Not all video cards are equally well suited for mining. For the mining of cryptocurrency to be profitable, it is necessary to strictly select the parameters of the video card to create a farm.
One of the most successful series is the MSI Radeon RX 470. It has received a lot of attention, as evidenced by its huge market demand.
Despite the fact that it has recently been replaced by a new family – the RX 500, the RX470 series continues to sell even at inflated prices, thanks to the easy-to-mine architecture – Polaris.
The card is energy efficient and has a pretty good hash rate. The popular mining calculator has included the RX 470 card in the list of recommended GPU devices. Let’s review the characteristics of the models in this series, and conclude how profitable it is to mine cryptocurrency now.
It should be noted right away that in 2021 cloud GPU mining became the most profitable, which is much more profitable than buying your own equipment, is more flexible in the amount of investment and does not require setting up / maintaining your farms. We have made a detailed review about cloud mining of cryptocurrency, within which we have compiled a rating of the best services for 2021.
Mining on RX 470 specifications
Additional power supply to the video card ensures stable operation during overclocking. The polaris structure is very practical for mining, so the RX 470 remains in demand despite the release of newer series.
For example, if we compare RX 470 and RX 480 in mining, then the former is ahead in terms of energy efficiency. Not to mention the video cards that were produced before (R 9 380, R 9 390, etc.)
Besides, graphic adapters of this line can be turned into RX 570 by simple manipulations. You need cards of the same manufacturer and with the same memory. Video instructions for flashing RX 470 to RX 570:
After flashing, mining efficiency improves. Please note that in the event of an error, RX 470 will turn not into a 570, but into a brick. All actions you perform at your own peril and risk.
Let’s see what they are capable of in mining. Please note that the 470, unlike the 570, is only released with 4 GB of memory and, therefore, they cannot mine Ether at the same speed as six months ago. On ETH, you will get on the strength of 15 MH / s, and maybe 10 MH / s, and then provided that the farm is running on Linux (it is best to use Hive OS). On the Windows operating system, there will be even less.
Therefore, the WhatToMine calculator divided the Ethash algorithm into two columns. In the first, the hashrate is written for large Ethereum, and in the second, it is called Ethash4GB, the hash rate on all other coins of this algorithm. After the hard fork, the cryptocurrency switched to the modernized Etchash protocol, but its hash rates are the same as on other coins of the Ethash algorithm. with a dag file less than four gigabytes. In January 2021, this is the only cryptocurrency on the Ethash4GB protocol that brings more or less significant income.
Indicators of a video card in mining
The productivity of the RX 470 mining farm is directly related to the hash algorithm. The mining calculator helps you choose the most profitable coins. Despite the decrease in the hash rate, the Ethereum (ETH) coin remains the best option. Followed by:
- Veil-ProgPow (VEIL);
- Ravencoin (RVN);
- Beam (BEAM);
- Ethereum Classic (ETC).
The situation may change tomorrow, so you need to regularly monitor the situation on the cryptoasset market.
New promising projects appear periodically. Mining on the Dagger Hashimoto (Ethash) algorithm worked well in dual with (DCR, MAX, SMART, XVG), but, in 2020, this topic is no longer relevant. But a new option has appeared, combined mining ETH + Zill ETC + Zill. This is mining on the same algorithm.
The Zilik project, due to its specific features, does not require constant work of miners. The Zill POW protocol is activated for a short period, once every few hours, and the rest of the time miners mine ETH or ETC. On the air, you practically do not lose anything and get an additional several Zill coins per day.
Which model to choose, the main nuances when buying a used one
Prior to the advent of the new Navi series graphics cards, the 470/570 were the most common workhorses on red gpu farms themselves. But now these cards are morally outdated, and you can’t find them in stores during the day with fire. They are sold only on the secondary market and most of the lots on display are mining video cards that have worked for several years in riga.
If you purchased such cards, be sure to check, or rather change the thermal interface immediately and be prepared for problems with the fans. If it weren’t for Ether costing more than $ 1000 per coin, then purchasing such old cards for mining would not make any sense. But with an uptrend in the virtual asset market, which will certainly generate a significant soar in prices for mining video cards, someone can buy a couple of used RX 470s, hoping that they will pay off quickly.
