from the primary psu to the secondary and short 2 pins on the secondary psu. For a simple method search on google(or ebay or aliexpress) add2psu.
  • RobcisRobcis Member Posts: 23
    tedy said:

    With 12 gpus especially from the same manufacturer ,amd in this case, will be hard to work.
    Maybe in simpleminer with some adjusting it's going to be ok.
    From what i know. In windows you are limited to 6 gpus and in linux to 8.
    That motherboard was designed to work with 6 amd gpus and 6 nvidia gpus.
    But to answer your question. An rx 470 can pull from the wall,i think in the worst case like 150w (modded) . So doing the math from gpus you'll consume like 1800w . Plus cpu plus mobo and other peripherals let's say 1900w in the worst case and in the best case as you stated something like 1600w.
    I think that the 1000w plus 850w psu will be sufficient if their quality is good. But using 2 psu you'll have to connect the ground from the primary psu to the secondary and short 2 pins on the secondary psu. For a simple method search on google(or ebay or aliexpress) add2psu.

    Thanks for the answer. I suppose I should use 2x 1000w power supplies just to stay on the safe side. Regarding this motherboard, is there no way to run 12 AMD GPUs on a single motherboard? No way of getting arround the windows and linux limitations? Actually, what are the limitations and why they are there? I assumed that as long as you have enought PCI-E slots (and lanes), you should be good to go?
  • RDPPRDPP Member Posts: 71
    tedy said:

    From what i know. In windows you are limited to 6 gpus and in linux to 8.

    Wrong
    Windows: max 8
    Linux: "unlimited"(max i've seen was 14) with some tweaks
  • tedytedy Member Posts: 26
    RDPP said:

    tedy said:

    From what i know. In windows you are limited to 6 gpus and in linux to 8.

    Wrong
    Windows: max 8
    Linux: "unlimited"(max i've seen was 14) with some tweaks
    Thank you for your correction. It seems my informations are a little bit outdated.
    To be honest the maximum i've seen was 12 gpu on simpleminer i think. And yes it was after some tweaks. Unfortunetly for now my experience with linux is not that vast so i am not sure what was done in order for that to work.
  • tedytedy Member Posts: 26
    Robcis said:


    Thanks for the answer. I suppose I should use 2x 1000w power supplies just to stay on the safe side. Regarding this motherboard, is there no way to run 12 AMD GPUs on a single motherboard? No way of getting arround the windows and linux limitations? Actually, what are the limitations and why they are there? I assumed that as long as you have enought PCI-E slots (and lanes), you should be good to go?

    There was some kind of "rule" to always have ar least 10-15% more power that you need.
    It's obvious that you cand have a total power draw of 1000w on a 1000w psu. But i think if the maximum draw doesn't go over 950w it should be ok.
    Plus 1000w psu are a lot expensive that the 850w at least in my area.

    As for your questions.
    If you use linux and know your way in there (maybe you'll find some tutorials or something) i think you should be able to mount 12 gpus on that mobo.
    In windows i know the limitation is coming from drivers. I don't have much experience with linux so i'm not entirely sure about that.
  • RobcisRobcis Member Posts: 23
    tedy said:

    Robcis said:


    Thanks for the answer. I suppose I should use 2x 1000w power supplies just to stay on the safe side. Regarding this motherboard, is there no way to run 12 AMD GPUs on a single motherboard? No way of getting arround the windows and linux limitations? Actually, what are the limitations and why they are there? I assumed that as long as you have enought PCI-E slots (and lanes), you should be good to go?

    There was some kind of "rule" to always have ar least 10-15% more power that you need.
    It's obvious that you cand have a total power draw of 1000w on a 1000w psu. But i think if the maximum draw doesn't go over 950w it should be ok.
    Plus 1000w psu are a lot expensive that the 850w at least in my area.

