Would you buy a used mining card?

[phill]

If someone was selling some top end cards such as a 1080 or 1080 Ti with all the boxes, bits and pieces but they had said that it was used for mining, would you consider a card or two if the price was right??

Bearing in mind that when mining the cards should be tuned for wattage/performance so temps would/should be lower and so on.. Would that be a temptation for you or would you run away?? I've created a pole with some daft suggestions but just thought it'll be interesting to find out

Just curious....

 

[John Naylor]

I wouldn't buy a used card unless it was someone I knew very well, preferably from a machine I built.

 

[qubit]

I'd run away screaming.

 

[RealNeil]

I buy used GPUs all of the time. No problems yet.

 

[qubit]

I buy used GPUs all of the time. No problems yet.

But do you buy ex mining ones?

 

[RealNeil]

Yeah one of them was from a miner. (An ASUS STRIX Vega 56)

 

[windwhirl]

No, I just don't buy used gear. I simply don't have the skills to check something like a graphics card and say "It will probably work fine for a certain amount of time". Buying only new products, I can lower the chances of something malfunctioning in the short-medium term.

 

[rtwjunkie]

I wouldn't buy a used card unless it was someone I knew very well, preferably from a machine I built.

I have bought multiple used cards, all without issue. I’ve also sold many used cards both here on TPU and eBay. I’ve never sold anything but a very good condition used card. Many sellers such as myself are aboveboard and honest.

But do you buy ex mining ones?

I believe my secondary machine 4gb gtx 960 May have been a miner ( the seller sells a lot of mining cards), but maybe not since it’s a 960. Still, even with the possibility, I purchased. It is very stable, cool running, and overclocks very well.

 

[CrAsHnBuRnXp]

Yeah no. Only way I would take one is if it was given to me for free. And even then, id probably turn around and sell it. Im typically not in the market for used parts.

 

[qubit]

No, I just don't buy used gear. I simply don't have the skills to check something like a graphics card and say "It will probably work fine for a certain amount of time". Buying only new products, I can lower the chances of something malfunctioning in the short-medium term.

I don't like buying used either, unless it's from a trusted friend. No matter how clever you are, you can still get stiffed on a used sale.

I believe my secondary machine 4gb gtx 960 May have been a miner ( the seller sells a lot of mining cards), but maybe not since it’s a 960. Still, even with the possibility, I purchased. It is very stable, cool running, and overclocks very well.

Sounds like a result.

 

[jboydgolfer]

theres a Limited few id buy used anything from, (not saying no others are trustworthy). the ones i know i can trust, cdawall, rtwjunkie,Kursah,stinger608,norton ...but i rarely buy/sell used,

 

[phill]

I'm just curious as I'm looking at some ex miner cards, been offered 4 1080 Ti's for about £2000 which is decent although a little OTT since my X99 can probably only fit three of the four.. But you always best have a spare hadn't you?? lol

 

[robot zombie]

I just bought one lol.

Really gonna come down to a few factors. Above all the price has to be significantly lower. If the same money could only get me something 2 or more levels lower new, thats great to me. Ill take a look.

From there i will want to know the miners practices. How are they ventilating thier rigs? What are max temps? Are we talking 24/7? How long has the card been running continuously for? What kind of bios flash? If running multiples of the same card, did any have issues? Have they put ut through stress testing recently?

Honestly some mining cards i would take over a used gaming card. Others... ehhh. Ill pass on the oc'd ones. That says to me you dont care all that much about what youre doing, most times.

A smart miner isnt killing their cards you know? Running them continuously can kill fans, but if theyre undervolting like they should be, the strain isnt all that bad. They want to mine as efficiently as possible for as long as possible. And if things dont pan out, they want to be able to sell them as recourse.

Past that it really depends on the character of the person. But thats always true buying used. If youre smart and are comfortable getting under the hood and checking things out, flashing bios, maybe replacing a fan... and you ask the right questions, there are some incredible deals to be had on good cards thatll last a good long time.

