Canaan Avalon A-Series Family Variant Decoder

Identify any Canaan Avalon A-series variant at a glance: ASIC chip family, chips per board, voltage domains, control-board generation, PSU, hashrate, power and efficiency across the A7 through A15 and Nano lines. Canaan builds the Avalon line — this reference consolidates their published specifications alongside D-Central’s repair-bench observations into one decoder, so you can match a unit to its parts before a repair or a purchase. Voltage is regulated per domain, never per chip.

Canaan Avalon A-Series Family Variant Decoder

Quick answer

Canaan's Avalon line splits into three architecture generations. Gen 1 (Avalon 7xx–9xx) drove hash boards from an external Raspberry Pi + AUC3 bridge over a Spartan-6 FPGA. Gen 2 (A10xx–A15xx) integrated a Kendryte K210 RISC-V controller running FreeRTOS, talking SPI straight to the ASICs. Gen 3 (Nano 3/3S, Mini 3, Avalon Q, A16) moved to the Linux-capable Kendryte K230. Chips run in series-string groups — the A11/A12 boards are 120 chips as 40 groups of 3 in parallel — regulated per domain (Vcore variable, VTOP 0.75 V, VDDIO 1.8 V), never per chip.

Understanding which Avalon generation you have is the single most important thing before any firmware or repair work, because the controller changes completely between them. This hub is the owner's decoder for the whole A-series: the chip part number and node, the controller (Raspberry Pi, Kendryte K210, or Kendryte K230), the hash-board layout, and how to tell them apart. Specs come from our miner database, cross-checked against the Bitcoin Mining Hack Bible; Canaan credits nobody for the RISC-V heritage, but the Kendryte silicon is itself an open ecosystem worth acknowledging.

Generations — Gen 1 (Avalon 6/721/741/821/841/921): external Raspberry Pi + AUC3 USB bridge, Spartan-6 FPGA, easy to hack but old. Gen 2 (A1047–A1566): integrated MM board, Kendryte K210 RISC-V, FreeRTOS, SPI direct to the ASICs. Gen 3 (Nano 3/3S, Mini 3, Avalon Q, A16): Kendryte K230 (K230D on the Nano 3S), Linux + RT-Smart. Suffixes: Pro = higher bin, HA = hydro form factor.

