Got too many raspberries?

[rin67630]

I'm loosing the overview: that's a raspberry jam!

[thatchunkylad198966]

(See my sig) and I thought I had too many! XD

[HawaiianPi]

I'm loosing the overview: that's a raspberry jam!

You've got me beat by a factor of 2 (we've got half that many).

Between me and my GF we have 10 (7 of which are mine)

2x3B+
2x3B
1x2B (v1.1)
1xPi0 (v1.2)
2xPi0 (v1.3)
1xPi0W (v2016)
1xB (rev2 512MB).

I think that's all of them ...

But I do have three Pi 4B on order (1x2GB and 2x4GB).

[rpdom]

These are my Pi that are currently in use:

Raspberry Pi Model A Rev 2
Raspberry Pi Model B Rev 1
Raspberry Pi Model B Plus Rev 1.2
Raspberry Pi Zero Rev 1.3
Raspberry Pi Zero Rev 1.3
Raspberry Pi 2 Model B Rev 1.1
Raspberry Pi 2 Model B Rev 1.1
Raspberry Pi 3 Model B Rev 1.2
Raspberry Pi 3 Model B Rev 1.2
Raspberry Pi 3 Model B Rev 1.2
Raspberry Pi 3 Model B Plus Rev 1.3
Raspberry Pi 3 Model B Plus Rev 1.3
Raspberry Pi 4 Model B Rev 1.1

I have a couple more old Model Bs, another A that won't boot although the SoC seems OK and an unknown quantity of various Zeroes

I didn't expect to get quite so addicted. I think if I had the budget I would get more.

[Heater]

How do you do that?

I keep blowing Pi up at an alarming rate. Or they get dispersed to God knows where.

I only ever have three or four around at a time.

[DougieLawson]

I've still got 17 running and one dead 2B (from my outdoor weather station).

I may go with the £20 3B+ to replace that one, although I'm concerned that the Weather Station HAT may shoot another RPi dead.

[jachaney]

Amusing question . My solution is handouts. If i hear of a young person taking an intrest and the parents are short of funds, I offer a setup, on a lending library type plan, and i only ask for any peripherals to be returned (monitors and keyboards).

[DavidS]

No where enough, you need more.

I do not have nearly enough :

• 1 Rapberry Pi 1B rev 1, no longer used.
• 3 Raspberry Pi 1B Rev 2 (or is it 1.2), 2 used for control applications 1 backup.
• 5 Raspberry Pi 1B+'s, used as desktop computers, all running RISC OS.
• 1 Raspebrry Pi 2B (the BCM2836 ARMv7 version), not used as can not replace, best RPi so far.
• 2 Raspberry Pi 3B's, only as backups as these things get hot to quickly.
• 1 Raspberry Pi 3B+, I am typing this on it now, desktop computer, runs both Raspbian and RISC OS, did a partial death yesterday afternoon thankfully seem to only have permanately lost the WiFi and Bluetooth, I never use the on board WiFi, and prefer external blutooth IC for my MCU communication to computer (only thing I use blutooth for).

I still need to get the following:

• 2 Raspberry Pi 4B's, with 2GB RAM.
• 2 more Raspberry Pi 3B+'s.
• 8 more Raspberry Pi 1B+'s.
• As many Raspbery Pi Zero boards as possible.
• 2 Raspberry Pi 1A+'s

And this list will likely grow faster than the list of what I have. I really like the BCM2835 based RPi's, have found good use also for the BCM2837 based 3B+, and am liking a lot of the specifications on the Raspberry Pi 4B+ so looking forward to getting 2.

[DavidS]

How do you do that?

I keep blowing Pi up at an alarming rate. Or they get dispersed to God knows where.

I only ever have three or four around at a time.

I have only had two RPi's die ever. One was an original 3B, the other was yesterday a 3B+, and the 3B+ came back with minimal damage.

[Heater]

Well...

One Pi dies when I turned on a supply that was inadvertently set to 12v, the second time! The first time I made that mistake the reverse protection diode jumped off the board and smoke came out, Pi still worked though, until I did it the second time....

One old model Pi stopped after a few months. Smoke was coming out of it's very hot SD card. Not the Pi, the card. With a new SD card it still works to this day.

Yesterday a Pi 3 was working, till I reflashed it's SD card with Buster. No idea what ham fisted thing I did there.

And so it goes...

Luckily Eben required that the Pi be cheap enough that kids could break them without their parents getting into a fuss over the expense. Call me a big kid.

