The Bitaxe is the best low-cost, silent, and small Bitcoin miner

Don’t want to read? Buy the Best Bitaxes from the Best Sellers here

Altair (USA) Sells normal and upgraded Bitaxe Gammas BUY
Power Mining (EU) Sells upgraded Bitaxe Gammas BUY
TinyChipHub (HK) Sells Bitaxe Gammas and SupraHex BUY

All sellers listed ship globally, and code VOSKCOIN is the best coupon code.

The Bitaxe is incredibly cool because it is built with open-sourced hardware, meaning you can DIY one if you want. It also uses open-source firmware and miner software. I’m Vosk by the way, I operate my own Bitcoin mining farm, and the VoskCoin YouTube channel.

I’ve had a Bitaxe for a while, but I finally started my new video series on Bitcoin Solo mining, and wow, the interest has been crazy!

Anyway, I wanted to throw together a quick list of the best Bitaxe miners to buy right now, from where, and why. We are actively vetting Bitaxe manufacturers, resellers, and trying to find the best and most reliable sources with the best deals to pass along. All of our content is still currently free, so these are affiliate links and I just want to say thank you for those that take the time to use our links, and it’s why we always campaign to these sellers to give us the best coupon code you can, which is code VOSKCOIN.

Where to buy a Bitaxe for the best deal and service

We are actively researching, evaluating, and reviewing multiple Bitaxe manufacturers and resellers throughout the world. Currently, listed below are the 3 best options that we can proudly recommend.

Altair (USA) Sells normal and upgraded Bitaxe Gammas BUY
Power Mining (EU) Sells upgraded Bitaxe Gammas BUY
TinyChipHub (HK) Sells Bitaxe Gammas and SupraHex BUY

If you want to save money, please use the promo code VOSKCOIN.

In the future we will also find additional quality Bitaxe makers and distributors, please follow our new blog here https://voskcoin.io/blog which by the way.. is not live yet, sorry! VoskCoins new website and self-hosted blog will be launched over the next ~month.

Difference between the Bitaxe Ultra, Supra, and Gamma explained

The difference between the different Bitaxe models is largely based on the ASIC chip inside of them, each Bitaxe normally uses 1 BTC ASIC mining chip. The differences between Bitaxes uses the BM1366, BM1368, and BM1370 are explained in the graphic below.

Bitcoin pool mining vs solo mining?

Over the last week VoskCoin launched www.sololuck.com. SoloLuck is a Bitcoin solo mining calculator that we are proud to say we think is the best Bitcoin solo mining calculator to use to estimate when you can mine a BTC block! Mini Bitcoin miners like the Bitaxe are best used for solo mining Bitcoin, they don’t earn much on mining pools and will be rendered effectively useless due to mining pool fees. Everyone mining Bitcoin with a Bitaxe miner is best suited to solo mine BTC, and SoloLuck will calculate your odds to hit a Bitcoin block worth over $300,000 in real-time!

Thanks for reading, and happy hashing!

Best Bitaxe To Buy and Where was originally published in VoskCoin on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

What are Lumia Hypernodes?

The project, Lumia, has Hypernodes, which offer users rewards for owning a node. By owning and operating a node, users benefit from receiving daily $LUMIA rewards, participation rewards, ecosystem and partner airdrops, enhanced staking rewards, and more. The current price of a Lumia node is $1,000, and the sale will be live starting July 18, 2024. Having a node also gives users the ability to participate in Lumia’s Liquidity Layer decision-making process, while also having part in two projects (Lumia L2 and Lumia Stream).

How to Buy a Lumia Node:

A referral link or code is required to purchase a node: https://node.lumia.org/checkout?ref_code=VOSKXX

Stay tuned for a full video review of Lumia and walkthrough on how to purchase a Lumia node!

About Lumia

Let’s do a quick deep dive into the project behind these nodes. Lumia claims to be the first-ever liquidity layer designed to provide deep liquidity to real-world assets (RWAs) using Physical Infrastructure Networks (DePin).

Lumia’s token powers two networks: Lumia L2 and Lumia Stream. Lumia L2 is the Layer 2 rollup that leverages its native liquidity layer powered by Lumia Stream. And Lumia Stream allows decentralized access to centralized exchange liquidity. It’s essentially a liquidity module natively integrated into Lumia L2.

Some of the key features of Lumia are:

Infrastructure: Lumia provides a platform for real-world assets (RWAs) like real estate, commodities, and financial instruments to be brought into the world of decentralized finance (DeFi). They claim to offer seamless integration and liquidity provisioning.

Liquidity Provisioning: Liquidity provisioning is essentially the backbone of DeFi and decentralized exchanges. Lumia aggregates liquidity from the most popular chains on the market and makes liquidity available cross-chain to ensure seamless trading of assets.

Scalability: Lumia uses zkEVM technology to operate Data Availability Committee (DAC) nodes, which accelerates the transition from Stage 0 to Stage 2 roll-ups.

Seamless Onboarding: Lumia has integrated EIP-4337 and intents technology to help simplify interactions on chain, making them more intuitive for mass adoption.

Built-In KYC and Privacy: Lumia uses PolygonID for secure and decentralized identity verification.

Maximum Yields and Yield Restaking: Lumia uses Delta Neutral Liquidity Provisioning (DNLP) to maximize capital for institutions and investors.

AI-Yield Management: Using zkML and zkSNARKS, Lumia ensures trading decisions made by AI align with their neural network model predictions.

Lumia also has an upcoming airdrop, coming soon. Stay tuned for updates on Lumia.

Lumia Team

The team behind Lumia is also doxxed and includes members from Orion Protocol, Binance, BNB Chain, TikTok, and other blockchain-related groups. You can view Lumia’s core contributors here. The project is also backed by a grant from 1INCH.

Links:

Lumia Website: https://lumia.org
Lumia Whitepaper: https://docs.lumia.org/lumia/hypernodes
Lumia on Twitter/X: https://x.com/BuildOnLumia

Thank you to Lumia for sponsoring this article. This is not financial advice. Please do your own research before investing. This article may contain referral/affiliate links. VoskCoin may receive compensation when affiliate/referral links are used.

