If you recently got into GPU mining Ethereum or some other cryptocurrency, then you probably wondered why all these hardcore miners were using riser cards! The answer of course is three fold. They need to 1) fit more GPUs on a single motherboard, 2) get them further apart for cooling, and 3) convert 16X cards to work in 1X slots. Once that’s been established what follows next is usually this question… What are the best PCIe riser cards? So in this post I will cover the top PCIe riser cards along with my pro’s and con’s for each one!
The Top PCIe Riser Cards
Many companies are getting into the process of manufacturing PCIe risers with mining becoming such a booming business. When this happens there is a race to the bottom on price. Some of these PCIe risers are absolute crap with very high failure rates and low comparability with some GPUs. Mining in general has led many down the path of spending the absolute least amount on components. This makes a lot of sense on some of the components. No reason to buy a $300 Intel Core i7 when a $35 Celeron will mine with the exact same performance.
However, when buying some of the mining specific hardware such as risers or the GPU itself, it is best to get high quality components that will list. Looking for the best PCIe riser cards makes a lot of sense! So let’s list them off.
Update: March 2018 – We now sell our own The Geek Pub branded risers!
CHOICE – The Geek Pub PCIe Risers
After a lot of feedback from our valued audience, we have decided to sell our own line of PCIe USB risers for GPU mining. We wanted to make sure we offered the best product on the market and incorporate all of the great features into a single product.
Introducing The Geek Pub Branded PCIe risers for mining! These risers include three different power options including 6 pin PCIe, 15 pin SATA, and 4 pin MOLEX. This eliminates the need for power adapters that are known causes of fires (see notes at bottom of article). Our USB PCIe risers are made of the highest quality components and include United States based service and support. Get these here! or on Amazon!
- High reliability, using high quality components
- Driverless install and zero configuration
- High quality USB3 cables
- Foam backing for safe mounting in metal cases
- Mounting holes for permanent mounting in cases and mining racks
#2 – The VICTONY PCIe Risers
First on my list of the best PCIe riser cards is the VICTONY PCIe risers. VICTONY got a bad rap when they first released these cards because they had a high failure rate. However, they quickly corrected the problems with a second generation of risers fixing the issues. The new VICTONY PCIe risers have a very high reliability and should easily last the life of your rig.
The parts included in this riser kit are top notch quality, even the USB cables. Get them here!
- High reliability
- High quality capacitors
- No drivers needed
- High quality USB 3.0 cables
- Includes SATA power adapter
- Foam backing to prevent shorts
#3 – The Mailiya PCIe Risers
The Mailiya PCIe risers are the second on my list. Probably my favorite thing about these PCIe risers is that everything on the board is gold plated, even the USB connectors! Like the others they also include a foam backing to prevent the riser from shorting out.
About the only negative to the Mailiya PCIe risers is the fact that their USB cable is very short in comparison to some of the other brands. They also sell at a slightly higher price point. Get them here!
- Gold plated contacts
- High quality capacitors
- High quality USB 3.0 cables
- Includes SATA power adapter
- Foam insulated backing
#4 – The Ubit PCIe Risers
The Ubit PCIe risers land at number 3 on my list of the best PCIe riser cards for mining. Number three is not a bad place to be and these Ubit risers do have some pretty compelling features.
One super neat feature of these Ubit PCIe risers is that they offer three power ports giving you more easy to use options for powering them. They include the standard Molex 4-pin, a SATA port, and a PCIe 6-pin port. This is a feature I really with the rest of the cards on this list would offer. Instead, most others come with adapter cables (see our note below on using power adapters).
The only reason these cards aren’t #1 on our list is because out of 4 orders (six on each order), at least one card was dead on arrival, requiring us to return them to Amazon for a replacement. Get them here!
- Lower quality components
- SATA, 4-pin Molex, and 6-pin PCIe power options
- Includes USB cables
Some Notes on PCIe Risers for Mining
There are some things you should be aware of when selecting and using PCIe risers (for mining or other tasks).
Not actually USB
Many people mistakenly believe that these riser cards are actually converting the PCIe signal to the USB protocol. This is actually not the case. These risers are just using the USB form factor and transmitting PCIe signals over the cables. Plugging these cards into an existing USB port on your PC will not work, and may damage the riser and/or your computer’s USB bus. Do not plug risers into your USB ports! Only plug risers into the PCIe adapter that came with it.
Avoid using the Power Adapters
I highly recommend that you avoid using power adapter cables. These things are notorious for being cheaply made and have been known to start fires. While I believe the ones that come with the kits above are of better quality, it still makes sense to avoid their use if at all possible. I recommend getting a power supply that is modular. This will allow you to use the correct power cable from the beginning and avoid adapters completely.
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I prefer your third choice. The Ubit risers are the best for me because they have three different power options. I can attest to a somewhat higher failure rate, but they seem to be dead on arrival. If they work, they seem to work forever.
I like the Ubit cards because they have a super bright green LED that shows when they are running!
And damn is that LED bright!!!
I love the Ubit cards. They are great.
so instead of power adapter cables bundled with the risers , what should we use ?
and if you dont want us to use usb cables , why are they even provided ?
does these risers required additional external power too ?
i just want to ask, my system unit is a slim type then i bought a gpu. but the gpu wont fit because the other ports is just so close to each other and it blocks the way for the gpu to fit. will the pcie riser card help me in my problem? i dont know much about the technical stuffs, thank you in advance!
Use PCIE cables. you will need a couple of different options depending on the GPU you are using in your rig. I use a 1200w platinum server power supply with a breakout board. I recommend if you are not using a server power supply to get EVGA ATX power supplies as they provide enough power connectors. Corsair is great too but not enough connectors for a 6 card rig. A lot of people use two ATX power supplies of lower wattage rating. maybe something like dual 750 or 1000 watt and use a splitter cable to power both of them on at the same time. Use one for 3 cards/risers and the other for 3 cards/risers. if you are doing an 8 card rig same idea just go 4 and 4.
I really not care about options , i using pcie only , but almost all risers have , so now 3 or 4 capacitors ?
and there capacitors small number on it ,
i haven’t idea how choose the best quality ever