So what’s the deal with hardware errors exactly? I have one Apollo that’s around 10% while the others are all around .5%...

I’ve tried rebooting it a few times and even re-imaged the card but nothing has worked.

Looks like both our accounts are too new to send the other a message without opting in to allow messages from noObies.

You should just be able to type in a new one and hit save. And then don’t forget to update the pool information on the Apollo dashboard.

And DFW too!

Thanks! Sorry for the late reply. I spent the last few days figuring out the whole mining thing a bit more.


I think it can definitely be done. And done cheaply. - I think an arduino could work. And the idea of "building a PC" could also be something to work with.

I think the next step I need to do is seriously consider a setup that would look cool, and make a mock version to scale and see how it looks… Because the technical side seems to be way less technical than I thought. And I do think it would be cool. But I should probably make my own thread somewhere.

On litecoinpool.org, under my account, you have a spreadsheet of "Workers". You need to add a worker to have it register onto your account. But each worker needs a username and a password.

For example, if your username on Litecoinpool was the same as it is here, LiteLTC, then the start of the username for your "worker" would be "LiteLTC.X". With the X being whatever you decide to name the mining device you're using. And then you must create a password for the device.

You need this information (Username and password) in order to put it into the "pool" section in the Apollo settings.

So next, log into the Apollo dashboard and click on "Pool".

Under URL, you need need the address of the server the pool operates on:

stratum+tcp://litecoinpool.org:3333   (Europe)
stratum+tcp://us.litecoinpool.org:3333   (US East Coast)
stratum+tcp://us2.litecoinpool.org:3333   (US West Coast)
stratum+tcp://ltcpool5brio2gaj.onion:3333   (Tor hidden service)

Under Username, you put the username you created on litecoinpool.
Then you do the same for the password.
Then click the +, Up Arrow, or save… whatever the button is to save the information for the pool. - After that, you should be able to refresh litecoinpool and see the work thats being done by the "worker".

Let me/someone else know if that helps/doesn't help.


Also, in regards to your question about which server you should use, east or west, I don't think it really matters… I just realized I've been pointed to the Europe server and everything is more or less fine. And I'm also in Texas.

I had issues with setting up the pool from the setup page before you login. But:

Login,
Go to Pools
Copy and paste the pool into the pool area

On Litecoinpool, add a worker, which ends up being your username.[Blank] and a password you choose. (For example LiteLTC.Apollo1 - Password)

Back in the pool settings, add your new username and password and hit the + button and you should be good to go.

Thank you thank you.

I tried that and it didn't work, so I just reimaged the card.

So uh… How do you setup multiple miners? I can't figure out how to add any from the dashboard.

Ok Never mind. I figured it out. My router was having issues and I had to restart it.

New problem… I clicked "shutdown" on the initial Apollo that popped up on futurebit.local, and now I can't figure out how to turn it back on. Because I don't know its IP Address...

Figured it out. The common fix for any issues in this thread has been to reimagine the SD, so that's what I did and was able to get it back online!

I haven't actually gotten my Apollos yet. They currently are scheduled for delivery next week. But I just went and looked around, and I think that the console output by bfgminer is exactly what I'm looking for. I found this sample output from their thread:

Sample output:


I think if I could somehow display that as it happened, that would be perfect. Especially if it can be easily done. Because as much as I hate to admit it, I'm not the most technically savvy person there is.

But really, my goal with this display isn't anything more than to show "the process" of mining. - When the average person hears of "crypto mining" and sees a miner, they just think its a thing that takes up a lot of space, makes heat, and wastes electricity. And I figure if there's a way of showing "what" the miner is doing, maybe they'll realize about the whole decentralization thing.

(Also, I just haven't seen any good art influenced by crypto. So I figured why not make it myself)

I’m not sure what sort of display. I’m researching different options now. - But I’m wanting something small, probably around 4x6 inches or so. But I believe ideally, I’m wanting to display the command line process?

Not for any functional reason. But rather last night I had an idea to make sort of an art piece out of an Apollo. And I think displaying the code/hashing on a external display a requirement to make it worth exploring this little side project further.

I have a bit of a strange question. But is it possible to somehow display the hashing process onto an external display?

Has anyone who ordered an Apollo+PSU on/after the middle of June gotten their shipping notification yet?

