Log FormD T1 - All AMD Dual GPU Radeon VII Cryptominer Build - Custom Watercooled Loop

[devolv]

This will be a build log of my FormD T1. I'm building a slightly different build than most others on here. It's a non-standard build (yes, no Nvidia, and no RTX 3080).
My choice of GPUs is strictly for workstation performance, and perhaps a seldom game. When I'm not working it'll be helping me cryptomine some nice Ethereum to help fund this hobby. Will post MH/s once this build is completed.

Of course this build will look familiar, it's heavily based on one of @fabio 's variations of his build and a lot of his knowledge and parts list is used here.

Specifications:
AMD Ryzen 9 3900X
Gigabyte Aorus X570 ITX
2x16GB G.Skill TridentZ Neo 3600 16-19-19-39 (Heatspreaders removed)
AMD Radeon VII 16GB Reference X 2
Sabrent 1TB M.2 NVME 4.0
Kingston 1TB M.2 NVME
Corsair SF750
C-Payne PCIE Bifurcation Modded (Ghost S1)
ADT-Link PCI Riser 25mm

Watercooling:
Alphacool NexXxos XP³ CPU Waterblock
EKWB Vector Radeon VII Waterblock
EK-FC GPU Terminal Rotary 90
Alphacool DC LT 2600 Pump
Alphacool DC-LT 40 Reservoir
Alphacool TPV Nylon Connectors (will likely upgrade to all metal)
Alphacool TPV Tubing
EKWB 240 Classic Slim Radiator
Alphacool TPV Metal 90 Fittings x1
EKWB Torqued Angle 90 X 3
Barrows Offset Fittings x2
Barrows 20mm Extension Female to Male x3
EKWB M.2 Heatsink

Fans:
Noctua NF-S12B redux
Noctua A12x15 Chromax
Scythe Kaze Hachi 80mm (for chipset/nvme)
GPU Fan to PWM Adapter

Parts on order:
J-HACK M2426 24Pin Kit for Corsair SF750

Stay tuned. This has been more of a wait for all the parts.


Some beginning photos of some parts:

Radeon VII #1 Testing - Disabling LED's, Re-pasting GPU Core

Testing GPU Fan Adapter

Radeon VII Waterblock install on GPU #2

 

[devolv]

Used some metal polish (brasso) to do a soft-lap on the IHS. Made it look a bit shinier. Not perfect but it smooths out the metal surface for a better thermal paste contact.

In the board it goes, nice and shiny.

So I did some out of the case build testing with a single GPU to confirm a few things. Power delivery, Bifurcation whether it works or not, and setting up the BIOS to get ready for the pump as well as the fans.

Here's the C_Payne Bifurcation board @fabio TY for the tips.

Definitely worked. I have modded the board by cutting into it by the screw points, so I can get the cards sitting a bit lower in the slot. I used a metal file and grinded it down to the shape the T1 PCIE bracket.

 

[devolv]

Building the loop with GPU #1 installed.

Test fitting GPU #2

Attempting to close the loop.

Loop completed.

Filling the Loop and getting all the air out.

Completed! Now on to testing and getting the temperatures, fan, noise and everything under control.

 

[devolv]

Temps and Mining Performance:

CPU Maxes at 68 degrees with GPU at 100% load. GPU is downclocked to 1610mhz/930mhz Memory at .926V @ 174W. Temps are really good with the core at 50 degrees, 64 Junction Temp (AMD Hotspot).

Second GPU which is aircooled is also downclocked for quietness, 1503mhz Core / 930 mhz Memory, at .880v @ 154W. Combined that's 328W will check what it's pulling from the wall.
ETH Hashrate is 160.1 MH/s.

 

[Elaman]

I'm building a slightly different build than most others on here

You bet!
This is indeed an interesting build. I have questions about your why's but it's only coming from curiosity and interest, no criticism intended.
- Why crypto-mining?
- We are now in 300W GPU territory. Why Team Red and why the so much criticized RadeonVII? (love the way it looks though)
- These are now two 300W GPUs taking power from a 750W PSU. Why not a single workstation GPU?
And the good old Vega64-during-summer question:
- Is the heating effect noticeable in the room?

 

[devolv]

You bet!
This is indeed an interesting build. I have questions about your why's but it's only coming from curiosity and interest, no criticism intended.
- Why crypto-mining?
- We are now in 300W GPU territory. Why Team Red and why the so much criticized RadeonVII? (love the way it looks though)
- These are now two 300W GPUs taking power from a 750W PSU. Why not a single workstation GPU?
And the good old Vega64-during-summer question:
- Is the heating effect noticeable in the room?

Sure! I would love to answer.
No criticism, I'm sure most would like to know.

Why crypto-mining?
- It is a bit of a hobby. Like how most of us here with PC hardware communities that contribute to projects like Folding@Home, instead there are some enthusiasts that like the idea of mining for money and saving it for a another day. GPU mining for Ethereum is currently profitable for most GPUs, especially with this machine which can help fund and return some of the costs in a few months. I'm sort of a hobbyist with SFF, PC hardware enthusiast and mining. A bad mix combination really. LMAO. I do have proper mining rigs elsewhere, just not at the personal workstation where I like to use SFF machines. I can explain crypto-mining in detail in terms of profits if you like, but that might garner another post

We are now in 300W GPU territory. Why Team Red and why the so much criticized RadeonVII?
- AMD has always been the better crypto mining GPU in terms of compute power and efficiency. Some of the most popular mining GPUs are mostly Team Red; RX 470, RX 570, RX580, RX 5700, and of course the VII which is the fastest mining card from AMD. The new RTX 3080 is indeed interesting, but at the moment in terms of efficiency AMD still has the lead for crypto-mining. The Radeon VII still pulls ahead in terms of hashrate per watt. More on that below.