DePIN Nodes the Next Big Thing? Liquidity for Real-World Assets was originally published in VoskCoin on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Are you looking for a reputable cryptocurrency miner reseller? There are a lot of factors to consider when ordering a cryptocurrency miner. There’s the initial cost of the miner, its mining profitability, how quickly you can get the miner (shipping times), and customer service. We have been working with CoinMiningCentral for years and they are one of the best ASIC miner resellers to work with in the industry.

If you are interested in ordering with CoinMiningCentral, use our link and use code VOSKCOIN to save!

CoinMiningCentral has also made the following custom coupon codes for our community to ensure you are getting the BEST rates on the latest miner releases:

• Use code VOSKALBOX to get 250 GBP off a Goldshell AL BOX!
• Use code VOSKKSMAX to get 325 GBP off an iBeLink BM-KS Max!
• Use code VOSKKS3M to get 275 GBP off a Goldshell KS3M!

At the time of writing this article, the AL-Box, which is a popular ALPH (Alpephium) miner is currently making $47.81/day after electricity costs. The iBeLink BM-KS Max, which is a Kaspa miner, mines about $40.00/day currently. And finally, the KS3M is a Kaspa miner, which mines about $18.66/day. Make sure to check out our channel on YouTube to watch detailed reviews of these miners and others as they come out!

Thank you to CoinMiningCentral for supporting the VoskCoin YouTube Channel. This article contains referral links; VoskCoin may receive compensation when affiliate/referral links are used. Please do your own research before purchasing.

The BEST Coupon Code for CoinMiningCentral was originally published in VoskCoin on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

If you don’t know what an ETCMC ETC Node is or how it works, check out our YouTube video review to learn more:

Power Outage Problems

My power went out recently and the Node stopped working.

The launcher starts but when I click the GETH Client, it starts loading but then disappears.

How to Fix ETCMC Node Loading Issues:

To address this, you will need to use File Explorer to delete two specific files and rename two other files.

1. Go to your ETCMC NODE launcher folder found here:

C:\Program Files (x86)\ETCMC ETC NODE LAUNCHER 1024x600\ETCMC_GETH\

This is the Path for the node. If you are running this node on a normal computer, the path could be:

C:\Program Files (x86)\ETCMC ETC NODE LAUNCHER 1920x1080\ETCMC_GETH\

2. If you are unsure which one you are using you can right-click on the shortcut and select “Open File Location.” This will bring you to the right folder.

Within this folder, you will find these four files:

3. Delete the files:
etcpow_balance.txt.enc
transaction_count.txt

4. Remove .bak from the two remaining files.

5. You should now have two files called:
etcpow_balance.txt.enc
transaction_count.txt

After implementing these changes, the client should launch successfully.

Seeing this error?

Sometimes you may see this error when you try to start the GETH client:

Just clicking ‘OK’ and trying to start it again might resolve the issue.

If you want to buy an ETCMC plug-and-play node, get it here.

Shout out to Handyman Savage who discovered these solutions here.

This article may contain referral links. VoskCoin may receive compensation when affiliate/referral links are used.

ETCMC Node Troubleshooting Guide was originally published in VoskCoin on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

As someone who loves diving into the exciting world of innovative technologies, I’m thrilled to explore the fascinating intersection where wind energy meets Bitcoin mining. Hailing from the Netherlands, where energy prices are sky-high, finding sustainable and cost-effective solutions is like searching for treasure.

As a video editor and writer for the VoskCoin YouTube channel, I have the privilege of covering a wide array of cryptocurrency-related topics, with a strong emphasis on mining. Our ultimate goal is to produce our own electricity on the Crypto Mining Farm, and while solar energy has been a primary focus, my Dutch roots have piqued my curiosity about the feasibility of wind energy for Bitcoin mining. Given that the Netherlands is renowned for its windy climate, exploring the potential of wind power in this context is an exciting endeavor. Join me on this journey as we delve into the world of wind energy and its implications for cryptocurrency mining.

In this article, we’ll embark on an adventure to uncover the unique opportunity of using wind power to fuel our Bitcoin mining endeavors. Forget about waiting 12 to 20 years for returns like with traditional wind turbines — with Bitcoin mining, we’re talking about a fast track to ROI! So buckle up and join me on this journey as we discover how combining renewable energy with cutting-edge tech can lead to both financial gains and environmental wins. But be advised, read until the end because there is a catch.

Electricity

Bitcoin mining has been dominated by large mining companies with access to lower electricity rates. However, harnessing the power of wind or solar energy to generate free electricity for mining is a potential solution. Wind energy, in particular, has been highlighted as a promising and efficient way to power Bitcoin mining. According to a study, Bitcoin mining with wind turbines is reported to be two times more efficient than mining with solar energy, and wind energy installations could earn millions of dollars from mining during periods of excess electricity. Wind turbines are also said to require minimal maintenance and have a long service life, making wind power a viable option for Bitcoin mining. While both wind and solar energy have their advantages, the potential of wind energy for powering Bitcoin mining is being increasingly recognized.

Accessibility

Bitcoin mining is becoming more accessible than traditional investments, as it only requires mining hardware, electricity, and internet access. This accessibility has made it an attractive investment avenue for many, particularly in regions with limited access to traditional banking. The decentralized nature of Bitcoin mining also empowers individuals to have control over their funds, bringing a new level of autonomy to personal finance.

The accessibility of Bitcoin mining has been further enhanced by the advent of global internet services like Starlink, enabling individuals to engage in mining from virtually anywhere in the world.

Additionally, the use of renewable energy sources such as solar and wind power has the potential to make Bitcoin mining more sustainable and profitable. Studies have shown that solar and wind energy installations could earn hundreds of millions of dollars by mining Bitcoin during periods of excess electricity, potentially supporting renewable energy development and mitigating the environmental impact of cryptocurrency mining.

Overall, the accessibility of Bitcoin mining, coupled with the potential for using renewable energy sources, has the potential to reshape the landscape of cryptocurrency mining and make it more sustainable and widely available.

If you have the capability to generate electricity, you can engage in Bitcoin mining. Various methods exist for generating electricity, in this article, we will focus on harnessing wind power for this purpose.

How?