MSI RX 470
The low noise MSI RX 470 mining version was first released in Japan in 2017. MSI’s standard GPUs are also well adapted for mining, thanks to the dual-chamber air-cooled heatsinks. The video card is available in two versions with 4 GB and 8 GB of video memory.
Model specifications:
Consumption – 130 W;
Memory – 4 GB, 7000 MHz;
Additional power supply – 8 pin;
Power supply unit – 500 W.
Powercolor RX 470
Mining is convenient on the Powercolor RX 470 video accelerator, thanks to the dual BIOS / UEFI and the overclocking mode switch. The special profile of the cooler blades, and the nickel radiator grille with heat-dissipating pipes, guarantee protection against overheating at high loads.
Model specifications:
Consumption – 120 W;
Memory – 4 GB, 6600 MHz;
Additional power supply – 8 pin;
Power supply unit – 450 W.
Gigabyte RX 470
The gaming Gigabyte RX 470 is mined no worse than complex computer games. The proprietary XTREME Engine utility makes it easy to overclock the device to the desired parameters. Coolers WINDFORCE 2X provide effective heat dissipation, and color LED-backlight allows you to visually control the operation of the video card.
Model specifications:
Consumption – 120 W;
Additional power supply – 8 pin;
Memory 4GB, 7000 MHz;
Power supply unit – 450 W.
Asus RX 470
For Asus RX 470, mining is a native element. A video card with a samsung memory chip, released specifically for cryptocurrency mining. The video card quickly fails due to a poor cooling system, killers after 1 year of use stop spinning. We do not recommend buying such video cards for mining 24/7
Model specifications:
Consumption – 120 W;
Memory – 4GB, 7000 MHz;
Additional power supply – 8 pin;
Power supply unit – 450 W.
Sapphire RX 470
On the Sapphire RX 470 video card, mining will be as efficient as possible. The graphics processor is as powerful as the 480 model. Even with standard parameters, the RX 470 sapphire in mining demonstrates a high hash rate.
Model specifications:
Consumption – 175 W;
Memory – 8 GB, 8000 MHz;
Additional power supply – 8 pin;
Power supply unit – 500 W.
The power supply unit for the RX 470 mining farm is chosen according to its power based on the amount of consumption of nodes (GPU, riser, motherboard, processor) with the addition of 20% to protect against overload.
Before buying a used video card, you should carefully inspect the product. First of all, attention is paid to such criteria.
Sale date.
Factory seals and stickers.
The presence of swollen and chipped parts.
PCB color. After the repair, the silk-screen printing darkens, the shade of the textolite changes.
Cooler wear rate. The blades should be easy to scroll manually, without extraneous sounds and backlash.
After an external examination, performance tests are carried out using special programs (GPU-Z, FurMark, etc.).
Factory defect appears in the first months. If the RX 470 in mining has worked for a year without breakdowns, then, subject to careful operation, it will serve the new owner for a long time. But no one is safe from troubles, so it is better to purchase new GPUs for a mining farm.
What to mine? Algorithm selection
The most profitable mining on the RX 470 Ethash (Etherum), KawPow, BeamHashIII video card. Ethereum Classic is more or less profitable, the rest of Ethash4GB coins are mined on ASICs.
What is better to mine on RX 470 besides Ethereum (ether)? After the departure of Monero, there are almost no profitable tokens left on the kryptonite. It is more or less profitable to mine BitTube, but you will earn more on Ethash. The ProgPowZ and KawPow (RVN) algorithms can be an alternative, but they heat up the cards very much and it is not advisable to switch to them in the hot season. Moreover, the profit is still higher on ETH / ETC.
Experts constantly analyze the most profitable coins, the services they use (Whattomine, Coincalculator). Current and latest news is published on the global Bitcointalk forum. There you can find out the newest projects that no one knows about yet.
Dual mining, frequencies for the normal operation of the video card
In the new PhoenixMiner releases, the developers have added support for the modified ETChash algorithm and ETH / ETC + Zill combined mining.
We set the frequency for the core 1169 and for the memory 2100, with these parameters the card consumes 95 W, Ether mining on the video card reaches 26 Mh / s and 450 per decred. Frequencies 1070/2100 reduce power consumption in mining to 70 W, with a hashrate of 25/430, this is the best option for setting up the GPU of a crypto farm.
On the coins of the EquihashZero platform (Vidulum and Zclassic (ZCL)), according to the calculator, the hashrate is not bad for mining, but there are very few pools for work and exchanges.