    As for your questions.
    If you use linux and know your way in there (maybe you'll find some tutorials or something) i think you should be able to mount 12 gpus on that mobo.
    In windows i know the limitation is coming from drivers. I don't have much experience with linux so i'm not entirely sure about that.
    I managed to get a good deal on EVGA 1000w GQ PSUs so I bought a bunch of them. That's all good.

    As you said, I'll look into some tutorials on making it work on Linux. It should be possible. Thanks!
  • cvethmooncvethmoon Member Posts: 24
    edited July 2017
    However the question still remains, can you run 12 of the same GPU on this motherboard? On the product description it says 6 amd and 6 nvidia. Strangely, it markets the mobo in that aspect. You would think most miners building a rig will stick with one brand on one mobo. I am curious why biostar only states 6 of either brand?

    very strange, but I am not buying until I see someone running 12 of one brand on this mobo.
  • iamnoobplzhelpiamnoobplzhelp Member Posts: 239 ✭✭
    edited July 2017
    The reason why there is an 8 card limit in Windows has to do with the drivers. So, the reason they advertise 6 AMD and 6 nVidia, is that they use different drivers. So you can run 12 cards in Windows if you have 8 or less of each kind.

    Anyway, for power, I highly recommend going with a server power supply. They are platinum rated and are meant to be running 24/7, and are usually much cheaper.
    http://www.parallelminer.com/product/2400-watt-power-supply-kit-for-gpu-mining-94-efficiency-200-240v-up-to-24-gpu/

    Then you'll need a cheapo PSU for the board + SSD.

    I have converted all of my mining machines to server power supplies and couldn't be happier. They are a bit noisy, but they are all in the garage.

    And by the way, the numbers you are reporting above are after heavy undervolt, which can't always be achieved. Cards can be finicky and will take different wattages. I have some RX480/580s that are only taking ~60w, and I have others that I can't get under ~100w.
  • iamnoobplzhelpiamnoobplzhelp Member Posts: 239 ✭✭
    Where are you getting these boards BTW? I am interested in getting a couple.
  • kruisdraadkruisdraad Member Posts: 61
    edited July 2017
    @iamnoobplzhelp if you are in EU, MLaB(NL, webshop.mlab.company) has a very limited stock if your quick.
  • RobcisRobcis Member Posts: 23

    The reason why there is an 8 card limit in Windows has to do with the drivers. So, the reason they advertise 6 AMD and 6 nVidia, is that they use different drivers. So you can run 12 cards in Windows if you have 8 or less of each kind.

    Anyway, for power, I highly recommend going with a server power supply. They are platinum rated and are meant to be running 24/7, and are usually much cheaper.
    http://www.parallelminer.com/product/2400-watt-power-supply-kit-for-gpu-mining-94-efficiency-200-240v-up-to-24-gpu/

    Then you'll need a cheapo PSU for the board + SSD.

    I have converted all of my mining machines to server power supplies and couldn't be happier. They are a bit noisy, but they are all in the garage.

    And by the way, the numbers you are reporting above are after heavy undervolt, which can't always be achieved. Cards can be finicky and will take different wattages. I have some RX480/580s that are only taking ~60w, and I have others that I can't get under ~100w.

    That's a nice explanation. These motherboards were bought on www.scan.co.uk. I wish I could get server PSUs at such a price here in the UK. They are all super overpriced. I'm getting my graphic cards next week so I'll be able to report on what works and what doesn't. If the 8 graphic card limit holds true, I'll experiment on running 2 Windows 10s on the LimeTech's unRAID server. That would, in theory, allow me to overcome this limitation. Linus has a video where he sets up a 2 in 1 gaming PC in a similar way and it had just a very slight overall performance drop. Yesterday I contacted LimeTech and they told me that multi-GPU passthrough is available and since GPU mining doesn't require so much bandwidth (1x), I'm hopeful that the performance will stay the same.

    Here is a screenshot:


  • KainzoKainzo Member Posts: 12

    The reason why there is an 8 card limit in Windows has to do with the drivers. So, the reason they advertise 6 AMD and 6 nVidia, is that they use different drivers. So you can run 12 cards in Windows if you have 8 or less of each kind.