How do we get started? Well, it depends on your budget and commitment. Wind turbines are available in various sizes, so let’s categorize them into three: BIG Wind Turbine, MEDIUM Wind Turbine, and SMALL Wind Turbine. While there are even larger offshore turbines and smaller ones with limited energy output, for simplicity, we’ll focus on these three sizes.

Mining Hardware

In the past, Bitcoin mining could be done with just your computer by downloading a wallet and starting the mining process. However, Bitcoin mining has evolved significantly over the years and has become more profitable and industrialized. Nowadays, it’s done using specialized mining hardware known as Application-Specific Integrated Circuit Miners (ASICs). These machines are designed specifically for mining Bitcoin and nothing else. You can purchase ASIC miners from the manufacturer or through third-party resellers like AsicMarketplace or CoinMiningCentral.

Bitmain stands as the foremost and highly successful producer of ASICs in the cryptocurrency mining industry. Among their latest innovations is the Antminer S21, designed specifically for Bitcoin mining. The Bitmain Antminer series has solidified its position as a cornerstone of Bitcoin mining since the introduction of the legendary Bitmain S9.

While there are other manufacturers like MicroBT (Whatsminer) and Canaan, for the sake of simplicity, we will focus on the Bitmain S21 to build our fictional Bitcoin Wind Mining farm.

Currently, the S21 is earning $16.65 a day at a Bitcoin price of $47,987
(12 Feb 2024).

Big Wind Turbine

The huge turbines you often see standing in fields beside highways typically have a capacity of 2–3 megawatts.

Per the U.S. Wind Turbine Database, the mean capacity of wind turbines that achieved commercial operations in 2020 is 2.75 megawatts (MW).

Wind turbines operate within a range of wind speeds typically ranging from 30 to 55 mph. However, when wind speeds are slow, energy production decreases significantly. For instance, if the wind speed decreases by 50%, power production decreases by a factor of eight. Consequently, wind turbines usually operate at around 15–30% of their capacity rather than near their maximum capacity.

The Antminer S21, with a power consumption rate of 3,550 watts, would consume approximately 31,098 kilowatt hours (kWh) per year.

A 2.75-megawatt wind turbine with a 25% capacity factor would produce around 6,022,500 kWh per year.

Dividing the annual energy output of the wind turbine by the energy consumption of the Antminer S21 yields an estimate of being able to power 193 Antminer S21 units with a standard 2.75 MW wind turbine. This setup would allow 193 Antminer S21 units to be entirely powered by wind, without incurring electricity costs.

With a 25% capacity factor, a 2.75-MW turbine would produce: 2.75 MW x 365 days x 24 hours = 24090 MWh
25% of 24090= 6022.5 MWh
6,022.5 MWh = 6,022,500 kWh

The Antminer S21 uses ~3,550 Watts 3,550 kW x 24 hours in a day = 85.2 kWh a day 85.2 kWh x 365 = 31,098 kWh a year

Cost Big Wind Turbine

The cost of a big wind turbine is substantial, with a typical price of around $1.3 million per megawatt (MW) of electricity-producing capacity. Therefore, to construct a 2.75 MW wind turbine, the cost would amount to approximately $3,575,000 million.

1.3 x 2.75 = $3,575,000

Cost Miners

The cost of these miners varies based on delivery speed. For instance, a Bitmain S21 can be purchased for around $4,000 with a delivery time of 2 months. Therefore, purchasing 193 miners at this price would amount to approximately $772,000.

193 x $4000 = $772,000

Wind Turbine Cost - The Economics Of Wind Energy In 2023

Earnings

The potential annual earnings from running 193 Antminer S21 units on a standard 2.75 MW wind turbine are estimated to be approximately $1,172,909 per year. This calculation is based on the assumption that each miner generates an average of $16.65 per day, resulting in a total daily income of $3213.45 when operating 193 units.

193 x $16.65 = 3213.45
3213.45 x 365 = $1,172,909.25 yearly

Return on investment Big wind turbine

With the initial investment required to build the wind turbine, it would take approximately 3 years to earn back the cost. Additionally, considering the cost of the mining machines, you would recoup that investment in around 0.7 years (8 months). Therefore, the total return on investment (ROI) would be approximately 3.7 years (44 months). Although the mining machines may need replacement at the end of this period or even earlier, the wind turbine will continue to operate, with the initial cost already covered. This highlights the long-term sustainability and potential cost-saving benefits of using wind power for cryptocurrency mining.

Total Cost $3,575,000 + $772,000= $4,347,000 ÷ $1,172,909 yearly Earnings = 3.7 years ROI

Medium Wind Turbine

A large wind turbine like that may not be feasible due to the substantial upfront investment required and potential regulations restricting the installation of such large structures. So what about smaller options?

Cost

A wind turbine that delivers 125,000 kWh per year has a cost of $40,000
And can run approximately 4 miners. with a cost of $16,000. This means this will cost a total of $56,000

A medium-sized wind turbine produces 125,000 kWh a year
125,000 ÷ 31,098 = 4.01 Antminer S21
4 x 4000 = $16,000
total cost: $40,000 + $16,000 = $56,000

Earnings

With each miner generating an average of $16.65 per day, operating four units would result in a total daily income of $66.60. This translates to an annual income of $24,309.

4 x $16.65 = $66.60
$66.60 x 365 = $24,309 a year

Return on investment Medium Wind Turbine

With the cost of a medium-sized wind turbine being $40,000 and the miners earning $24,309, it would take approximately 1.64 years to recoup the investment in the turbine and around 0.65 years. to recoup the investment in the miners costing $16,000. This results in a total return on investment (ROI) of approximately 2.3 years or 28 months.

Cost $56,000 ÷ by Earnings per year $24,309 = 2.3 years

Small wind turbine

So what is a small home wind turbine you can get and still power an S21?

..well none really.

Unfortunately, due to the laws of physics and the significant reduction in available power with smaller wind turbines, it’s not feasible to power a Bitcoin miner with a small turbine.

When the size of a wind turbine is reduced, the available power decreases proportionally to the square of the size reduction. In other words, if you decrease the size of a wind turbine by a factor of two (for example, by halving its diameter), the available power decreases by a factor of four. This relationship is governed by the physics of wind energy extraction and is an important consideration when evaluating the feasibility of using smaller wind turbines for power generation.

