ETH Mining Hardware: The Inevitable Hasrate Drop
Ethereum has been one of the most profitable cryptocurrencies to mine since its inception. However, mining Ethereum is not as lucrative today as it was in the past due to the drop in hashrate of the Radeon RX400/RX500 series of GPUs. The growing DAG file size, which is the memory location where the algorithm is stored and the mining process is performed, has been responsible for this drop in hashrate.
In the next 30-35 DAG epochs, Ethereum miners who are using the Radeon RX400/RX500 GPUs with 4/8GB VRAM should expect a gradual drop in hashrate, resulting in up to a 30% decrease from their current hashrate. Even as other powerful GPUs, like R9 290(x)/390(x) and Nvidia Pascal GPUs with more video memory (6GB/8GB+), are not affected or have a negligible drop in performance.
To check what will happen with existing GPU mining hardware, the benchmark option should be added to the Claymore ETH miner. Adding -benchmark 130 (the next Ethereum DAG epoch) will reveal how much the hashrate will change or if it will change. As DAG epochs move further on, they also become larger, putting more stress on the video cards used for mining. The more powerful the GPU and the more video memory it has, the more likely it is to handle better long-term mining of Ethereum.
The ETH mining hardware industry is continually evolving, and miners must keep up with the advancements to remain profitable. The drop in hashrate highlights the need for modern and efficient mining equipment to remain competitive in the market. Furthermore, it raises the question of whether Ethereum mining is still profitable, particularly for those with outdated mining hardware.
In conclusion, the inevitable hashrate drop for the Radeon RX400/RX500 series of GPUs with 4/8GB VRAM should not discourage miners from continuing their mining operations. However, it is essential to upgrade their equipment to more advanced options to remain profitable in the changing market.