AMD-based graphics cards tend to be less expensive than their Nvidia counterparts. They typically are not quite as capable at achieving high hashrates either, with the particular exception of cryptocurrencies based on the Ethash algorithm. Stability issues have been reported to be more common in mining rigs based on AMD GPUs as well, but this may be in part due to the high amount of BIOS modding and undervolting that is performed on these cards in order to increase their hashrates. Variation between models produced by different manufacterers also leads to a wide range of overclock/underclock recipes so it is easy to cause problems by injecting someone else's values into your GPU management software. There is more work that goes into preparing and tuning these cards for mining, but the reward is usually a shorter time to start realizing return on the investment.

This page will initially focus on Ethash-based cryptocurrencies since that is what AMD cards perform best at, but will probably eventually include others as I get a chance to experiment with them. I will also share what I can about preparing and tuning these more challenging cards. For starters, I will demonstrate how I flashed the BIOS in three ROG Strix RX 580s:

ROG Strix RX 580 O8G BIOS Flash

AMD Zcash Mining

Zcash is probably the second largest GPU-mineable coin next to Ethereum. It uses the Equihash algorithm which is more expeditiously mined with Nvidia GPUs, however with the upcoming GPU-mineable fork of Bitcoin coming soon, I felt it important to see how many Sol/s the CryptoScythe v0.2 could pull with its 7 AMD GPUs. Visit the AMD Zcash Mining page to see the results on the CryptoScythe v0.2 prototype mining rig and learn what is involved.

AMD Ethereum Mining

Ethereum is probably the most popular cryptocurrency to mine with graphics cards and is the bread-and-butter of mining with AMD cards. Visit the AMD Ethereum Mining page to follow how those flashed ROG Strix Rx 580s perform in the CryptoScythe v0.2 prototype mining rig.

AMD Dual Mining

Mining two coins at once sounds like twice as much fun as mining one alt coin at a time. Using Claymore dual miner, which works for AMD and Nvidia cards, makes dual mining possible. One main coin that uses the Ethash algorithm, like Ethereum, Musicoin, Expanse, etc., can be mined with a secondary alt coin that uses a different algorithm. I have touched on this before with research done using the CryptoScythe v 0.1 Nvidia mining rig (see the Nvidia Ethereum mining page).With AMD cards, dual mining really deserves its own page as it is somewhat different than dual mining with Nvidia cards, so here it is: AMD Dual Mining.