If you take a look above at a 4-year-long test performed in Holland where they tested several small wind turbines. The best-performing one only generated 2208 kWh a year. So this is nowhere near enough to run a Bitcoin miner. Even if you underclock it.

It’s quite disappointing to discover that using wind power for small-scale setups like rooftops or small backyards, particularly for Bitcoin mining, isn’t feasible. I had initially hoped it would be possible, but it seems that wind energy isn’t suitable for such small home deployments. In this context, solar power emerges as a more practical option due to its compatibility with smaller setups and the widespread availability of sunlight in various locations.

If you want to know more about Solar bitcoin mining check out this video we made a while back:

Is Bitcoin good for the environment?

The potential return on investment (ROI) achieved through using wind energy to power cryptocurrency mining operations is truly remarkable. Typically, the cost and ROI of a wind turbine for electricity generation to the grid can span 12 to 20 years! Making such investments less attractive due to the lengthy payback period. Moreover, wind turbines often need replacement after 20 to 25 years, adding to the long-term costs.

However, with Bitcoin mining, the economic viability of running wind turbines is significantly improved, leading to a more sustainable and environmentally friendly approach. By harnessing the power of cryptocurrency mining, wind energy becomes a more attractive and financially rewarding option, benefiting both the environment and the economy.

There are also benefits to the electricity grid. By connecting mining hardware directly to wind and solar generation plants, excess energy produced during peak sunlight or wind hours can be utilized for mining, helping to balance energy supply and demand and prevent potential waste of renewable energy resources. This approach has the potential to enhance the profitability of renewable energy installations and stabilize electricity prices.

Overall, the integration of Bitcoin mining with wind power presents an opportunity to promote renewable energy development and mitigate the environmental impact of cryptocurrency mining.

The Catch

So, why isn’t everyone jumping on the bandwagon of using wind energy to power Bitcoin mining? Well, while it might seem like a dream combo — profitability and environmental friendliness — there’s a catch. Bitcoin operates on an emission schedule that’s halved every four years. Picture this: every ten minutes, a block is produced on the blockchain, and the lucky miner who solves it gets rewarded with Bitcoin. Currently, that reward is 6.25 BTC, but after the halving, it’ll be slashed in half. This reduction in rewards could impact the profitability of Bitcoin mining, making it less enticing for some.

So if we take the same calculations after the halving this means that all our ROI calculations double

Big Wind Turbine ROI: 7.4 years or 89 months

Medium Wind Turbine ROI: 4.6 years or 55 months.

This seems a lot less appealing and even bleeds into the next halving, but remember, Bitcoin prices do not stay the same. They wildly fluctuate over the years.

While predicting the future of Bitcoin is uncertain, it’s evident that the cryptocurrency has been experiencing increasing demand and a steady rise in prices year over year.

Cast your mind back just five years, and you’ll recall Bitcoin trading in the range of $3,000 to $10,000 — a fraction of its current value. As we peer into the crystal ball, the price of Bitcoin in two to five years could soar to new heights, but let’s not get too carried away — after all, hopium is a powerful drug.

Citations accessibility:
https://www.greenminingdao.io/blog/why-bitcoin-mining-is-more-accessible-than-traditional-investments
https://www.independent.co.uk/tech/bitcoin-mining-solar-wind-renewable-energy-b2454666.html
https://www.anthropocenemagazine.org/2023/12/wind-and-solar-projects-struggle-financially-in-their-early-phases-could-bitcoin-mining-change-that/
https://www.cnet.com/personal-finance/crypto/bitcoin-mining-how-much-electricity-it-takes-and-why-people-are-worried/
https://cryptopotato.com/these-digital-miners-will-reshape-btc-mining-accessibility-in-2024-gomining/

Citations Energy produce by a Big wind turbine :

http://anemoiservices.com/industry-news/how-much-electricity-does-a-wind-turbine-produce/

Citations Bitcoin good for the environment?:
https://www.coindesk.com/consensus-magazine/2023/07/27/enhancing-profitability-of-wind-and-solar-through-bitcoin-mining/
https://www.anthropocenemagazine.org/2023/12/wind-and-solar-projects-struggle-financially-in-their-early-phases-could-bitcoin-mining-change-that/
https://www.independent.co.uk/tech/bitcoin-mining-solar-wind-renewable-energy-b2454666.html
https://etb.lv
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/go-green-mine-crypto-power-wind-wellnutscg

This article is for entertainment purposes only and should not be considered financial or investment advice. This article may contain affiliate links and VoskCoin may receive donations or compensation when these links are used.

Can You Mine Bitcoin Using Wind Power? was originally published in VoskCoin on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

What is the Bitcoin Halving and How Does it Affect Miners?

The Bitcoin Halving happens every four years. When the halving happens, the reward for Bitcoin mining is cut in half, which means miners are paid less. The halving was written into the Bitcoin mining algorithm to counteract inflation and maintain scarcity.

If the price of Bitcoin remains the same, the profitability of Bitcoin mining will drastically decrease, potentially phasing out a lot of at-home miners who don’t have a competitive electric rate or the ability to scale. For example, at the time of writing this article, there have been over $48M in mining emissions in the last 24 hours. After the halving, if the price of Bitcoin stayed the same, that number would be around $24M. In order for the mining profitability to be the same as it is today, the price of Bitcoin would have to double after the halving. The next Bitcoin halving is projected to happen around April 2024.

Quantum Expeditions gives users an opportunity to invest in a company with direct connections to energy producers with some of the lowest electric rates in the world, keeping mining profitable. VoskCoin is excited to announce we have finalized a long-term partnership with Quantum Expeditions!

The Team Behind Quantum Expeditions

Not only does QEx have connections to energy producers, but they are a diverse and knowledgeable group, with experts who have experience in the oil and gas management industry, blockchain, investing/trading, marketing, financial security, and information technology. Some members include entrepreneur and thought leader, Mati Greenspan, and fintech strategist, Oz Sultan.

If you’re an active VoskCoin subscriber and Discord member, you may also recognize their Chief Operating Officer (COO), Justin Kramer, also known as badgerlandcrypto. Justin is an active VoskCoin community member, has run his own Bitcoin and altcoin mining farm, and has his own company that sells ASIC mining rigs. He was formerly the CEO of the Badgerland Mining Club, which has since been acquired by Quantum Expeditions. Fun fact: Justin also heats his home with crypto-miners!