    Anyway, for power, I highly recommend going with a server power supply. They are platinum rated and are meant to be running 24/7, and are usually much cheaper.
    http://www.parallelminer.com/product/2400-watt-power-supply-kit-for-gpu-mining-94-efficiency-200-240v-up-to-24-gpu/

    Then you'll need a cheapo PSU for the board + SSD.

    I have converted all of my mining machines to server power supplies and couldn't be happier. They are a bit noisy, but they are all in the garage.

    And by the way, the numbers you are reporting above are after heavy undervolt, which can't always be achieved. Cards can be finicky and will take different wattages. I have some RX480/580s that are only taking ~60w, and I have others that I can't get under ~100w.

    What are you doing to pair a server psu with the mobo? Do you have to link the psus? What type and brand cpu do you use to power the risers?
  • kruisdraadkruisdraad Member Posts: 61
    @Robcis I have no problems with Win10 and 12GPU's, well 1 ... thats that i needed to add more system RAM to make it work correctly with mining software.
  • RobcisRobcis Member Posts: 23

    @Robcis I have no problems with Win10 and 12GPU's, well 1 ... thats that i needed to add more system RAM to make it work correctly with mining software.

    That's amazing news! What GPUs are you using? AMD or Nvidia? How much RAM is required? I bought 8GB sticks for these systems. My RX470s are coming next week, that's why I'm still having so many questions.
  • iamnoobplzhelpiamnoobplzhelp Member Posts: 239 ✭✭
    Kainzo said:

    The reason why there is an 8 card limit in Windows has to do with the drivers. So, the reason they advertise 6 AMD and 6 nVidia, is that they use different drivers. So you can run 12 cards in Windows if you have 8 or less of each kind.

    Anyway, for power, I highly recommend going with a server power supply. They are platinum rated and are meant to be running 24/7, and are usually much cheaper.
    http://www.parallelminer.com/product/2400-watt-power-supply-kit-for-gpu-mining-94-efficiency-200-240v-up-to-24-gpu/

    Then you'll need a cheapo PSU for the board + SSD.

    I have converted all of my mining machines to server power supplies and couldn't be happier. They are a bit noisy, but they are all in the garage.

    And by the way, the numbers you are reporting above are after heavy undervolt, which can't always be achieved. Cards can be finicky and will take different wattages. I have some RX480/580s that are only taking ~60w, and I have others that I can't get under ~100w.

    What are you doing to pair a server psu with the mobo? Do you have to link the psus? What type and brand cpu do you use to power the risers?
    @Kainzo You can just use any cheap ATX PSU for the motherboard and SSD.
    What you do to turn it on is, turn on the server PSU first, then press the power button to turn on the PC. You can leave the server PSU on through restarts, but make sure to turn it off before doing any PC changes or if you shut down the computer.

    I forgot to do this once, and the GPUs got really hot. Now all my miners are running for 300+ hours before needing to be restarted.
  • iamnoobplzhelpiamnoobplzhelp Member Posts: 239 ✭✭
    @Kainzo You can just use any cheap ATX PSU for the motherboard and SSD.
    What you do to turn it on is, turn on the server PSU first, then press the power button to turn on the PC. You can leave the server PSU on through restarts, but make sure to turn it off before doing any PC changes or if you shut down the computer.

    I forgot to do this once, and the GPUs got really hot. Now all my miners are running for 300+ hours before needing to be restarted.
  • RobcisRobcis Member Posts: 23
    Just in case anyone is wondering how to set up a rig with 12+ GPUs (no matter what make) on a single board, check out this video.
  • wirelessnet2wirelessnet2 Member Posts: 385 ✭✭✭
    I run 7x RX 480 8GB reference cards at 1220w on an EVGA 1600 T2 while using claymore 9.7 ETH Only
    Core 1150 mem 2075 Vcore 975
  • RavinderDhillonRavinderDhillon Member Posts: 74 ✭✭

    @Robcis I have no problems with Win10 and 12GPU's, well 1 ... thats that i needed to add more system RAM to make it work correctly with mining software.

