Best Crypto Mining Gear and Hardware
Assembling a modest cryptocurrency mining system at home can be the best option if the instability of digital currency investment is overwhelming for you but you still want to get a piece of the booming crypto cake. Is crypto mining still worth it now that Ethereum has phased out mining along with its transition to a Proof-of-Stake mechanism? The answer, which highly depends on a number of variables, is yes.
For instance, mining Bitcoin is still quite lucrative, but mining Ethereum, as mentioned above, is now considerably less profitable. The cost of a crypto is also another thing to take into account. A currency's price determines how advantageous it is to mine that coin. It's still possible to make money mining cryptocurrencies, but it's important to do your homework beforehand.
Don’t know where to start? Fear not, this article will show you how and which crypto mining rig and gear is best for you. But first, let’s talk about the basics: What is crypto mining?
Crypto mining 101
As discussed in one of our blogs, crypto mining is a misnomer because miners don’t literally excavate a mountain of data in search of a digital coin. Miners perform challenging arithmetic problems or cryptographic computations to earn rewards in the form of crypto. Mining rigs are used to solve these problems, and miners are compensated with digital coins for each answer they find.
The first miner to find a key quickly receives one coin, which is put to their account right away. This process continues until a second miner finds another solution and also receives one coin. Because they can work quickly and continuously around-the-clock, miners that employ specialized computer systems made up of effective hardware and cutting-edge software have an advantage over other miners.
Some miners also join a crypto mining pool to improve their chances of earning mining rewards. This entails teaming up with other miners to boost their efficiency of finding new blocks and making money, but it also means they’ll be sharing the profits.
What you need to build a crypto mining system
Building an efficient crypto mining rig at home requires the use of several essential computer parts. These consist of:
Central processing unit (CPU)
Some novice miners opt to mine exclusively using CPUs, which is also conceivable. But, they must be sophisticated and able to match mining needs. A simple mining setup simply requires a low-end or middling CPU when employing GPUs. Some of the best CPUs for mining are the AMD Ryzen 3 3100, AMD Ryzen 5 3600X, and AMD Ryzen 9 3950X.
Random access memory (RAM)
Any computer needs RAM to temporarily store data while the machine is operating. But it's especially vital for a mining setup to have adequate RAM to store the data from all of the GPUs it uses. Best ones are Corsair Vengeance LPX 64GB, TEAMGROUP T-Force Vulcan Z DDR4, NEMIX RAM 64GB 2x32GB DDR4-3200, and CORSAIR Dominator Platinum RGB DDR5.
Application-Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC)
ASICs are specialized devices created solely for the purpose of mining crypto. They often cost more than GPUs but provide far greater hash rates. The top ASIC miners are Bitmain Antminer S17, Antminer S19 Pro, AvalonMiner 1246, AvalonMiner 1166 Pro, Dragonmint T1, and ASCIminer 8 Nano.
Power supply unit (PSU)
One of the most vital parts of a crypto mining rig is the power supply unit PSU. This is due to the fact that it must be able to power all of the system’s components adequately. A good mining PSU can deliver at least double the amount of power that your system will use. The best power supplies for crypto mining are Corsair RM850x, EVGA SuperNova 1000G+, Seasonic Focus Plus 1000 Gold, Corsair HX1200i, and Corsair AX1600i.
Graphics processing unit (GPU)
The hash rate that one wants to attain will determine how many GPUs are required. For a beginner, though, either one or two GPUs should be enough. When looking for a mining GPU, there are several things to take into account. Performance is the most crucial aspect of any GPU for cryptocurrency mining as you want a high hash rate while using the least amount of power feasible. The best ones are NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti, AMD Radeon RX 6700 XT, NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3090, NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070, AMD Radeon RX 580, and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER.
Others
There are a few other items required in addition to the hardware parts mentioned to construct a working crypto mining system at home. These are a hard drive or an SSD; a crypto mining software and operating system; a riser for better airflow; a fast internet connection; and a crypto wallet.