Variant decoder — every Canaan Avalon A-Series member, by generation

Model	Chip (node)	Chips/board	Voltage domains	Hashrate	Power	Efficiency	Cooling	Control board (SoC)	PSU
Gen 1 — Raspberry Pi + AUC3 (2016–2019) — External Raspberry Pi 1/2/3 (OpenWrt) + AUC3 USB→I2C bridge → Spartan-6 FPGA (XC6SLX16) Not a self-contained miner: each AUC3 daisy-chains up to 5 units, each Pi drives up to 4 AUC3s. Old and low-value, but trivially open (Dropbear SSH root/root).
AvalonMiner 741	A3212 16 nm	88/board	Series-string (daisy-chained ASICs)	7.3 TH/s	per RPi+AUC3 rig	legacy	Air	RPi + AUC3 · Spartan-6 FPGA	External
How to identify: 88 A3212 chips/board; 5-pin AUC cable; no on-board controller. Notes: Gen-1 hardware is effectively e-waste for mining but useful for tinkering.
AvalonMiner 841	A3210 16 nm	104/board	Series-string (daisy-chained ASICs)	13.6 TH/s	per RPi+AUC3 rig	legacy	Air	RPi + AUC3 · Spartan-6 FPGA	External
How to identify: 104 A3210 chips/board; AUC3 bridge; OpenWrt on the Pi. Notes: The most-produced Gen-1 unit; still occasionally seen in hobby farms.
AvalonMiner 921	A3206 16 nm	varies	Series-string (daisy-chained ASICs)	20 TH/s	per RPi+AUC3 rig	legacy	Air	RPi + AUC3 · Spartan-6 FPGA	External
How to identify: A3206 silicon; last of the AUC3 generation before the integrated MM board. Notes: Transitional Gen-1 part; the A11 family moved control on-board.
Gen 2 — Kendryte K210 integrated MM board (2019–2025) — Integrated MM board, Kendryte K210 RISC-V dual-core (400 MHz, 8 MB on-chip SRAM), FreeRTOS, SPI direct Hash-board signal chain is a series string: A11/A12 boards carry 120 chips as 40 groups of 3 in parallel; the A1146 board is 72 chips in a 12×6 grid. Domains: Vcore variable, VTOP 0.75 V, VDDIO 1.8 V; 12 V input boosted to ~17.7 V on some boards. Connector is 2×7-pin (14-pin).
AvalonMiner 1066	A3205	Not published	Series-string · Vcore/VTOP 0.75 V/VDDIO 1.8 V	50 TH/s	3250 W	65 J/TH	Air	Kendryte K210 · MM board	Integrated
How to identify: Early K210 unit; A3205 silicon. Notes: One of the first integrated-controller Avalons; now a heater-class part.
AvalonMiner 1146 Pro	A3206 16 nm	72 (12×6)	Series-string · Vcore/VTOP 0.75 V/VDDIO 1.8 V	63 TH/s	3276 W	52 J/TH	Air	Kendryte K210 · MM board	Integrated
How to identify: 72 A3206 chips in a 12×6 grid per board. Notes: The 12×6 board layout is Bible-confirmed for the A1146.
AvalonMiner 1166 Pro	A3200	120 (40 groups × 3 parallel)	Series-string · Vcore/VTOP 0.75 V/VDDIO 1.8 V	81 TH/s	3400 W	42 J/TH	Air	Kendryte K210 · MM board	Integrated
How to identify: A11/A12-class board: 120 chips as 40 series groups of 3 parallel. Notes: A long-running workhorse of the K210 generation.
AvalonMiner 1246	A3200	120 (40 groups × 3 parallel)	Series-string · Vcore/VTOP 0.75 V/VDDIO 1.8 V	90 TH/s	3420 W	38 J/TH	Air	Kendryte K210 · MM board	Integrated
How to identify: A12 flagship; 120-chip boards; MM3v2 controller, MM320 software. Notes: The most-deployed Gen-2 Avalon; strong used-market presence.
Avalon A1346	A3200CFA	Not published	Series-string · Vcore/VTOP 0.75 V/VDDIO 1.8 V	110 TH/s	3300 W	30 J/TH	Air	Kendryte K210 · MM board	Integrated
How to identify: A3200CFA variant silicon; A13 chassis. Notes: A13 family steps efficiency down toward 25–30 J/TH.
Avalon A1366	A3200	Not published	Series-string · Vcore/VTOP 0.75 V/VDDIO 1.8 V	130 TH/s	3250 W	25 J/TH	Air	Kendryte K210 · MM board	Integrated
How to identify: A13 top bin; ~25 J/TH. Notes: A common home / small-farm Avalon of the K210 era.
Avalon A1466	A3198	Not published	Series-string · Vcore/VTOP 0.75 V/VDDIO 1.8 V	150 TH/s	3230 W	21.5 J/TH	Air	Kendryte K210 · MM board	Integrated
How to identify: A3198 silicon; A14 chassis; ~21.5 J/TH. Notes: The efficiency step that put Avalon within reach of the Antminer air class.
Avalon A1566	A3197 / A3197MC 5 nm (TSMC)	Not published	Series-string · Vcore/VTOP 0.75 V/VDDIO 1.8 V	185 TH/s	3420 W	18.5 J/TH	Air	Kendryte K210 · MM board	Integrated
How to identify: A3197/A3197MC on TSMC 5 nm — Canaan's first 5 nm A-series chip. Notes: The A15 line closes most of the gap to the leading air miners.
Avalon A1566HA	A3197-class 5 nm (TSMC)	Not published	Series-string · Vcore/VTOP 0.75 V/VDDIO 1.8 V	460–500 TH/s	~8188 W	~16.8–17.8 J/TH	Hydro (water)	Kendryte K210/K230 · MM board	Integrated, high-power
How to identify: "HA" = hydro; rack chassis, ~460–500 TH/s per unit. Notes: The water-cooled high-density member of the A15 family.
Avalon A15Pro-218T	A3197-class 5 nm (TSMC)	Not published	Series-string · Vcore/VTOP 0.75 V/VDDIO 1.8 V	218 TH/s	3662 W	16.8 J/TH	Air	Kendryte K210 · MM board	Integrated
How to identify: "Pro" air bin of the A15; ~16.8 J/TH. Notes: Top air efficiency of the K210 generation.
Gen 3 — Kendryte K230 (2024–2026) — Integrated Kendryte K230 (RISC-V, Linux + RT-Smart); K230D with on-package DRAM on the Nano 3S The K230 can run Linux, unlike the K210 — a real architectural break. The home-class Nano/Mini/Q parts and the rack A16 sit here. Chip counts on the tiny parts are Bible-flagged as reconstructed, so they are marked unconfirmed.
Avalon Nano 3	A3198 (×10)	10 chips (single board) *	Series-string	4 TH/s	~140 W (mining), USB	~35 J/TH	Air (desktop)	Kendryte K230	USB / external adapter
How to identify: First K230 device; USB desk miner; 10× A3198. Notes: A home / heat / learning device, not a farm miner.
Avalon Nano 3S [UNCONFIRMED]	A3197S (×12)	12 chips (single board) *	Series-string · digital DC/DC per intermediate rail	6 TH/s	140 W	23.3 J/TH	Air (desktop)	Kendryte K230D (112 MiB)	External adapter
How to identify: 12× A3197S (10 SHA-256 engines/chip); K230D with on-package DRAM. Notes: Chip count and part are reconstructed from RE (Canaan does not disclose them) — treat as unconfirmed.
Avalon Mini 3	A3197-class	Not published	Series-string	37.5 TH/s	800 W	21.3 J/TH	Air (desktop)	Kendryte K230	Integrated
How to identify: Compact home box between the Nano and the Q. Notes: A quiet home miner at a fraction of a full box's power.
Avalon Q	A3197-class	Not published	Series-string · Vcore/VTOP/VDDIO	90 TH/s	1674 W	18.6 J/TH	Air (quiet)	Kendryte K230	PSU4100-03 (1700 W)
How to identify: Full home box; PSU model PSU4100-03; ~90 TH/s at home-friendly noise. Notes: The home-miner flagship of the K230 generation.
Avalon A16 [UNCONFIRMED]	Next-gen (part not published)	Not published	Series-string	282 TH/s	3900 W	13.8 J/TH	Air	Kendryte K230 (likely)	Integrated
How to identify: Rack-mount A16; controller expected to be K230-based. Notes: Controller generation is inferred, not confirmed; chip part undisclosed.
Avalon A16XP [UNCONFIRMED]	Next-gen (part not published)	Not published	Series-string	300 TH/s	3850 W	12.8 J/TH	Air	Kendryte K230 (likely)	Integrated
How to identify: Top A16 bin (~12.8 J/TH); rack-mount. Notes: Efficiency figure is from our database; controller/chip remain unconfirmed.