    Would be great if you could share more details. Like if you are now Using 8GB or 16GB ram to get all 12 cards to work?
    Is claymore miner working for you on ETH or are you running some other miner?
    Are you using Dual PSU or a single large one?
  • TjiuZTjiuZ Member Posts: 6

    @Robcis I have no problems with Win10 and 12GPU's, well 1 ... thats that i needed to add more system RAM to make it work correctly with mining software.

    Would be great if you could share more details. Like if you are now Using 8GB or 16GB ram to get all 12 cards to work?
    Is claymore miner working for you on ETH or are you running some other miner?
    Are you using Dual PSU or a single large one?
    Yaaa.. i need more info too...
  • RobcisRobcis Member Posts: 23
    TjiuZ said:

    @Robcis I have no problems with Win10 and 12GPU's, well 1 ... thats that i needed to add more system RAM to make it work correctly with mining software.

    Would be great if you could share more details. Like if you are now Using 8GB or 16GB ram to get all 12 cards to work?
    Is claymore miner working for you on ETH or are you running some other miner?
    Are you using Dual PSU or a single large one?
    Yaaa.. i need more info too...
    I'm now successfully running 12 Nvidia cards on 3 of these motherboards. It was a pain to set up and I almost gave up mid way. EthOS is the only operating system to that can stably run 12 cards from the same brand (AMD or Nvidia). EthOS documentation says that 4GB of RAM is enough but I run 8GB just in case. It took me a while to set up the UEFI with the correct settings but all of those are documented on the EthOS website. Since EthOS is disro of Linux and therefore cannot be charged for. Read this thread for a download.

    I hope this helps.
  • TjiuZTjiuZ Member Posts: 6
    edited August 2017
    Robcis said:

    TjiuZ said:

    @Robcis I have no problems with Win10 and 12GPU's, well 1 ... thats that i needed to add more system RAM to make it work correctly with mining software.

    Would be great if you could share more details. Like if you are now Using 8GB or 16GB ram to get all 12 cards to work?
    Is claymore miner working for you on ETH or are you running some other miner?
    Are you using Dual PSU or a single large one?
    Yaaa.. i need more info too...
    I'm now successfully running 12 Nvidia cards on 3 of these motherboards. It was a pain to set up and I almost gave up mid way. EthOS is the only operating system to that can stably run 12 cards from the same brand (AMD or Nvidia). EthOS documentation says that 4GB of RAM is enough but I run 8GB just in case. It took me a while to set up the UEFI with the correct settings but all of those are documented on the EthOS website. Since EthOS is disro of Linux and therefore cannot be charged for. Read this thread for a download.

    I hope this helps.
    U use ethos ? Need Bios update ? How about simple mining os ?
  • RobcisRobcis Member Posts: 23
    TjiuZ said:

    Robcis said:

    TjiuZ said:

    @Robcis I have no problems with Win10 and 12GPU's, well 1 ... thats that i needed to add more system RAM to make it work correctly with mining software.

    Would be great if you could share more details. Like if you are now Using 8GB or 16GB ram to get all 12 cards to work?
    Is claymore miner working for you on ETH or are you running some other miner?
    Are you using Dual PSU or a single large one?
    Yaaa.. i need more info too...
    I'm now successfully running 12 Nvidia cards on 3 of these motherboards. It was a pain to set up and I almost gave up mid way. EthOS is the only operating system to that can stably run 12 cards from the same brand (AMD or Nvidia). EthOS documentation says that 4GB of RAM is enough but I run 8GB just in case. It took me a while to set up the UEFI with the correct settings but all of those are documented on the EthOS website. Since EthOS is disro of Linux and therefore cannot be charged for. Read this thread for a download.

