New Windows Binary of the ccMiner 1.5-git Fork by SP for Maxwell

29 Nov
2014

ccminer-1-5-git-sp-mod-new

Time for another windows binary release based on the latest code of the ccMiner 1.5-git SP-MOD fork of the Nvidia miner optimized for Maxwell GPUs by SP (source). Since the last windows binary we have published a few days ago there have been a lot of fixes and improvements made to the code and we were pleasantly surprised today to see a significant performance improvement. The results we are getting in terms of hashrate on our stock test GTX 980 GPU for X11 have gone up from about 7900 KHS with the previous release to over 8300 KHS and for X13 up from a bit over 6200 KHS to about 6700 KHS. There are also hashrate optimizations for other algorithms – NIST5 is up to about 26500 KHS, so performance should increase not only for X-based coins, so definitely a recommended update for owners of Maxwell-based Nvidia GPUs such as GTX 750 series and GTX 970/980. There seems to be a bug with the launch config of X15 for Computer 5.2 cards as on GTX 750s it works fine, also the improvements are also present for GTX 750 and GTX 750 Ti users, but the hashrate increase is not so big. Do note that this fork of ccMiner is supports only Maxwell cards as it is optimized and compiled for Compute 5.0 and 5.2 architecture.

– To download the latest ccMiner for Maxwell version 1.5-git by SP for Windows OS…

GAW Miners Moving From Cloud Mining to Cloud Staking with the HashStaker

29 Nov
2014

gaw-miners-hashstaker

Yesterday, during the Black Friday, when everyone was looking for discounts GAW Miners have introduced something new – the HashStaker. The successor of the Hashlet you may say, but instead of cloud mining the HashStaker will be doing colud staking, generating you profit from the PayCoins that you will store in it over time. So it all sounds like an wallet for a PoS coin that you need to hold in your wallet to get additional revenue in the form of staked coins over time. So HashStakers are essentially cloud based wallets and they require coins to start staking, but you need to purchase space for the specific amount of coins in your cloud wallet that you will store for staking at $9.95 USD per PayCoin strage space in the HashStaker for 3 months or $17.95 for 6 months. The first HashStaker is for PayCoin, GAW’s own crypto currency, but apparently they do plan to add HashStakers for other crypto currencies as well. In order for you to use the HashStakers you would also need to purchase some PayCoin and then leave the coins inside the staking wallet for the duration of the period you have choosen – 3 or 6 months. So you will not only have to get a HashStaker, but also get some PayCoins either from the ICO or when the PayBase platform launches and then store them inside the HashStaker, so that it will start to stake for you. Also there will be an option available for Hashlet owners to upgrade to HashStaker announced soon.

GAW Miners have been getting some criticism when they have announced the Hashlets earlier this year as a different form for cloud mining, and now they will probably be getting some for the HashStaker. What they are doing however is not just announcing some random products hoping that they can make miners happy with them by giving them the chance to make some profit, they are creating a whole ecosystem for the miners and users of their crypto currency. You can think about the PayCoin as an altcoin that comes with the services and support it needs to actually succeed and not only with empty promises about a bright future by some random new developer. Now, do note that there are no 100% guarantees for that, but the chances that PayCoin has to actually be a successful one and take space among top crypto currencies compared to many other altcoins, especially ones with very short lifespan, are much higher. Unfortunately it all comes with the cost of some centralization, but that could be the necessary evil to make thing run smoother and problem free in the case of PayCoin. If everything works out fine we could see PayCoin ranking among the top crypto currencies, but we don’t think that it would be able to replace BitCoin, but why not be a viable alternative. Bitcoin has a different philosophy and goals behind it, very different from what PayCoin is and promotes, but that does not mean you should ignore PayCoin if you are in crypto currencies just to make profit. It is up to you to decide what will you do with PayCoin, like it or not, invest in it or not, but don’t dismiss it without first checking out what it is all about and not just PayCoin, but the ecosystem that GAW is building around it to support it such as the HashStaker and PayBase. Try to look at the whole picture and not just to focus on the marketing messages.

One thing that is clear already regarding the mining of Bitcoins and what is also happening with Litecoin mining is that it is getting centralized in the hands of large mining farms and is getting harder and harder for the average small home miner to make it. So looking for other alternatives is not a bad idea and as usual the recommendation not go all in for a single thing as crypto currencies are still risky investments and you better be safe than sorry. We are going to be checking out the PayCoin, HashStaker and PayBase to see how well they will work out together, so stay tuned for more information from our experience with them.

Black Friday Deals on Cloud Mining and ASIC Miners

28 Nov
2014

spondoolies-tech-sp-20-deal

It is Black Friday and there are a few nice deals that you might want to check out if you are looking to buy an ASIC miner at a better price or invest in cloud mining with a higher discount. Unfortunately there are not as much deals as we expected to see, but still a few that do look promising and that you can take advantage of. Spondoolies Tech has an even better price for their 1.7 THS SP20 JACKSON Bitcoin ASIC miner that is now available for $695 USD instead of $795 USD as previously and the deal is available not only for the Black Friday, but will continue until the end of monday spanning for the Cyber Monday. BitCrane, another ASIC manufacturer has also lowered their prices down to $648 USD from $998 USD for their 1THS T-110 and T110S Bitcoin ASIC miners as well as the 5-7 THS T-720 Bitcoin ASIC miner that is currently available for $3420 USD down from $4668 USD.

Among the cloud mining services more notable promotions are currently ran by Genesis Mining with 10% off of regular price for their hashrate. Unfortunately at the moment only Bitcoin cloud mining hashrate is available as the Scrypt one has been out of stock for a few days already. The good thing is that our 5% discount code for the service is applicable on top of the 10% Black Friday promo price, so you can actually get a total of 15% discount by entering the promo code CryptoMiningBlog5 when checking out. Bitcoin Cloud Services is running a 10% promotion off their regular price for Bitcoin cloud mining hashrate by using the promotion code BTCBLACKFRI10, do note that it will be valid only for the Black Friday. Chabat Mining has a preorder hashrate promotion for 100 MHS Scrypt cloud mining hashrate at $460 USD ($4.6 USD per MHS), but the catch here is that the hashrate you purchase will start mining for you on December 16th.

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