In my opinion, I think the general enthusiast has been overly critical of the Radeon VII, it's a still a very good GPU which is comparable to an RTX 2080/2080 Super and it's original price was marketed at somewhere around the price of the RTX 2080 (which for Nvidia, likely the worst priced GPU for the Turing series). It then became more infamous when AMD pulled the plug on it after 6months, garnering more attention and criticism. Overall the Radeon VII was still a decent gaming GPU and it was a great workstation GPU for the price, outperforming RTX 2080 Ti on production applications. Which is why it's such a good crypto-mining GPU. This sort of mirrors the similarities to the Ryzen to Intel CPU situation, but slightly different since GPUs are more for gaming whereas CPUs are a mixed workload.

These are now two 300W GPUs taking power from a 750W PSU. Why not a single workstation GPU?
- Good question. Yes of course, stock settings these cards will pull 250-290Watts on full load. However when you're crypto-mining, you're actually wanting to tweak for the best efficiency. I have set mine to be around 170-180W per card which essentially has halved the power limits to about 340-360W combined. With 2 cards, it simply does better than any single card. Workstation GPUs are far more expensive and are not better than the Radeon VII, at least not that I know of.

RTX 3080 is reported to be able to do 100 MH/s @ 250 watt with an aggressive undervolt. RTX 3090 does around 120MH/s at an even high wattage(I'm not entirely sure exactly the wattage). If you compare that to my results with a single Radeon VII - 80 MH/s @ 170W multiply that by 2 and you'll see if even beats the RTX 3090.

And the good old Vega64-during-summer question: - Is the heating effect noticeable in the room?
Oh it is, but I live in Canada where most of the months it's cold. It's essentially a 350W stylish room heater that doubles for a workstation and gaming machine LOL

 

[Elaman]

Some of the most popular mining GPUs are mostly Team Red; RX 470, RX 570, RX580, RX 5700

RTX 3090 does around 120MH/s at an even high wattage(I'm not entirely sure exactly the wattage). If you compare that to my results with a single Radeon VII - 80 MH/s

More efficient at something that might actually make you money... that is food for thought.
And what's more worrying, now this build sent me down the rabbit hole that is @fabio 's build log. This whole thing is so interesting. Bye bye, real world...

 

[paulesko]

I´m mining ethereum with a 5700 xt. around 70 cents a day after paying electricity lol.

 

[devolv]

I´m mining ethereum with a 5700 xt. around 70 cents a day after paying electricity lol.

If you underclock and set a different profile, I think you can gain more than that. Should be getting at least 52-54MH/s with stock settings, but with tweaking you can get those cards down to 56-58 MH/s @ 130W consumption which works to about a dollar a day, which if you think about it, that would pay for the card in 12 months.

 

[devolv]

More efficient at something that might actually make you money... that is food for thought.
And what's more worrying, now this build sent me down the rabbit hole that is @fabio 's build log. This whole thing is so interesting. Bye bye, real world...

Actually, all GPUs can make you money, It's just how much you need to spend and how quickly you make it back. That's where AMD has more of the edge, RX 5700 / RX 5700 XT are all the mining rage right now as it's a sweet spot. The RTX 3080 is still a great cryptominer based on my calculations, but if you want the best when it comes to pure profits and the least investment necessary, the RX 470 / RX 570 is undisputable right now.(with the RX 5700 following very closely behind) I have a 8x RX 570 rig that crunches at 232MH/s @ 600W which generates about $5 a day, and the loaded cost to get that isn't beyond $1K per rig (in GPUs).

Anyway, my build again isn't really about earning money via cryptomining, it does that part-time when I'm not on it. It was also an attempt to build something different that basically suited my needs, I work mostly during the day on the computer doing computer graphics so I needed the 3d computing power. It being able to game well is a lower priority, I'll play likely a few nights a week but the fastest FPS isn't what I care for (which I'm sure this Radeon VII will do fine). It would definitely be interesting to see if I can run multi-GPU benchmarks / Firestrike / Crossfire enabled titles.

 

[paulesko]

If you underclock and set a different profile, I think you can gain more than that. Should be getting at least 52-54MH/s with stock settings, but with tweaking you can get those cards down to 56-58 MH/s @ 130W consumption which works to about a dollar a day, which if you think about it, that would pay for the card in 12 months.

I get 53-54 Mhas after bios modding and everything. My card is a poor overclocker memory wise, it won´t go over 1820. The good thing is that it is very efficient at 102 watts or so.

 

[devolv]

I get 53-54 Mhas after bios modding and everything. My card is a poor overclocker memory wise, it won´t go over 1820. The good thing is that it is very efficient at 102 watts or so.

At 53-54 is still decent. Should be getting more than $.70 unless your electricity costs are really expensive. I know areas like California is like 3x the average rate, here in Canada it's about .92 kwh.

 

[EvinevaAs]

like this keyboard, could you share a link or brand name/modal No.?

 

[EvinevaAs]

like this keyboard

 

[EvinevaAs]

any link or brand name or model number?