Reading a Used Miner Listing Before You Wire a Deposit
Red flags in secondary-market ASIC listings that our procurement review catches most often.
Secondary-market batches look identical in photos. These checks save operators from RMA loops.
PSU Serial Mismatch
Sellers sometimes ship units with replacement power supplies rated for a different voltage. Korean farms typically run 220V PDUs. A 110V PSU paired with a mismatched label is an immediate reject in our procurement reviews.
Firmware Lock and Pool Hijack History
Ask for a screenshot of the miner status page showing firmware version and pool URL — not just hash rate. Units previously pointed at unknown pools may retain admin passwords the seller forgot to clear.
Hour Meter vs. Claimed Age
Some models expose runtime hours in diagnostics. Compare against the seller’s “three months old” claim. Discrepancies beyond 20% warrant a price adjustment or walk-away.
Batch Consistency
Mixed firmware versions within one lot suggest the seller consolidated returns from multiple buyers. Fine for Phase 1 testing rows; risky for Phase 3 production without reflashing every unit.
Our Recommendation
Send us the invoice and seller chat logs before deposit. A procurement review costs less than one RMA shipping cycle to Shenzhen.