01 hardware specs

01 -- Hardware Specifications

Board: ASRock AMD BC-250 | Codename: "Ariel" (community term, not in elektricM docs) / "Cyan Skillfish"

---

APU (System-on-Chip)

Component	Detail
Full Name	AMD BC-250 "Cyan Skillfish"
Origin	Cut-down PS5 "Oberon" APU -- 2 CPU cores and 12 GPU CUs disabled
CPU	6x Zen 2 cores, ~3.5 GHz fixed base clock
GPU	24x RDNA 2 Compute Units (CUs), up to 40 CU unlockable via bc250-cu-live-manager (UMR-based, no kernel patch/reboot) or kernel patch (duggasco/bc250-40cu-unlock); codename gfx1013
GPU Base Clock	1500 MHz (locked without governor)
GPU Max Clock	2000 MHz stock kernel, 2230 MHz with governor, 2400 MHz community ceiling (OCP hard lock above ~2300 MHz at 40 CU — requires power cable pull to recover)
GPU Performance	Stock 24 CU: between RX 6600 and RX 6600 XT. 40 CU unlocked: RX 6700 / GTX 1080 Ti level. No INT8 support = no FSR4 (gennro, fforduck)
Memory	16 GB GDDR6 (PS5 spec), 14 Gbps, 256-bit bus, ~448 GB/s bandwidth
Memory Split	Configurable in BIOS -- see 02-BIOS
TDP	220W typical, up to 235W under extreme load

PS5 Comparison

Feature	BC-250	PS5
CPU Cores	6	8
CPU Clock	~3.5 GHz fixed	Up to 3.5 GHz (variable)
GPU CUs	24	36
GPU Clock	2000 MHz max (stock)	2230 MHz (variable)
Memory	16 GB GDDR6 shared	16 GB GDDR6 unified
VCN (HW encode/decode)	Blocked (NOT fused off — research active)	Enabled

---

Board Physical Specs

Spec	Value
Form Factor	Custom mining board (non-standard)
Length	~340 mm / ~310 mm (varies by measurement method)
Width	~115 mm
PCB Thickness	Standard
Weight	~400 g (with stock heatsink)

---

Connectors & Ports

Port	Count	Notes
DisplayPort 1.4	1	Full-size, no HDMI -- requires adapter
USB 3.0	2	Type-A
USB 2.0	2	Type-A
Gigabit Ethernet	1	Realtek RTL8111H -- no built-in WiFi
M.2 2280 Slot	1	PCIe 2.0 x2 NVMe or SATA III
PCIe 8-pin (6+2)	1	Main power connector
Fan Headers	2x 4-pin PWM	J1 (primary, near PCIe connector) and J4003 (secondary)
Micro-Fit 3.0 Ports	2x onboard	Can supplement PCIe 8-pin for 40 CU builds (undocumented feature)
Power Button	Onboard only	No header -- solder for external switch
TPM Header	1	18-pin LPC header (TPMS1); no TPM chip included

Not Present

• HDMI output
• WiFi (use USB adapter)
• Bluetooth (use USB adapter)
• Thunderbolt
• Secure Boot
• Hardware video encode/decode (VCN firmware blocked by Sony; NOT fused off — active community research, partial decode achieved via SMU commands: holde, Angablade)

---

Power Consumption Reference

State	Power Draw	Notes
Idle (no governor)	85-105 W	GPU stuck at 1500 MHz
Idle (with governor)	60-70 W	Community consensus (gennro, dantistnfs); SMU profile 0 saves ~15W vs profile 3 (gennro)
Idle (optimized)	55-70 W	Governor + undervolting; sub-60W claims disputed (NexGen-3D)
Desktop use	70-90 W	Web browsing, office tasks
Light gaming	120-150 W	Older/esports titles
AAA gaming	160-200 W	Modern titles at 1080p
Maximum (Cyberpunk RT)	235 W	Peak gaming load
Stress test (Furmark)	250-320 W	Not realistic for daily use

A GPU governor saves 20-30W at idle alone. See 06-GPU Governor.

---

Known Hardware Limitations

1. IOMMU is broken -- always disable in BIOS or face display failures
2. No VCN firmware -- hardware video encode/decode blocked by Sony, but VCN block is NOT fused off. Active research: holde and Angablade achieved partial decode via SMU commands (May 2026). Not functional for end users yet.
3. PCIe 2.0 x2 only -- SSD limited to ~1 GB/s (don't overspend on NVMe)
4. A68H southbridge (discovered by pops1cl) -- low-end chipset; Ethernet and USB 2.0 run through it, not the GPU (GPU is direct to APU)
5. GDDR6 runs hot -- backplate VRAM has no temperature sensor; ensure case airflow and backplate cooling with a fan on the rear of the board (essdee4336, thecoolmagnet) [confirmed: @tominkz2137, 12/01/2026]
6. No INT8 support -- PS5 APU lacks INT8 instructions required for FSR4; BC-250 will never support FSR4 (gennro, fforduck, May 2026)
7. Expandable to 40 CUs -- 16 harvested CUs unlockable via bc250-cu-live-manager (UMR-based, no kernel patch, works on stock kernel) or kernel patch (duggasco/bc250-40cu-unlock). See 02-BIOS & Firmware for full procedures.
8. OCP power limit -- secondary Over Current Protection triggers hard lock at ~1850-2200 MHz on 40 CU boards (varies per board). 2400 MHz causes OCP hard lock across all tested boards — requires power cable pull to recover (big_trov, codyrainy, cralant). VRM temps are a hidden bottleneck (capt.cat_13).
9. Micro-Fit power supplement -- onboard Micro-Fit 3.0 ports can supplement the single PCIe 8-pin for 40 CU builds (Old Lamer/YouTube, tested by essdee4336). Recommended above 260W sustained.

---

40 CU Power Reference (Unlocked)

Config	pp512 tok/s	Power	Temp	SCLK
Stock 24 CU	230	95W	79C	1500 MHz (governor)
40 CU unlocked	372	125W	83C	1500 MHz (governor)
40 CU @ 2 GHz governor	466	181W	96C	2000 MHz

Idle comparison (big_trov, May 2026): At 350 MHz / 700 mV, idle power is essentially identical regardless of CU count: 4 CU = 68W, 24 CU = 69W, 40 CU = 70W. No reason to disable CUs at idle. Downclocking GPU to 50 MHz @ 650 mV gives 64W from wall (pops1cl, FSP500-30AS).

Efficiency insight (big_trov): More CUs at lower clocks match the performance of fewer CUs at higher clocks, at significantly lower temperature and power. Example: 40 CU at 1200 MHz = 60 FPS at 73C (30W less than 24 CU at 2000 MHz achieving same FPS).

1500 MHz / 900 mV is the recommended sweet spot for 40 CUs (duggasco, scallion_9883). See 02-BIOS & Firmware for full procedures and 07-Game Benchmarks for 40 CU gaming FPS.