INTcoin uses RandomX, which is optimised for general-purpose CPUs. The most important factors are core count, cache size, and memory bandwidth.
What Matters
CPU cores and threads — More cores = more hashrate. RandomX scales linearly with threads up to the number of physical cores. Hyperthreading/SMT adds roughly 10-20% on top.
L3 cache — RandomX uses a 2 MB scratchpad per thread. For full performance, you need at least 2 MB of L3 cache per mining thread. A CPU with 32 MB L3 can efficiently run 16 threads.
RAM — RandomX needs ~2.5 GB for the dataset (shared across all threads). 8 GB total system RAM is the practical minimum.
AVX2/AVX-512 — RandomX benefits from SIMD instructions. CPUs with AVX2 are significantly faster than those without. AVX-512 provides a small additional boost on supported hardware.
Recommended CPUs
| CPU | Cores/Threads | L3 Cache | Approx. Hashrate | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AMD Ryzen 9 7950X | 16/32 | 64 MB | ~20 kH/s | Best consumer option |
| AMD Ryzen 9 5950X | 16/32 | 64 MB | ~16 kH/s | Great value used |
| AMD Ryzen 7 7700X | 8/16 | 32 MB | ~10 kH/s | Good mid-range |
| AMD Ryzen 5 5600X | 6/12 | 32 MB | ~7 kH/s | Budget friendly |
| Intel i5-13600K | 14/20 | 24 MB | ~8 kH/s | E-cores less efficient for RandomX |
| AMD EPYC 7763 | 64/128 | 256 MB | ~70 kH/s | Server-grade |
AMD generally outperforms Intel at RandomX due to larger L3 caches per core. The Ryzen 7000/9000 series (Zen 4/5) offers the best per-watt efficiency.
Budget Setup
A used Ryzen 5 5600 with 16 GB DDR4 and a basic motherboard can be had for under $200 and will mine at ~6-7 kH/s while consuming around 65W.
What NOT to Buy
- GPUs — RandomX is deliberately inefficient on GPUs. Don’t waste money on graphics cards for INTcoin mining.
- ASICs — No RandomX ASICs exist (that’s the point).
- Low-cache CPUs — Celeron, Pentium, Atom, and older i3 processors have too little L3 cache.
- ARM boards — Raspberry Pi and similar SBCs are too slow to be worthwhile.
Power Efficiency
Mining profitability depends heavily on electricity cost. Consider:
- AMD Ryzen 5000/7000 series: best hashrate per watt
- Undervolt where possible — many Ryzen CPUs gain efficiency with a -30mV offset
- Disable unnecessary system services to free CPU time
P2P vs RPC Mining
P2P mode is simplest — the miner connects directly to the network:
./intcoin-miner -p2p -connect=51.155.97.192:2210 -address=<your_address> -threads=4
RPC mode is for setups where you run a full node:
./intcoin-miner -address=<your_address> -threads=4 -rpcconnect=127.0.0.1 -rpcuser=user -rpcpassword=pass
Benchmarking
Test your hashrate before committing to mining:
./intcoin-miner -benchmark
Share your hashrate results in this thread so others can compare.