We also had Justin on the Voskcoin Proof of Discussion (PoD) Podcast where we reviewed what it’s like building a cryptocurrency mining farm at scale! Check out our full discussion on the PoD here:

What’s Next for Quantum Expeditions

Quantum Expeditions is growing exponentially. They’ve gone through a two-year development phase, so they’ve done all the groundwork with maintaining permits, leasing contracts, and purchase agreements to get their mining farms off the ground fast. They already have nearly 150 Bitmain Antminer S19k Pros deployed and are expanding even further.

They’ve also secured options to develop up to five more mining operation sites, ensuring their commitment to growth. We’re excited and are hoping to visit one of their sites this year and share our Mining Farm Tour on the channel. Quantum Expeditions has also secured an Energy Service Agreement (ESA) with a local cooperative company, which gives QEx access to steady and competitively-priced energy. The first location is projected to produce up to five megawatts of power, in two operational phases, the first being fully funded through the initial crowdfunding phase.

Want to invest in Quantum Expeditions?

To invest in QEx, check out their WeFunder page. At the time of writing this article, they already have nearly 50 investors and have raised almost $700,000. The Crowdfund Phase is open until the end of February, so get in early while you still can!

Make sure to subscribe to the VoskCoin YouTube Channel to stay up to date on the latest cryptocurrency news and miner reviews. Thank you to Quantum Expeditions for sponsoring this article. This is not financial or investment advice. Please do your own research before investing.

Quantum Expeditions: A Cryptocurrency Mining Solution After the Bitcoin Halving? was originally published in VoskCoin on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Mining manifests in various forms, spanning from the proof-of-work Bitcoin ($BTC) mining to novel techniques such as hard drive mining used by Chia ($XCH), and even more unconventional methods like harnessing radio waves, as seen with Helium ($HNT). Numerous experiments leverage mining as a cornerstone to fuel their infrastructures and facilitate decentralized processes.

Bitcoin’s utilization of mining extends beyond the simple notion of network security; it also serves as an effective means for projects to distribute their coins and tokens in a decentralized manner, fostering the creation of vibrant and engaged communities.

Nodes and mining

Proof-of-work (PoW) chains, like Bitcoin and Ethereum Classic, consist of two essential components: Miners and Nodes. Mining, a substantial industry in itself, generates staggering revenues, with Bitcoin alone producing over $40 million a day for participants within its network.

However, an intriguing aspect arises when examining the role of Nodes. Unlike Miners, their participation is entirely voluntary and lacks the allure of coins or incentives. This disparity in motivation between Miners and Nodes prompts a unique consideration within the blockchain ecosystem. Enter ETCMC and the ETCPOW token, an initiative aiming to revolutionize this paradigm.

The project recognizes the fundamental role Nodes play in the stability and decentralization of the network. By redefining the incentive structure for Node operators, ETCPOW aims to create a more balanced and participatory ecosystem. This innovative approach not only has the potential to enhance the overall health of proof-of-work networks but also signifies a step towards recognizing and rewarding the often unsung heroes of the blockchain — the voluntary Node operators.

What does a Node do?

• Nodes are participants in the network that store a copy of the entire blockchain and validate transactions.
• Validation: Nodes verify the transactions and blocks to ensure that they adhere to the consensus rules of the network. This helps maintain the integrity of the blockchain.
• Distribution: Nodes propagate valid transactions and blocks to other nodes in the network, ensuring that all nodes have an up-to-date copy of the blockchain.

The distinction between Miners and Nodes is crucial in understanding the dynamics of blockchain networks. Miners engage in competitive cryptographic puzzle-solving, harnessing significant computational power. The first successful Miner earns the privilege to append a new block to the blockchain, reaping rewards in the form of newly minted cryptocurrency (block reward) and transaction fees. This process, known as proof-of-work, necessitates substantial electricity consumption and often requires specialized hardware, such as Application-Specific Integrated Circuits (ASICs), intensifying the resource requirements for miners.

On the flip side, Nodes play a different role, functioning without the competitive puzzle-solving aspect. Unlike Miners, Nodes operate voluntarily, running on minimal electricity and not demanding highly specialized hardware. Nodes contribute to the network’s decentralization, verifying and broadcasting transactions while maintaining a copy of the blockchain. Although their tasks may not be as resource-intensive as mining, Nodes are integral to the overall resilience and health of the blockchain network, ensuring redundancy and consensus among participants. ETCMC’s mission to introduce incentives for Node operators recognizes the importance of these contributors and aims to strike a balance in the participation dynamics of these two vital components within proof-of-work chains.

Getting paid for running an Ethereum Classic Node

ETCMC introduces a groundbreaking approach by presenting a novel concept for compensating node hosts for their contributions. While it diverges from the traditional proof-of-work model centered around solving mathematical puzzles, getting paid to operate an ETC node isn’t dependent on solving complex cryptographic challenges; rather, it relies on a smart contract mechanism designed to reward the node hosters.

This innovative approach, though distinct from traditional proof-of-work, provides an incentive for individuals to host nodes that contribute positively to the network. While not identical to conventional proof-of-work, this model establishes a unique way to encourage participation and support from node hosts, fostering a more robust and well-rounded ecosystem for Ethereum Classic.

How to Setup an ETCMC Node

There are several options you can choose to get a ETCMC node up. One approach is the do-it-yourself method, while another user-friendly alternative is the plug-and-play version designed by ETCMC, offering ease of setup and minimal power consumption.

The node I got comes with a small screen and small keyboard kind of cute and makes using the node pretty easy. It's definitely not necessary but nice to have the option.

At the back of the ETCMC unit there are two USB ports, two HDMI ports, a power port, and a LAN port.

When buying the plug-and-play model from the ETCMC store, the software has been set up already so when starting the unit you can see the ETCMC node software on the desktop.

By right-clicking and selecting “run as administrator,” you initiate the ETCMC node software, which then presents you with a splash screen featuring two distinct choices. I chose the GETH client. GETH, short for “Go Ethereum,” is one of the most widely used clients in the Ethereum ecosystem.