    I hope this helps.
    U use ethos ? Need Bios update ? How about simple mining os ?
    Nah, I didn't need a BIOS update but some setting needed to be changed. When you first start up the rig, plug in only 6 cards otherwise your system won't post. Once you post with 6 cards, you can change your BIOS settings to run all 12 of them. SimpleMiningOS didn't recognise all cards.
  • mjmeansmjmeans Member Posts: 65
    Be aware that two 1000 watt power supplies (or a 1000 watt plus an 850 watt) is more than a typical home AC circuit can carry if you are in the United States. Typical home AC circuits are 15 amps maximum.

    Power supply ratings are from usable (DC) power, not used (AC) power. The actual power used at the wall will be higher depending on the efficiency of the power supply at its current load level.

    In the United States your breaker box will have 15 AMP breakers for most AC circuits. And each circuit will typically have lights and multiple power outlets operating in the room. The AC power will range from 115 to 120 volts. So the AC circuit can supply (115 volts times 15 amps) 1725 watts to (120 volts times 15 amps) 1800 watts before blowing the circuit breaker. With 93% efficiency, you will get 1604 to 1674 watts usable for your rig before you risk blowing a circuit breaker or burning wires in your walls to start a house fire.

    I have one of these 12 GPU boards and I will be using two 850W gold power supplies and will only be using a mix of low power 470's and under volted 480's/570's adjusted so that no GPU will draw more than 110 watts.

    Power supplies get their maximum performance at 80%-90% of their rated supply range. An 850 EVGA SuperNova provides up to 70.8 amps @ 12 VDC = 850 watts. So here's my math, 6x 110 watt limited GPUs = 660 watts per power supply. Mobo takes 75-100. Total = 1420 watts. With 90% efficiency power supplies this will consume 1578 watts or about 13.7 amps leaving enough amps to run a small display and Ethernet hub and non-incandescent room light. Nothing else (other than a surge suppressor) should be plugged in to any outlet on the same breaker circuit for safety reasons. Both power supplies will be running near 80%-90% capacity which should bring them into their most efficient power range.

    If you are in the United States and you will use a 1000 watt plus an 850 watt power supply and you don't plan to OC and/or Mod your GPU's to limit power usage, you should make sure you are on a 20 amp AC circuit. And I don't mean just changing a 15A breaker to 20A. If you want to do that, you better have an electrician come out to inspect the circuit to make sure it is safe so that you don't burn down your house.
  • TjiuZTjiuZ Member Posts: 6
    Robcis said:

    TjiuZ said:

    Robcis said:

    TjiuZ said:

    @Robcis I have no problems with Win10 and 12GPU's, well 1 ... thats that i needed to add more system RAM to make it work correctly with mining software.

    Would be great if you could share more details. Like if you are now Using 8GB or 16GB ram to get all 12 cards to work?
    Is claymore miner working for you on ETH or are you running some other miner?
    Are you using Dual PSU or a single large one?
    Yaaa.. i need more info too...
    I'm now successfully running 12 Nvidia cards on 3 of these motherboards. It was a pain to set up and I almost gave up mid way. EthOS is the only operating system to that can stably run 12 cards from the same brand (AMD or Nvidia). EthOS documentation says that 4GB of RAM is enough but I run 8GB just in case. It took me a while to set up the UEFI with the correct settings but all of those are documented on the EthOS website. Since EthOS is disro of Linux and therefore cannot be charged for. Read this thread for a download.

    I hope this helps.
    U use ethos ? Need Bios update ? How about simple mining os ?
    Nah, I didn't need a BIOS update but some setting needed to be changed. When you first start up the rig, plug in only 6 cards otherwise your system won't post. Once you post with 6 cards, you can change your BIOS settings to run all 12 of them. SimpleMiningOS didn't recognise all cards.
    Ill try Ethos again...
  • killeriqkilleriq Member Posts: 3
    edited August 2017
    Robcis said:

    The reason why there is an 8 card limit in Windows has to do with the drivers. So, the reason they advertise 6 AMD and 6 nVidia, is that they use different drivers. So you can run 12 cards in Windows if you have 8 or less of each kind.