[jahboater]

I have actually only got three running at the moment and a few in the cupboard.

I gave away all my older Pi's to a couple of local schools.

That was a mistake, because they are now collectable

I think a second 4GB Pi4 will be ordered as soon as the PiHut get them back in stock .....

[W. H. Heydt]

I've lost track of how many I have. I do know, though that I have two CM3L+ on order....that I hope to receive some time this year.

[rin67630]

and i only ask for any peripherals to be returned (monitors and keyboards).

Do you need peripherals for your Raspberries? Really?

[rin67630]

I have only had two RPi's die ever.

I find the Zeroes are pretty unreliable.
I have a couple of them which refuse to put anything on HDMI, even after tweaking the config.txt. They run headless, so it is not critical.
I just start their SD card on another Pi.
I have another Zero that works, but the processor gets really hot for no reason.
Plus two that died, don't know why.
One came with a broken ferrite coil, still works but drains noticeably more juice than normal.

Currently my favourite is the 3a+, easy to start with just a wireless keyboard/mouse, very robust, do not need additional frills.
The Zeroes W are really cheap, I start them with the SD card cloned from a 3a+. But it's good to have some in reserve.

[HawaiianPi]

I find the Zeroes are pretty unreliable.
I have a couple of them which refuse to put anything on HDMI, even after tweaking the config.txt. They run headless, so it is not critical.
I just start their SD card on another Pi.
...
Currently my favourite is the 3a+, easy to start with just a wireless keyboard/mouse, very robust, do not need additional frills.
The Zeroes W are really cheap, I start them with the SD card cloned from a 3a+. But it's good to have some in reserve.

Problems with the Pi0 series are often related to the extra adapters needed. Adding some HDMI boost or getting a direct miniHDMI-HDMI cable usually helps. Same with the micro USB adapter, eliminating that will often fix issues with hubs or other accessories.

You don't need to configure a card on another Pi to run headless. Adding a pre-configured wpa_supplicant.conf file (for wireless network), and an empty file named ssh (or ssh.txt) to the small FAT32 "boot" partition will get you up and running without needing a keyboard or screen (or another Pi). Your Pi will boot up and connect to your wireless network with SSH enabled.

Most of my Pi0 computers have never been connected to a keyboard or screen (ever). I boot and run them completely headless. Same for my 3B+ game server. Booted and configured without ever being connected to anything but power.

[rin67630]

You don't need to configure a card on another Pi to run headless.

I know, but for me it's so convenient to have a reference system with all my software and settings preloaded and up-to date, with VNC already cloud-configured.
I copy the SD-card, modify the wpa_supplicant for the destination WLAN and run...
That is much faster than etching a vanilla SD-card, SSD into it, update for 40 minutes and put all my stuff manually on it.
That would mean hours of work. Cloning is much easier.

[DavidS]

I have only had two RPi's die ever.

I find the Zeroes are pretty unreliable.
I have a couple of them which refuse to put anything on HDMI, even after tweaking the config.txt. They run headless, so it is not critical.
I just start their SD card on another Pi.
I have another Zero that works, but the processor gets really hot for no reason.
Plus two that died, don't know why.
One came with a broken ferrite coil, still works but drains noticeably more juice than normal.

Currently my favourite is the 3a+, easy to start with just a wireless keyboard/mouse, very robust, do not need additional frills.
The Zeroes W are really cheap, I start them with the SD card cloned from a 3a+. But it's good to have some in reserve.

One thing I would ask there is what do you have the freq's set to on the zero's for you.

I ask because they are basically overclocked from the factory so setting the clock back to the normal levels is (or used to be anyway) highly recommended. There have been found examples of the BCM2935 that can not handle that level of overclocking (obviously the ones in the Zero can) so I would go with a level that is known safe on all BCM2835's.

[rin67630]

One thing I would ask there is what do you have the freq's set to on the zero's for you.

At least with Raspi-config I have got no overclocking, not even the choice of it.

[alphanumeric]

1 - 4B 4 gig on the way
2 - 3B+"s
4 - 3A+'s
1 - 3B
12 - Zero W's
2 - A+'s

Also have 2 Sense Hats and 1 Pi Foundation 7 inch touch screen.