Voltage is regulated per voltage domain, never per chip — a group of chips shares one regulated rail (MicroBT stacks ~0.31–0.4 V domains; Canaan runs series-string groups with Vcore variable, VTOP 0.75 V, VDDIO 1.8 V). Where a cell reads "Not published", the OEM does not disclose that figure and we decline to guess; * marks a chips/board value inferred rather than OEM-stated.

Where the per-SKU numbers and fixes live

This decoder is the family map. For a single model's full spec row, its tuning bands, or a fault code, use the databases it links into — we keep the data in one place, not copied per page.

Universal ASIC Spec Database — the full per-SKU spec row for every Canaan model above.
ASIC Power Profiles Database — bench-validated wall-watt vs hashrate vs J/TH tuning points.
ASIC Fault Finder — error codes filterable by model and symptom.
ASIC repair · flat-rate repair pricing — component-level Canaan hash-board service on our Laval bench.
Whatsminer M-Series variant decoder — the OEM sibling of this family reference (MicroBT's counterpart to these Canaan boards).

Open firmware for these boards?

DCENT_OS is D-Central's open-source (GPL-3.0) firmware, currently a closed beta targeting the Antminer S9. Canaan's Gen-3 K230 boards are the most tractable Avalon target because they run Linux, but a port remains research and would credit the open Kendryte/RISC-V ecosystem it builds on. Stratum V2 is on the DCENT_OS roadmap, not yet shipped; only Braiins OS+ ships native SV2 among third-party firmwares today. DCENT_OS status →

Frequently asked questions

How do I tell which Avalon generation I have?

By the controller. Gen 1 (Avalon 6/721/741/821/841/921) is not self-contained — it needs an external Raspberry Pi and an AUC3 USB bridge, with a Spartan-6 FPGA on the hash board. Gen 2 (A1047–A1566) has an integrated MM board built around a Kendryte K210 RISC-V chip running FreeRTOS. Gen 3 (Nano 3/3S, Mini 3, Avalon Q, A16) uses the Linux-capable Kendryte K230. The controller — not the model number alone — defines the repair and firmware path.

What ASIC chip does a Canaan Avalon use?

It steps by generation: A3212/A3210/A3206 (16 nm) on Gen 1; the A3205 → A3206 → A3200 family through the mid A-series; A3198 on the A1466; and the TSMC 5 nm A3197 / A3197MC on the A1566. The home-class Gen 3 parts use A3198 (Nano 3) and A3197S (Nano 3S). Node data is only shown where the Bible documents it.

How are the chips laid out on an Avalon hash board?

In a series string of parallel groups. The A11/A12 boards carry 120 chips arranged as 40 groups of 3 in parallel; the A1146 board is 72 chips in a 12×6 grid. Voltage is regulated per domain — Vcore is variable while VTOP sits at 0.75 V and VDDIO at 1.8 V — never per individual chip. The 12 V PSU rail is boosted to about 17.7 V internally on some boards.

Is the Kendryte K210 the same as the K230?

No, and the difference is fundamental. The Gen-2 K210 is a RISC-V chip with only 8 MB of on-chip SRAM and no external DRAM, so it runs FreeRTOS (bare metal) and cannot run Linux. The Gen-3 K230 (K230D on the Nano 3S, with on-package DRAM) can run Linux with RT-Smart. That is why firmware and recovery tooling differ completely between the two generations.

Can you repair a Canaan Avalon?

Yes — we service Avalon hash boards on our Laval bench. Because the controller differs by generation (external Raspberry Pi on Gen 1, Kendryte K210 on Gen 2, K230 on Gen 3) and the ASIC bus is SPI rather than Bitmain's FPGA-midstate design, the diagnosis is Avalon-specific. See our ASIC repair pages for pricing and booking.

Related products, repair, and setup paths

Last reviewed July 2, 2026.