Mining Rig

What Is A Mining Rig?

A mining rig in cryptocurrency is a hardware setup that mines digital assets. A mining rig is a computer setup that is used for mining cryptocurrencies. This mining setup could involve just a computer system or two or more computer systems.

The computer setup solves complex mathematical problems to create a new block on a blockchain network and create a new digital asset. Mining usually requires lots of computer power; this makes mining a costly venture. Elon Musk, a worldwide renowned inventor and billionaire, recently voiced his concerns over the high energy demands of mining and transacting Bitcoin, the most popular cryptocurrency globally with the largest market capital size.

Deeper Definition

Conventional computer systems are used as mining rigs, and some computers have also been developed to function solely as mining rigs. These computers with sole mining functions are much more profitable at mining than conventional computers used as mining rigs. The Central Processing Unit is expected to perform the bulk of the function in traditional computing, which is not valid for mining rigs. The Graphics Processing Units usually perform the hard job of mining cryptocurrencies. By implication, conventional computers with better graphics cards are better at mining. Also, computers made solely for mining are traditional computers stacked with graphics cards and higher graphic capabilities.

Before thinking of having your mining rig, consider that it is power consumption, and the extra cost of power should be factored into your budget. Building your rig is rocket science. You would need to do a lot of trials and will also need to be very patient. You will need a motherboard that allows the attachment of many graphic cards. This is because the graphical processing unit is the most important in a mining rig. A high-capacity central processing unit is not needed; some resources could be saved from this. There is also no need for overspending on RAMs as they are not so much needed in high capability for mining.

Mining Rig Example

A number of cryptocurrencies get mined before listing. The devices, either general-purpose or single-purpose, used are the mining rigs. Supercomputers are most reliable for these functions. John decides to set up a mining rig. He buys several GPU units and sets them up to work together to mine cryptocurrency.