[LTolledo]

not much in my current possession

Code: Select all

RPi3B+			: 4 	(Desktop x 3, Spare x 1)
RPi3B			: 6	(Desktop x 3, Retropie x 1, AIY x 1, Spare x 1)
RPi2Bv1.2		: 2 	(NAS x 2)
RPi1B+			: 3	(BreadboardPi x 1, Volumio x 1, NAS x 1) 
RPi1B(c2012)512		: 1	(KodiMediaPlayer x 1)
RPiA+512		: 2 	(BreadboardPi x 1, ChristmasDecor x 1)
RPiA+256		: 1	(Volumio x 1)
RPiZero			: 1	(BreadBoardPi x 1)
RPiZeroW(H)		: 6	(Volumio x 2, MotionEye x 1, KodiMediaPlayer x 1, ChristmasDecor x 1, RetroPie x 1)  	 

[Imperf3kt]

My collection is small in comparison.
I have (in order of purchase):
1x Pi3b with ethernet removed
I use this as a test Pi, for running programs and making scripts. Currently it is hooked up to an L298N motor driver.

1x dead ZeroW
Spare parts.

1x Pi Zero
I use this as an audio player. It has an amplifier soldered to it.

1x working Pi Zero W
This is becoming an experimental robotic lawn mower.

1x Pi3A+
I use this as a portable device.

1x Pi4b 2GB
I plan to use this Pi to replace the junk Windows laptop I gave to my parents for watching YouTube. Initial testing proves extremely capable.

[alphanumeric]

I have only had two RPi's die ever.

I find the Zeroes are pretty unreliable.
I have a couple of them which refuse to put anything on HDMI, even after tweaking the config.txt. They run headless, so it is not critical.
I just start their SD card on another Pi.
I have another Zero that works, but the processor gets really hot for no reason.
Plus two that died, don't know why.
One came with a broken ferrite coil, still works but drains noticeably more juice than normal.

Currently my favourite is the 3a+, easy to start with just a wireless keyboard/mouse, very robust, do not need additional frills.
The Zeroes W are really cheap, I start them with the SD card cloned from a 3a+. But it's good to have some in reserve.

I'm using 3A+'s as headless surveillance cameras. Its a nice cost saving over a 3B+. Smaller footprint too. And I have two of the original A+'s with sense hats on them. One runs 24/7 without a hitch.

[DavidS]

One thing I would ask there is what do you have the freq's set to on the zero's for you.

At least with Raspi-config I have got no overclocking, not even the choice of it.

That is because they are overclocked by default (my point). The factory settings on the RPi Zero are:

• ARM=1000MHz
• GPU=400MHz
• Core=400MHz
• SDRAM=450MHz
• Overvolt=5

And that is with a BCM2835. That is a lot higher clock than is normal on the other boards having a BCM2835, which are:

• ARM=700MHz
• GPU=250MHz
• Core=250MHz
• SDRAM=400MHz

And it has been shown on other BCM2835 RPi boards that running with ARM at 1000MHz and GPU at 400MHz will work most of the time, though some examples of the BCM2835 IC can not handle it. It has been a good while since this was covered, though it is on these forums if you look back far enough.

I would run a RPi zero at:

Code: Select all

arm_freq=900
gpu_freq=300
sdram_freq=400
over_voltage=4

which is a bit slower than factory settings, though still a good bit faster than the other BCM2835 based boards. It is more sane for the SoC than the factory settings.

Yes the BCM2835's in the Raspberry Pi Zero can handle the speed, this we know. though I would be more comfortable a bit closer to the level of other Raspberry Pi computers with the same SoC (not all of which can always handle those settings).

[rin67630]

I would run a RPi zero at:

Code: Select all

arm_freq=900
gpu_freq=300
sdram_freq=400
over_voltage=4

You mean putting that in /boot/config.txt ?
Do I need to consider other things like timings to adapt?

I always found the Zeroes to be unreliable, maybe that would improve their reliability?
I don't need speed, my Zeroes run at 3% CPU.

[DavidS]

I would run a RPi zero at:

Code: Select all

arm_freq=900
gpu_freq=300
sdram_freq=400
over_voltage=4

You mean putting that in /boot/config.txt ?
Do I need to consider other things like timings to adapt?

I always found the Zeroes to be unreliable, maybe that would improve their reliability?
I don't need speed, my Zeroes run at 3% CPU.

My thought is that that would improve the reliability. Clock them reasonably.

And yes those are settings for your config.txt (which in Linux would be at /boot/config.txt).

Not yet having any RPi Zeros I can not be sure, though it seems logical that running with more sane clocks could improve stability.