What are recommended PSUs for Antminer S3 to buy - in Europe/US?
I don't know much about PSUs, so a link to a PSU 101 article (at least as it relates to bitcoin mining) would be welcome as well.
I read:
http://www.reddit.com/r/BitcoinMining/comments/24intr/best_corsair_psu_for_my_antminer_s1/ch7mntp"Efficiency ratings describe the amount of electricity that the PSU loses as heat while powering the unit. Because miners are always on and consume a lot of power, more efficient units generally recover their higher purchase cost in less than a year. In nearly 100% of cases you'll save money by buying a platinum (or gold) rated PSU."
Sorry for quoting myself, but any help with this? From a total beginner level, like understanding power draw on the PSU. Thank you.
Something to remember, when you select a power supply(s) keep in mind that even if you select the best 80 Plus Platinum supply, you'll want to get one rated at about twice (optimum/peak efficiency of most power supplies is around 50-60% of rated power) of what you'll be pulling through it. So if you have 2 S3's and they're overclocked and pulling 374w each, then that's about 750w, so you should be looking for something in the range of 1200-1500w in platinum or gold rated. (also keep in mind that some power supplies have multiple +12v rails that usually max. out at 30A each, which might not be enough for a overclocked S3, so a single +12v rail might be a better choice)
Also, if you want optimum efficiency, use a 240v source if available (some houses have a 220-240v line for washing/dryer, be sure to switch the selector on the power supply to the correct voltage before you plug it in) which should add about 2% addition efficiency.
Perhaps a better suggestion would be to look at the efficiency curve of the PSU since although your assertion about effeciency at 50% load is accurate the difference doesn't necessarily result in savings that offset needing to size up to a 1200-1500 when a 750-1000W will do.. For example for 80 Plus Platinum at 50% load it is a minimum of 92% while at 100% load it is 89%, and PSUs will move around above that bottom threshold.