Asus Debuts Specialized Motherboard for Cryptocurrency Miners

Asus is to release a new product aimed at cryptocurrency miners – a motherboard that can be packed with 19 GPUs.

AccessTimeIconAug 22, 2017 at 9:32 a.m. UTC
Updated Aug 18, 2021 at 6:45 p.m. UTC

Presented By Icon

Election 2024 coverage presented by

Stand with crypto

Computer hardware maker Asus has revealed a new motherboard with features geared specifically toward cryptocurrency miners.

Dubbed the B250 Mining Expert, the board was debuted over the weekend by Asus' Republic of Gamers, the Taiwan-based manufacturer's high-end gaming brand.

  • Bitcoin Mining in the U.S. Will Become 'a Lot More Decentralized': Core Scientific CEO
    13:18
    Bitcoin Mining in the U.S. Will Become 'a Lot More Decentralized': Core Scientific CEO
  • Binance to Discontinue Its Nigerian Naira Services After Government Scrutiny
    05:10
    Binance to Discontinue Its Nigerian Naira Services After Government Scrutiny
  • The first video of the year 2024
    04:07
    The first video of the year 2024
  • The last regression video of the year 3.67.0
    40:07
    The last regression video of the year 3.67.0
  • And while the product's release date and price aren't known yet, it nonetheless represents the latest signal that the mainstream hardware industry is expanding its cryptocurrency footprint. Further, the announcement comes months after Asus began rolling out GPUs designed specifically with crypto-miners in mind – aimed to take full advantage of the digital "gold rush" now taking place.

    The B250 Mining Expert motherboard itself boasts a total of 19 PCI-Express expansion slots, compared to the 12, eight or six slots featured on competitors' products.

    The idea is that cryptocurrency miners – who use computing power (and lots of electricity) to add new transactions to a blockchain, receiving newly minted coins as a reward – want to run as a many graphics cards as possible. The forthcoming board, according to the specs that are circulating, has roughly the capacity of two to three regular-sized motherboards.

    The 19 expansion slots are split into three groups, each containing 24 dedicated pins. This allows the mining rig to be connected to three power supply units at once, stabilizing the rig for multi-GPU usage. The board also boasts a variety of features likely to appeal to miners, such as live visual statistics.

    As previously reported by CoinDesk, other major GPU makers like Nvidia and AMD have moved in recent months to capitalize on the spike in demand for products that can be used for mining.

    Earlier this month, Nvidia CEO Jen-Hsun Huang issued bullish statements on the prospects for his firm's entry into the mining space, suggesting that it could be a long-term revenue driver.

    "Cryptocurrency and blockchain are here to stay," he said.

    Product image via Asus

    Disclosure

    Please note that our privacy policy, terms of use, cookies, and do not sell my personal information have been updated.

    CoinDesk is an award-winning media outlet that covers the cryptocurrency industry. Its journalists abide by a strict set of editorial policies. CoinDesk has adopted a set of principles aimed at ensuring the integrity, editorial independence and freedom from bias of its publications. CoinDesk is part of the Bullish group, which owns and invests in digital asset businesses and digital assets. CoinDesk employees, including journalists, may receive Bullish group equity-based compensation. Bullish was incubated by technology investor Block.one.


    Learn more about Consensus 2024, CoinDesk's longest-running and most influential event that brings together all sides of crypto, blockchain and Web3. Head to consensus.coindesk.com to register and buy your pass now.