Often video cards during dual mining can melt 8 pin wires on the power supply. This is due to the colossal high voltage across the core. In order to avoid problems, set Core Voltage -100. Detailed settings for dual mining.
BIOS firmware
How to flash an RX 470 video card for mining? To modify the BIOS, the following programs are required:
ATIWinflash – saves settings and flashes the card.
SRBPolaris V3-Int – edits bios.
Atikmdag-patcher – adapts the flashed GPU for Windows and drivers.
Sequencing
Open Atiwinflash with administrator rights, if there are several cards, select the one you need and press the right Save button to save the original BIOS. It is necessary to make at least two copies, one for editing, another return to the previous settings in case of incorrect operation of the card after reprogramming.
Open the BIOS in the SRBPolaris utility to change the timings (time delay diagram for correct operation). We look at the manufacturer of the device’s memory. We select the values corresponding to the RAM of the video card.
We edit the timings and save the modified BIOS. Instead of SRBPolaris, you can use PolarisBiosEditor-master with auto-timing function. But, best of all, grab the timings from here: https://forum.bits.media/index.php?/topic/38510-eth-xmr timing rx470480570580- optimized- timings-configs/
Click Load image in the Atiwinflash utility, select a new BIOS modification and give the Program command. After the firmware has been completed, the utility will prompt you to restart your PC. Before rebooting, you must run Atikmdag-patcher, otherwise the system may not detect the video card.
It is important to consider:
Optimized 470 timings will speed up mining by 25-30%, which is important given the cost of electricity.
When handing over the stitched video cards for warranty repair, the store has the right to refuse repair. Be careful if you decide to change your graphics card settings.
Miners Claymore’s 15 and Phoenix 5.5 are able to modify timings on the fly. In the claymore, you need to select the values -strap and -rxboost, and in the phoenix add the option – mt 1, or – mt 2. You will get the same hash rate as on the modified BIOS and will not risk the warranty.
Overclocking Radeon RX 470 4 and 8 GB
In addition to modifying the BIOS, you need to speed up your work. In this section, you will learn: «How to overclock a video card for mining.»
MSI Afterburner is required to adjust:
Core Clock
Memory Clock
Power Limit.
Core Voltage
Fan Speed mode.
Exceeding the optimum permissible frequencies leads to malfunctions. To determine the correct overclocking parameters for the video card.
We recommend overclocking the video card by gradually adding +30 MHz. When mining ETH, the core frequency is practically not used, therefore, the optimal value is 1169 MHz, but for the memory frequency you need to set the maximum effective values of about 2100 MHz.
You can also overclock cards using mining programs. Enter the necessary parameters –cclock and –mclock in the Claymore’s or Phoenix batch file and the miner will do everything himself. But these options do not always work correctly, so watch the miner window at startup.
How to reduce energy consumption?
The graphics accelerator is a power-hungry device. Consumption of RX 470 in mining is higher than in game mode. To save power, lower the core voltage using MSI Afterburner. In the utility settings, you need to open access to voltage regulation, which allows you to change the parameters within 100 mV. To save on electricity bills and not lose the hash rate, it is necessary to increase the Power Limit of video cards when overclocking the RX 470 mining rig.
When flashing the card, you can lower the memory and core voltage. To do this, open the BIOS in the SRBPolarisV 3 program, go to the Voltages section and enter the parameters manually. Then you need to save the BIOS and flash the card with it. Usually gpu of this line work stably at 875 Mv. If the rig restarts or the hash rate drops, you need to increase the voltage to 900 Mv or even 925 Mv. In the Claymore’s 15 and Phoenix 5.5 miners, you can perform undervolting directly in the execution file. Just add -cvddc 900, -mvddc 900 to the batch file and you will reduce the consumption of the card in mining.
Attention! At low voltage, the –powlim value must be increased (up to about +40). You will not lose energy efficiency at all, ensure the stability of the work and the normal number of shares sent to the pool.
As a result, the card is flashed, overclocked and ready for cryptocurrency mining. Of course, one video card is not enough for mining, it is advisable to assemble a rig from at least 4 – 6 video cards. During the decline in prices for virtual coins, not everyone dared to make such costs. Many regretted this bitterly. When the next upswing began, the equipment became scarce again and those who sold their farms, disillusioned with mining, lost potential income and were left with nothing.