You need to register your node to be able to earn the ETCPOW token. You will have to use the same email that you used when purchasing. Choose a username and an Ethereum classic wallet. If you already have an Ethereum wallet, adding the Ethereum Classic network is easy.

After registering, you simply press on the yellow EARN ETCPOW button and the node will start syncing. This can take a long time because it will have to download all of the Ethereum Classic blockchain. For me, it took around 48 hours, so patience is key.

When you setup the node using the plug-and-play option, the electricity cost of running the node is negligible. So keeping it running for a long time is not a problem or much work.

When your node is fully synced it starts earning ETCPOW

At the top right, you can see your ETCPOW balance and also a CLAIM ETCPOW button. There is a catch though, well actually two catches. You need to wait until it hits 100 ETCPOW tokens before you can claim them. When you finally hit 100 and click claim, you still have five-day waiting period before you actually receive the coins in your wallet.

If you want to trade your ETCPOW, you can do so on HEBE swap a decentralised exchange on Ethereum classic.

https://app.hebeswap.com

And ETCMC recently launched its own DEX.

https://www.etc-mc.com/#/swap

This way you can trade into ETC and after that in whatever coins you like.

Risk

With a novel concept like this come certain risks. How much should such a token be priced is determined by the market. This can mean there can be huge swings in price.

Just a month ago, the node was potentially making $20 per week but the token price has dropped significantly since I began running the node.

I have mined, (noded?) 200 ETCPOW coins since starting it. This is now worth around $40. This should be a bit more but I’ve been moving the tokens around to different locations.

A node makes about 240 ETCPOW tokens a month, so it really depends on the current token price what dollar amount it earns. Right now that would be about $50 a month.

But will it keep dropping or will it go up again? It depends a bit on what the team and community do with this new idea of paying out node operators.

Starting a decentralized exchange could be a great step in creating more value for the project and creating demand for ETCPOW tokens.

ETCPOW Tokenomics:

Total supply: 1 billion ETCPOW tokens Token distribution:

• Mining contract: 60% (600 million ETCPOW tokens)
• ETCMC DAO: 20% (200 million ETCPOW tokens)
• Team and advisors: 10% (100 million ETCPOW tokens)
• Marketing and community development: 5% (50 million ETCPOW tokens)
• Airdrops: 2% (20 million ETCPOW tokens)
• ETCPOW staking rewards: 2% (20 million ETCPOW tokens)

Conclusion

Running a node is good for the network. Running a node and getting paid for it means more people will run said node. So this actually a pretty smart incentive for people joining the ETC ecosystem to get involved and contribute.

This project has been a big success and of great value for the Ethereum Classic Network. The number of nodes has steadily been growing even after Donald McIntyre’s tweet and is now over 94%. This means that those are all ETC nodes running the ETCMC GETH client!

But is it great value for you? And will it make you money? Right now it is a profitable way to run a node. How profitable? Only the future will tell.

The project is a great and novel way to strengthen the ETC blockchain so this project could have a bright future ahead.

Pros

• Good earnings even though the token price has been dropping
• Low electricity use
• Easy setup (plug and play model)
• Supporting the Ethereum Classic Blockchain

Cons

• The app and claiming process is janky and kind of annoying I would like to see the amount lowered and the claiming process not take five days.
• Sometimes the node drops peers and can’t find new ones to keep the blockchain up to date so that means it doesn't earn. (This could also be due to the fact I moved it a few times).

So should you run out and buy 20 ETCMC nodes? Probably not, but if you are interested in Blockchain and low-power mining, this can be a fun way to run a node and earn some money on the side.

Where to buy the ETCMC node

If you want to buy the plug-and-play node you can go check out their store here. Make sure to use the code VOSKCOIN to save.

https://voskco.in/etcmc

There you can also find the digital license that you could run on a device you already own.

Would you like to know more?

Stay tuned for a full video review on the VoskCoin YouTube Channel, and check out this interview with the founder of ETCMC:

Thank you to ETCMC for providing this node to VoskCoin to review. Please make sure to do your own research before investing.

ETCMC Node Review & Setup Guide was originally published in VoskCoin on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

My Journey with Chia & Evergreen Miners

If you haven’t done so already, I encourage you to go and watch our full HDD mining tutorial, where we turn a spare PC into a Chia mining farm! This tutorial is what got me started with my Chia mining journey, and when coupled with my love of technology, I knew that I had to expand my mini farm!

That’s where the VoskCoin x EVG Tails Edition miners came in — by grabbing a starter kit (specifically the 100TBe kit), I could easily deploy essentially 10x the capacity right next to my Chia mining PC! The appeal was almost entirely from a hobbyist perspective, knowing well that the Evergreen Miners are not necessarily going to break even for a long time. At the current price of about $1,300, the kit is set to take over 2 years to finally break even, should the price of Chia not appreciate. Naturally, my hope is for the coin to rise in price, but if it doesn’t, I haven’t gotten into this mining position as a “for-profit” venture — which significantly increases the amount of fun I can have mining!

Tech Deep Dive: Understanding HDD Mining

Mining cryptocurrency with hard drives is done by providing “plots” on hard drives and then farming those plots via an internet connection. With Evergreen Miners, you connect the HDD enclosures to the custom-built hub and set up the miner through their mobile app.

These HDD mining rigs mine the Chia $XCH coin, the namesake of which aims to create a decentralised storage network. Chia is currently a top 200 cryptocurrency, with a massive 30 Exbibytes (EiB) of decentralised storage running, which is over 34,000,000 Terabytes!

First Impressions: Unboxing the VoskCoin Tails Edition EVG Miners

Visual Appeal:
★★★★★ 5/5
This might be a little biased, but I love the Tails Edition orange enclosures! Maybe it’s because I was honoured to be able to assist in the design process, but the app theme, NFT, and enclosures are all incredibly unique. The form factor of the HDDs is also great, allowing you to easily and securely stack them on top of one another.

Initial Setup:
★★★☆☆ 3/5
My first Evergreen kit was a breeze to set up — unfortunately, this kit was not the same. Out of the box, there seemed to be no problem, however, it was upon setting them up in the app that a situation emerged. My drives weren’t able to connect to the hub! After messaging one of the Evergreen team members as well as a VoskCoin team member, they helped me remove the faulty chip and all I had to do was flash a micro-SD card with Evergreen’s software — quick and easy! We have also been informed that it was a faulty batch and that the issue has been resolved in all kits released thereafter.