    Anyway, for power, I highly recommend going with a server power supply. They are platinum rated and are meant to be running 24/7, and are usually much cheaper.
    http://www.parallelminer.com/product/2400-watt-power-supply-kit-for-gpu-mining-94-efficiency-200-240v-up-to-24-gpu/

    Then you'll need a cheapo PSU for the board + SSD.

    I have converted all of my mining machines to server power supplies and couldn't be happier. They are a bit noisy, but they are all in the garage.

    And by the way, the numbers you are reporting above are after heavy undervolt, which can't always be achieved. Cards can be finicky and will take different wattages. I have some RX480/580s that are only taking ~60w, and I have others that I can't get under ~100w.

    That's a nice explanation. These motherboards were bought on www.scan.co.uk. I wish I could get server PSUs at such a price here in the UK. They are all super overpriced. I'm getting my graphic cards next week so I'll be able to report on what works and what doesn't. If the 8 graphic card limit holds true, I'll experiment on running 2 Windows 10s on the LimeTech's unRAID server. That would, in theory, allow me to overcome this limitation. Linus has a video where he sets up a 2 in 1 gaming PC in a similar way and it had just a very slight overall performance drop. Yesterday I contacted LimeTech and they told me that multi-GPU passthrough is available and since GPU mining doesn't require so much bandwidth (1x), I'm hopeful that the performance will stay the same.

    Here is a screenshot:


    Hello, did u manage to run that in Unraid? have also this OS and thinking to buy Biostar board move the whole NAS there + mining. 12x 1060 planned. thx
  • RobcisRobcis Member Posts: 23
    killeriq said:

    Robcis said:

    The reason why there is an 8 card limit in Windows has to do with the drivers. So, the reason they advertise 6 AMD and 6 nVidia, is that they use different drivers. So you can run 12 cards in Windows if you have 8 or less of each kind.

    Anyway, for power, I highly recommend going with a server power supply. They are platinum rated and are meant to be running 24/7, and are usually much cheaper.
    http://www.parallelminer.com/product/2400-watt-power-supply-kit-for-gpu-mining-94-efficiency-200-240v-up-to-24-gpu/

    Then you'll need a cheapo PSU for the board + SSD.

    I have converted all of my mining machines to server power supplies and couldn't be happier. They are a bit noisy, but they are all in the garage.

    And by the way, the numbers you are reporting above are after heavy undervolt, which can't always be achieved. Cards can be finicky and will take different wattages. I have some RX480/580s that are only taking ~60w, and I have others that I can't get under ~100w.

    That's a nice explanation. These motherboards were bought on www.scan.co.uk. I wish I could get server PSUs at such a price here in the UK. They are all super overpriced. I'm getting my graphic cards next week so I'll be able to report on what works and what doesn't. If the 8 graphic card limit holds true, I'll experiment on running 2 Windows 10s on the LimeTech's unRAID server. That would, in theory, allow me to overcome this limitation. Linus has a video where he sets up a 2 in 1 gaming PC in a similar way and it had just a very slight overall performance drop. Yesterday I contacted LimeTech and they told me that multi-GPU passthrough is available and since GPU mining doesn't require so much bandwidth (1x), I'm hopeful that the performance will stay the same.

    Here is a screenshot:


    Hello, did u manage to run that in Unraid? have also this OS and thinking to buy Biostar board move the whole NAS there + mining. 12x 1060 planned. thx
    Nah, in the end, I just used ethOS.
  • killeriqkilleriq Member Posts: 3
    Why not? to much complexity? or just wanted to keep it separate is case of issues?
  • orinityorinity SingaporeMember Posts: 84
    Anyone tried 6x AMD and 6x Nividia cards for this motherboard? What's the power consumption required? I am leaning towards using 2x 700W PSUs but I am not sure if it is enough.
  • SherSher Member Posts: 1
    I can't get the btc pro to run on simple mining or Windows either. Just works with ethos. Anyone has had success with simplemining do let me know
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