Quick question; when hooking up the Apollos to the breakout board, does it matter which they are connected to? I'm assuming it doesn't, but I want to be sure before the Apollo
s arrive (next week hopefully)

PSU+Breakout board i have:
https://www.parallelminer.com/product/platinum-psu-kit-hp-1200-watt-x8-for-asic-gpu-miner/

Yep. Thanks again for the double confirmation! Although I was more concerned about the PCIe cables since they are not PCI. But since that e apparently stands for efficiency, I figured it would be fine.

Also got your email update! Looks good. Can’t wait for them to arrive!

I ended up getting the 900-1200W Server PSU I linked above. It came with the breakout board and (10) PCIe cables, 16AWG 6pin to 6pin. Which I'm assuming should work. But I could also be wrong.

Right on! Order has been sent through! Thanks!

Alright. I don’t know. I guess I’m antsy. - I settled on one, but now I think I’ve decided that 5 Apollo’s sounds like a good amount.

But before I put the plan I’ve thought up in action, I figure I should share it and get some feedback from you kind folks who, unlike me, know your stuff. And really it’s a simple plan. - Since I’m dedicating space for an Apollo, I figure I might as well dedicated the entire outlet to Apollo(s).

I’ve done some research and have some numbers, but they are bit confusing, so instead of confusing everyone, I’m just going state my assumption that in an ideal situation, to run 4 Apollo’s, you would need a PSU that delivers about 1200W. - As that would give each Apollo 200W each use while running at 70% of it’s rated load.

However, the highest PSU I’ve found that will run off of a 120V outlet is 900W.

https://www.parallelminer.com/product/platinum-psu-kit-hp-1200-watt-x8-for-asic-gpu-miner/

My thoughts are that it seems like it could be pushing it to run 4 Apollos on a 900 Watt PSU. And it would be running at full load, which should be fine. But I’m curious to hear what you experts think.

Which brings me to a few more questions:

(1) Hooking all this up to one outlet should be fine, right?
(2) Does this plan sound reasonable?
(3) Is that PSU actually good?
(4) Would a 900W PSU support 4 Apollo’s running turbo?
(5) Is there anything else I should know?

Side questions:
(S1) Why don’t power supplies come with power cords?
(S2) Does anyone know if the official Future Bit PSU will come with the power cord?

Right on!  Thanks everyone!

I think for now I'll stick to the single Apollo+PSU I have already ordered, and well see what happens after it arrives!

Thanks jstnryan, devincrypt, and whiteogre! All great information and also some differing points of views!

I'll skip on Moon Landers and focus on the Apollo. - Which, I have another question, right now I have an Apollo + PSU + Card combo ordered. However the PSU from FutureBit only supports 1 Apollo. Are there any PSU that support 2 or 3 Apollos at a time?


I also was going to give solo mining a shot since the returns seemed bigger… however after some quick basic math, it seems that at the current rates, you would earn half as much as you would with pool mining if it did indeed take 14+ years to mine your first block!

Expected Rewards
24 hours   0.00491237 LTC   0.67 USD

Solo Mining Stats
Expected Time per Block   5190 days 23 hours

Hey there,

No idea what I'm doing, however I got excited and preordered an Apollo last night! Woke up this morning and realized I probably should have waited to order until after I had read through this thread. lol

But I must say, I ordered it is because I've been curious about this whole mining thing for awhile. And the fact that its Litecoin, (which I assume has a much lower difficulty to mine than bitcoin) relatively cheap, and simple to set up sold me on it! - Also, I have "free" electricity, so why not?

Anyways, I have a few questions:

Q1: Solo Mining vs Pool Mining

From what I've read, pool mining seems to be the way to go with these, right? (Since the hashing power is rather limited and the potential of finding a block is much smaller.)

However it seems that with pool mining, you'll earn something roughly like .11 LTC/month/Apollo right? - While if you solo mine, you earn nothing unless you find the block, at which point you earn the 25 LTC reward. At least until the halving.

Is that correct? If so, then the choice to pool vs solo mine really comes down to if you want a stable income vs gambling to find the block?
-

Q2: What would be the optimal way to Solo mine with the Apollo?
From what I've seen, it doesn't look like full node support is currently available? But when it is, how will that work? Would you need to dedicate an Apollo solely to act as a node (and therefore it doesn't mine?)
-

Q3: Moon Landers…?
I saw someone mention these things a few times and it took me longer than I care to admit to realize what they were… Because I thought they were just little foam pads/skis they put under their Apollo. lol

That said, are they worth picking up and plugging into the Apollo? If so, what's the ideal Lands per Apollo? And is the USB on the Apollo have any other plans in store?

Thanks!