Performance Check: Evaluating the EVG Miners in Action!

What’s most interesting about mining with HDDs is that there is not a traditional “efficiency” standard as you may see with Bitcoin or Kaspa mining. The measure for HDD mining (Chia in particular) is in your plots’ compression level. A higher compression level will mean more space can be “crammed” into your physical capacity — basically, it means you get more space per HDD, and thus more rewards!

This is important because when buying an EVG set, you get C5 compression, which means almost 25% extra rewards per hard drive!

Overall performance:
★★★★★ 5/5
With 100% uptime, basically no heat or noise, and consistent rewards, the Tails Edition EVG miners’ performance is rock solid. The app is intuitive and easy to navigate, and the stats available for your kit help you to effectively troubleshoot should anything go wrong. My only gripe with the mobile app is the lack of transaction history — I can’t see where I’ve sent coins to, which makes it a hassle to transfer every time I want to send coins to cold storage. Other than that, it’s customisable with the Tails Edition theme, and tracks everything you’ll need!

The Financial Side: Investing in Hard Drives

As mentioned previously — if you’re looking for a profitable mining venture, then you may want to look somewhere else (for now!) Unfortunately, mining Chia is not very lucrative due to a few factors:
- HDD prices
- Coin price
- Rewards emission

Currently, the price of the Chia $XCH coin is not very high (when compared to previous highs). Couple this with the fact that on average, only about $300,000 is emitted per day in new coins across the entire blockchain. With over 30 EiB in storage committed to mining, rewards for a few TBs will thus be far lower than the actual cost of the HDD itself. This means your rewards for 100TBe at C5 compression averages around $0.50 per day. At the price point of $1,300, it’s easy to see why this is not a very appealing mining endeavour, other than if you’re bullish on the future of Chia.

I think that what Chia is doing is exciting and has incredible potential for mainstream adoption (if executed correctly). The total netspace has seen a slight decline in trajectory over the past months, which indicates a slightly bearish sentiment toward adding new space to the blockchain (ie. people are less bullish on buying and plotting HDDs).

Final Verdict: Are the EVG Miners Worth It?

So why am I doing all of this despite it clearly not being a financially sound idea? It’s because I absolutely love the tech! Building a mini mining farm right from the comfort of my own home, knowing that these digital employees make me money even while I sleep is a fascinating idea — despite the current profitability. Ultimately, the verdict on whether the Evergreen Miner kits are worth it is entirely dependent on your perspective of the Chia project and the HDD mining landscape in general.

Stay Tuned: The Evolving Journey

As my mini mining farm continues to evolve, make sure you’re following to get all the recent news and updates! The next potential update has to do with Dogecoin and Litecoin mining — so stay tuned!

Thanks so much for reading and following — if you enjoyed this article and gained something from it, don’t forget to leave some claps (you can clap up to 50 times!) Don’t forget to subscribe to the VoskCoin YouTube channel, the leading cryptocurrency mining channel, if you’re interested in seeing HDD mining on a whole different scale!

Thank you to Evergreen and VoskCoin for sending this Starter Kit to review! This article may contain affiliate links that will help the channel. Your support is greatly appreciated!

My Mini HDD Mining Farm is Growing! was originally published in VoskCoin on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Hey, I’m Vosk, I have been building my own mining farm over the last several years, and very seriously over the last year. I also operate the VoskCoin YouTube channel where we talked about GPU mining Kaspa in 2022!

ASIC mining is much more profitable than GPU mining especially if you aren’t sitting on a bunch of graphics cards from the previous mining goldrush. I was waiting patiently for Kaspa KAS ASIC miners to expand my Kaspa mining front heavily. Finally, IceRiver released the KS0 a small and profitable mini miner. I got my KS0 in July of 2023, and it was earning $25 a day and only cost me about $5 per MONTH to operate — very profitable and very efficient mining. Within one week (the first week of August), the IceRiver KS0 mining profitability decreased to $21 per day.

Now you may already be getting FOMO and want to buy one of these miners, right? Kaspa is putting out over $1M in newly mined coins per day. It’s the 2nd most profitable coin to mine and has been for a few months. When Kaspa hit a new all-time high in USD, it was emitting nearly $2M in new KAS coins per day. Well if I cannot stop you from buying a miner, please buy from ASIC Marketplace. We’ve gotten most of our Kaspa ASIC miners from them, and quickly, which leads to much higher mining returns! Oh, and use code VOSKCOIN to save some coin! I would advise you to read this whole post and subscribe to the VoskCoin blog before sinking any Kaspa miner orders though!

So… remember when I was saying I was mining over $20 a day and barely spending anything on my electricity bill? That was when the network hashrate for Kaspa was only 1 ph/s. It is now 138x more difficult to mine the same amount of KAS coins. Oh and the number of coins mined per day, in Kaspa, decreases monthly as well…

So now I am thinking it’s time to up the ante, instead of buying a bunch of these little KS0 miners, I wanted a bigger one, like the IceRiver KS1, which is essentially 10 KS0 miners based off hashrate and power consumption.

My IceRiver KS1 was supposed to earn $100 per day when I got the shipping notification, but by the time I received it a week later, I only was able to realize $78 of daily mining profitability. Keep in mind this miner commanded a price over $6,000 for months, including at the time of my acquisition, and it was the biggest Kaspa miner you could get at the time because IceRiver gradually rolled out the KS0, the KS1, the KS2, and so on in their kheavyhash miner line up.

In September of 2023, I posted a video update on how the KS0 and KS1 used to be earning $125 per day, and now they are earning much less, but how much less, and why? Kaspa pumps a few months later which really changed the mining returns and dynamic. As far as I know, everyone who bought the KS0, KS1, and KS2 IceRiver ASIC miners early more than made their money back BUT profits started dropping dramatically!

One to two months later, the KS0 and KS1 were mining about 100 and 1,000 KAS respectively, which at the time equated to $3.40 and $34 daily.

