ACADEMY
MINING EDITION
MODULE 4
LESSON 1
Power Efficiency & Cooling Best Practices
Running Qubic’s miner effectively means squeezing the most useful work out of your hardware while minimizing waste heat and electricity costs. Qubic’s Useful Proof of Work (uPoW) pushes your CPUs and GPUs to perform heavy AI computations (training the AIGarth neural networks) instead of pointless hashes . This is great for the world, but it can be tough on your rig! High-intensity workloads can max out your CPU and GPU for hours on end, generating plenty of heat . Let’s go through some best practices to keep your mining efficient and your hardware healthy:
Optimize Hardware Settings
Tune your system for the best performance-per-watt. For CPUs, enable advanced instruction sets like AVX2/AVX-512 in your BIOS to get a solid boost in AI training speed . Consider lowering your CPU’s clock frequency or voltage slightly (undervolting) to reduce power draw and heat while losing minimal performance – this improves energy efficiency. Similarly for GPUs, focus on memory clocks rather than core clocks; Qubic’s AI tasks are very memory-intensive, so a modest VRAM overclock yields better results than a high core overclock . Many miners have found that underclocking GPU cores (to run cooler) but overclocking memory can improve their iterations per second per watt.
Ensure Adequate Cooling
Good cooling is essential – Qubic mining can drive your hardware at 100% utilization for extended periods . Make sure your rig has proper airflow: use well-placed fans to pull cool air in and push hot air out. Clean dust filters regularly (dust buildup can choke off airflow and insulate heat). If using multiple GPUs, consider spacing them out or using riser cables to avoid heat pockets. Monitor your temperatures closely; ideally keep GPUs under ~70–75°C and CPUs under ~80°C for long-term use (lower is always better for longevity). If temperatures are too high, you may need to reapply thermal paste on your CPU/GPU, upgrade to better cooling solutions (like aftermarket GPU fans or liquid cooling for extreme setups), or simply dial back your overclocks. Remember, Qubic’s AI training will push your hardware to its limits, so proactive cooling can prevent throttling and hardware damage.
Power Supply & Electricity Tips
Use a high-quality 80+ Gold (or better) rated power supply unit (PSU) with some headroom above your rigs’ maximum draw – this ensures efficient power delivery and less waste heat from the PSU itself. If you run many rigs, consider measuring their power consumption with a wattmeter. This helps calculate your profitability (Qubic is currently one of the most profitable CPU-mineable coins , but electricity still costs money!). Mining efficiency isn’t just about hash rate – it’s hash rate per watt. Tweaking settings to drop power usage 10% for only a 5% drop in performance increases your net earnings. Many Qubic miners run their GPUs at ~70–80% power limit to hit a sweet spot of efficiency, and similarly run high-core-count CPUs at slightly reduced voltage.
Power Supply & Electricity Tips
Use a high-quality 80+ Gold (or better) rated power supply unit (PSU) with some headroom above your rigs’ maximum draw – this ensures efficient power delivery and less waste heat from the PSU itself. If you run many rigs, consider measuring their power consumption with a wattmeter. This helps calculate your profitability (Qubic is currently one of the most profitable CPU-mineable coins , but electricity still costs money!). Mining efficiency isn’t just about hash rate – it’s hash rate per watt. Tweaking settings to drop power usage 10% for only a 5% drop in performance increases your net earnings. Many Qubic miners run their GPUs at ~70–80% power limit to hit a sweet spot of efficiency, and similarly run high-core-count CPUs at slightly reduced voltage.
System Stability & Maintenance
Because Qubic mining runs 24/7, system stability is key. Ensure your drivers are up to date (new NVIDIA/AMD drivers can contain optimizations or fixes for intensive compute tasks ). If you’re on Windows, turn off automatic updates/restarts that might interrupt your miner. Consider using Linux or HiveOS for dedicated rigs – HiveOS has built-in support for Qubic mining and lets you manage clocks and fan speeds centrally . Perform regular maintenance: dust out your machines monthly, check for failing fans, and keep an eye on component health. A well-maintained rig not only mines better but also lasts longer, saving you costly replacements.
(Remember: a cooler, more efficient rig not only earns more QUBIC over time, but also avoids thermal throttling – so it’s a win-win for you and the network.)