Mining is no better or worse than other use cases. And miners are not shady people by default. To me its not about whether the card was used for mining or whatever. That tells me nothing. A lot of other things count for more.

Almost forgot... always go through channels where you have recourse if something goes wrong! Dont set yourself up to get ripped off. Theres always that chance, but theres a lot you can do to minimize it.

 

[NdMk2o1o]

I've bought many used cards never had any issues, id buy an ex miner if the seller had a good reputation, generally talking about eBay sellers with a lot of positive feedback/heat etc and any issues would be pretty apparent fairly soon after so if there was any problem paypal would be able to assist if necessary.

 

[MrGenius]

Yes. I would, and have. All day, every day. They're a great bargain. My current GPU and the one before it were used mining cards. My current GPU was still in what I would call "Mint" condition. My previous GPU was still in "Very Good" condition. The only issue with it was a "sticky" fan, that had problems spinning up(needed a little push to get going). Which I dissembled and lubed, problem solved. I still have the card and it's still running strong 4.5 years later. And by strong I mean I just set MANY new HWBOT top 5 scores with it in the last month. Including several #1 scores. I've scored in the top 10 in almost every benchmark there with it. Top 20 in all but 3(a #21, #22, and #23).

See for yourself.

 

[jaw shwaa]

My 1070 seahawk x had been mined on, for maybe a few weeks? The previous owner is family to me and I know the card was ran under volted and all that good stuff..
but it randomly up and died on me after a year of just regular gaming and editing, and only being used a few times a week ,for no reason in particular.. luckily it is still under warranty and has been replaced already.
I don't think it being mined on had anything to do with the failure though , 10/10 would buy a mined on card again lol

 

[Vayra86]

It varies from gen and brand to another whether this is a good choice. And the seller itself of course. Some mining cards were abused some were really not. If you are willing to swap in a new fan or two, there really isnt much different from any other used GPU apart from knowing it will have more service hours elapsed.

 

[lexluthermiester]

I buy used cards frequently, a few have been miners. Haven't seen any problems with them performance wise. I did get one that had a modded firmware, but a flash back to retail firmware and all was well.

 

[Frick]

The only card I have ever bought new was the Radeon x1950 Pro. If it's a reputable seller go for it.

 

[Tomgang]

Hell no. I hate mining and so i will deffently not support a miner by buying his used cards after he. Al ready maked money with them. Maybe a silly thing, but the last year or two has been a hell for us gamers. So i will not support mining in any way neither by getting miners left overs.

But a used card from a regular gamer or other non mining cards. Sure no problems with buying used cards.

 

[DRDNA]

Well if i needed a card and funds were low and cdawall was selling one of his miners i would not hesitate to buy...why ...well i know that he tunes his miners to the point that it is under less stress than a gamer's card....but the buy would depend on finding someone like cdawall's tuning capabilities...I can bet that his miners are better kept than any gaming card if it was gamed on...well ye anywho's...

 

[peche]

i have gotten used parts too, incluided video cards, but i cant tell if was used for mining or just a kid with too much money, cuz always sell stuff for attractive prices!
Regards,

 

[FireFox]

To buy a GPU or whatever hardware used for my main Rig it's not for me, it doesn't matter if the GPU was used for mining/Gaming or just to watch videos on YouTube, i just cant.

 

[silentbogo]

For me it depends on the source and conditions.
* Random dude on the internet? No!
* Co-worker whose enthusiasm towards mining finally died down? GOTO STEP 2
STEP 2:
* Did he mine indoors with a nice 80+ bronze/silver/gold PSU? Yes
* Did he install his rig in a wet shed or flooded basement with rats and stray cats? F#$% no!

You can't simply buy a videocard and hope that it's fine, regardless of whether it was used for mining or not. That's why I'm always trying to find a local seller, so I can look at the thing and possibly test it out on the spot.

 

[trog100]

well i have been running 10 x 1070 cards mining 24/7 for one year now.. all 10 cards are running faultlessly.. it would be interesting to see just how long they would keep running before problems start to show up..

all i can say at the moment is that all 10 cards have passsed the 24/7 for one whole year test..

trog