I don't think GPU mining is guna "die" any time soon, eth or not there will always be something to mine with them, not to mention they are versatile and you can run all sorts of other algorithms (AI, chemical modelling, etc) as well if you ever need to pivot.
I 100% agree, of course GPU mining will live on, but right now isn't a good time to enter because of the threat of PoS. I definitely will get back into GPU mining when equipment is cheaper. My strategy is more long term.
The problem with the AI/rendering compute services is: (1) there are few customers (2) it requires reconfiguring the rig, which will cost 30% more in equipment + 30% more in power per card.
I'm curious why you want to go with s9's? they are quite old at this point, might get better ROI with something newer.
I was thinking that I could buy them cheaply in order to get to 100 kW as quickly as possible in order to secure a lower per-kWh cost for the upcoming GPUs, or newer ASICs. I would sell the S9's for scrap after a year. I also think scaling to 100 kW will give me some experience with the construction part.
It looks like you are trying to go with index power rate? you gotta be real careful with that, if prices spike and you don't manage the miners in time (can happen overnight), your energy bill will basically ruin a years worth of profitability
I wanted to go with the day-ahead index, where I always know what the rate will be in 24h and it's not subject to instant spikes. I don't see much spread between the real time LMP and day ahead rates. I'm not worried about the spikes because I will write custom, automated software to cut off the Internet to the ASICs to power them down.
Does your location already have power available? If you need to have oncor install more power, they are guna charge you potentially a lot ($40k+) and they *might* refund you a minimum of 4 years later.
That's a very good point. This is the hard part. I need to find a place with heavy power at a reasonable rent. Thanks for reminding me I can't just expect more power and I always have to keep a reserve of capacity. I would rather spend that $40k on replacing the S9's with more efficient ASICs than on ONCOR, which is a waste if I leave that location.
I've definitely seen warehouses that have their own transformers to not only get around this problem, but pay cheaper rates too. I need to look for those.