Now everyone is getting Kaspa mining fever, and KAS ASIC miners were flying off the shelves in Q4 2023. VoskCoin was able to procure the IceRiver KS3M and Bitmain Antminer KS3 and then later an IceRiver KS0 Pro, significantly expanding our Kaspa mining farm.

So by the end of 2023, I was mining with the IceRiver KS0, KS0 Pro, KS1, KS2, KS3M, and the Bitmain Antminer KS3. I stuck most of my Kaspa miners into what I call the “Kaspa Corner” on the Kaspa mining shelf. The Antminer KS3, which quickly became my most profitable mining rig and favorite Kaspa miner, is in the RV garage at VoskCoin HQ. I was blown away by the mining profits of the Bitmain Antminer KS3; it was earning $244 when I first plugged it in, but spoiler, now it’s making less than half of that!

I have been running my IceRiver KS2 in my garage along with a MicroBT Whatsminer M30s to keep the garage on my house warm in the winter. Some people have complained about the later IceRiver miner batches having issues and performing worse, and in my experience, I found that to be true. My IceRiver KS2 is definitely my worst IceRiver ASIC miner. The performance is lower and I have had more issues with it like rejected shares, inability to access the miner web dashboard, and it simply mines less Kaspa than it should be mining.

At the time of writing this article, here is the daily mining profitability of the IceRiver KS1 vs the IceRiver KS2, which, by the way, the KS2 is supposed to be double the mining power of the KS1. The hashrate is 2 th/s vs the KS1’s 1 th/s. You’ll quickly notice my recent generation KS2 is only 60% better (and this is pretty average performance, 50–80% higher mining profitability) than my IceRiver KS1.

When I really look back on this Kaspa mining journey, the Bitmain Antminer KS3 shines as a superior machine and PSU modularity overlaps with my other Bitcoin miners. The KS3 uses the same power supply as the Bitmain Antminer S19, and to be honest, I am not the biggest fan of Bitmain’s business practices, so don’t think this is some shill for Antminers. It’s a practical and real-world performance review by a mining farm operator. My Antminer KS3 has been more profitable and reliable than the IceRiver ASIC miners, but it came at a premium price. The price per hashrate was essentially double of the IceRiver KS3M when I ordered mine. The Antminer KS3 has the above benefits and higher density, as well as better electrical efficiency, but at what price premium is that really worth from a practical mining farm operator looking to maximize his return on investment? That’s for you to decide…

Looking back over the last year of Kaspa ASIC mining, it has been a profitable endeavor, and the old rule of thumb in ASIC mining is that first batch ASIC miner releases almost always breakeven or better continues to hold true. With Kaspa emissions continuing to decrease and an effective halving of Kaspa annually occurring with the monthly KAS decrease in mined coins, I do feel that it is a time to be more conservative on the Kaspa mining front, but as always…nothing ventured, nothing gained!

I’ll continue to review new Kaspa ASIC miner model releases, and I plan to add a couple more Kaspa miners over the next year, but with KAS miners rapidly developing, and increasing competition from more manufacturers like Goldshell now producing KAS miners, I will definitely be slowing down and hoping for a parabolic bull run to make Kaspa mining rigs continue to be some of the most profitable miners in 2024!

It’s hard to quantify exactly how much Kaspa the VoskCoin Mining Farm side of our business mined, because the earnings mesh with other Bitcoin and Altcoin miners on NiceHash, we do have some limited data from f2pool where we mined over 60,000 KAS. The average earnings for our IceRiver KS0, KS0 Pro, KS1, KS2, KS3M, and Bitmain Antminer KS3 combined over the last week is $194.20 per day according to NH, which is about 1,793 KAS per day.

If you want to see the real-world mining profitability of all of the Kaspa ASIC miners, please refer to this screenshot of our mining earnings. Please note these numbers vary by +-25%.

Thanks to everyone who supports VoskCoin content, subscribes, and uses our affiliate links to help drive more content creation. This should be obvious, but VoskCoin has relationships with most companies in crypto mining by now. We hold Bitcoin and Kaspa among other cryptocurrencies, and we are obviously big fans of mining here!

By the way, do you know about VoskCoinTalk, it’s the VoskCoin forum!

Was Kaspa Mining Worth It? was originally published in VoskCoin on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

VoskCoin increased our Evergreen Miners by nearly 50%, deploying another 42 hard drives this month. Most HDDs were deployed later in the month, and there was a fair amount of troubleshooting to stabilize the HDD mining farm. With nearly 2 PB in physical capacity, we are nearly doubling our 2023 goal of 1 PB of HDD miners deployed. We have now deployed 114 HDDs.

Before the end of 2023 we hope to receive our last miner on order which will help us breach the 2 petabyte physical capacity. Looking forward into 2024 we will be exploring higher compression and DIYing additional Chia XCH farmers but the expansion will slow down as we approach the Chia halving and take a more conservative long-term approach.

To date we have hodled 100% of the Chia VoskCOin has farmed, and look forward to hopefully and exciting future!

The VoskCoin HDD mining shed is cooled with a minisplit, and we upgraded the minisplit to be able to operate in sub-zero Fahrenheit temperatures. This enables us to have an energy efficient and entirely clean HDD mining environment, like a mini data center.

What are your thoughts on the plug and play chia miners we are using? It’s been really cool to collaborate on a limited edition release with EVG, you can still order the VoskCoin Tails Edition Evergreen miner here.

It has been surprising to see the Chia $XCH cryptocurrency trend down in 2023 in price, while the Chia project netspace continues increase, a new all-time high is soon. Compression (increases HDD mining power and thus netspace basically) is playing a big role in this, but still!

If you prefer video, check out the latest VoskCoin HDD Chia XCH mining farm video update here where not only do I breakdown the recent developments on our hard drive mining endeavor, but the venerable Miss Vosk (Alexa) sets up the latest HDD miner!

Looking forward to crunching some annual 2023 data for the next VoskCoin HDD mining farm snapshot!

Thanks for reading and as a reminder and full disclosure, we are fortunate to have a supporting relationship from Evergreen Miner, which should be obvious since we collaborated with them on a limited edition release HDD mining rig.

VoskCoin December 2023 Chia Farming HDD Mining Snapshot was originally published in VoskCoin on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.