Your first miner: the go/no-go checklist
A first rig fails on site problems far more often than on hardware choice. Write the constraints before browsing models — this checklist turns 'which miner?' into 'may I mine here at all?'
Site before silicon
The classic first-buyer mistake: a great machine that cannot be powered, cooled, or lived with. Run this list in order — a NO on any early line stops the purchase, not the budget:
- Network — which coin/algorithm? (Determines hardware family — see ASIC vs GPU vs CPU.)
- Power delivery — dedicated circuit capacity, voltage, connectors; electrician sign-off for anything above a GPU or two.
- Heat path — where do 1–3 kW of heat go? (Every watt becomes heat — Energy track.)
- Noise & placement — measured dB at distance, household tolerance, ventilation without recirculation.
- Operator — who monitors it daily, who fixes it at 2 a.m., are you that person?
- Budget — total first-year cost incl. delivery, electrical work, spares, deposit, reserve (next lesson).
- Support — warranty terms, seller reputation, firmware community for the model.
The worked no-go
Round numbers: a $1,500 miner fits the budget, but it wants 240 V / 16 A you do not have, and its 75 dB exceeds the room it must live in. The correct decision is not 'buy it and improvise' — it is resolve the site or pick a smaller class of machine. Document unmet conditions as blockers; do not launder them as optimistic spreadsheet rows.
See it live on pow.family
Start from our 19 tracked coins' hardware classes and quick-starts — pick the network first, then the machine that serves it at your site.