Connect Your Bitaxe to a Public Pool (Ocean, Braiins, Public-Pool)

Solo mining is the dream, but for many Bitaxe owners a public pool makes more sense day-to-day: regular shares acknowledged, occasional payouts, and much lower variance than solo. The tricky bit is choosing which pool — and knowing exactly how to configure AxeOS for each one.

This guide covers the three pools most relevant to Australian home miners: Ocean (TIDES model, transparent block templates, Singapore endpoint), Braiins Pool (FPPS, requires a free account, the world’s longest-running pool), and Public-Pool (no account, open-source, low fee). You’ll come away knowing the honest tradeoffs and the exact stratum strings to paste into AxeOS.

For solo mining instead, see the ausolo.ckpool.org guide. For the Parasite Pool (PPLNS, Australia-hosted), see the Parasite Pool guide.

What you’ll need

A Bitaxe miner — any model (Gamma 601, Ultra, Supra, Hex)
USB-C 5V 3A power supply
A computer or phone on the same Wi-Fi network as the Bitaxe
A Bitcoin address you control (for Ocean and Public-Pool)
A free Braiins account if using Braiins Pool — create one at pool.braiins.com

Warning: For Ocean and Public-Pool, only use a Bitcoin address from a wallet you fully control. Do not use an exchange deposit address — exchanges recycle addresses and a pool payout sent to a stale address can be lost permanently.

Step 1 — Understand the three pools at a glance

Before touching AxeOS it’s worth spending two minutes on what you’re actually choosing between. Here’s the honest comparison:

	Ocean	Braiins Pool	Public-Pool
Fee	~2% (50% off with DATUM)	0% with Braiins OS; small fee otherwise	~0% (self-hosted nodes; tip-based)
Payout model	TIDES (proportional, per block found)	FPPS (fixed per-share, daily)	Proportional (per block found)
Account required	No — BTC address only	Yes — free registration	No — BTC address only
Block template	Pool builds template (DATUM: you build it)	Pool builds template	Pool builds template
Min payout (on-chain)	0.01048576 BTC (Lightning available much lower)	Set by user; default ~0.001 BTC	No minimum (full reward per block)
Variance	Medium — TIDES smooths over ~8 blocks	Low — FPPS absorbs all variance	High — wins only when pool finds block
KYC / identity	None	None	None
Aussie/Asia latency	Singapore endpoint available	Asia endpoints available	Depends on instance
Official docs	ocean.xyz/docs	pool.braiins.com	public-pool.io

Bottom line for a single Bitaxe: The payout differences at 750 GH/s are tiny in absolute terms. Pick the pool whose philosophy resonates. If you care about decentralisation and block template transparency, Ocean. If you want FPPS reliability and a polished dashboard, Braiins. If you want zero friction and no account, Public-Pool.

Step 2 — Find your Bitaxe’s IP address and open AxeOS

Power on your Bitaxe. Find its IP address by checking your router’s DHCP client list or looking at the Bitaxe screen (it displays the IP after connecting to Wi-Fi).

Open a browser and navigate to:

http://<your-bitaxe-ip>

You should land on the AxeOS dashboard. Click the Settings tab (gear icon), then look for the Stratum or Pool section. You’ll see:

Hostname / Pool URL
Port
Username
Password
(Secondary/Fallback) — same four fields repeated

Leave the page open — you’ll fill it in differently depending on which pool you choose.

Step 3 — Option A: Connect to Ocean (ocean.xyz)

Ocean is a non-custodial pool run by Ocean Mining Ltd with technology from the Blockstream team. Its TIDES payout system pays you proportionally from every block the pool finds, smoothed across an ~8-block window to reduce variance. Block templates are built by the pool (not by you unless you run DATUM). Ocean supports Lightning payouts with no minimum — on-chain minimum is 0.01048576 BTC.

Stratum details — Ocean

For Australian miners, use the Singapore endpoint (lower latency):

Hostname: sg.mine.ocean.xyz
Port:     3334

Global fallback (use as secondary pool in AxeOS):

Hostname: mine.ocean.xyz
Port:     3334

Username format:

Your Bitcoin address, with an optional worker name separated by a dot:

bc1qyouraddresshere.bitaxe1

Accepted address formats: P2PKH (1...), P2SH (3...), Bech32 (bc1q...), Taproot (bc1p...).

Password: x (ignored by the pool)

Full example:

Hostname: sg.mine.ocean.xyz
Port:     3334
Username: bc1qxy2kgdygjrsqtzq2n0yrf2493p83kkfjhx0wlh.gamma01
Password: x

Check your stats at:

https://ocean.xyz/stats/<your-bitcoin-address>

Official docs: ocean.xyz/getstarted

Tip: Ocean supports Lightning payouts via BOLT12 offers. Once you’re earning shares, check the Lightning payout setup at ocean.xyz/docs/lightning to receive micro-payouts without waiting for the on-chain minimum.

Step 4 — Option B: Connect to Braiins Pool (pool.braiins.com)

Braiins has been operating since 2010 and is the world’s longest-running Bitcoin mining pool. It uses FPPS — Full Pay Per Share — meaning you receive a predictable payment for every valid share you submit, regardless of whether the pool actually finds a block in that time. Braiins absorbs the variance. This makes income very smooth for small miners.

You need a free account. Create one at pool.braiins.com, then create a worker inside the dashboard. The worker credentials are what you use in AxeOS.

Stratum details — Braiins Pool

Recommended endpoint (global, via GeoDNS — routes to nearest server):

Hostname: stratum.braiins.com
Port:     3333

Alternative port (if port 3333 is blocked on your network):

Hostname: stratum.braiins.com
Port:     443

Username format:

Your Braiins Pool username, a dot, then the worker name you created in the dashboard:

yourusername.workerName

Example:

Username: bayani.bitaxe1
Password: x

Password: x (ignored)

Full example:

Hostname: stratum.braiins.com
Port:     3333
Username: bayani.bitaxe1
Password: x

Tip: Braiins Pool is 0% fee if you run Braiins OS firmware on your miner. The Bitaxe runs AxeOS (not Braiins OS), so a small percentage fee applies — check your dashboard for the current rate.

Monitor your hashrate and earnings at pool.braiins.com after logging in.

Official docs: pool.braiins.com

Step 5 — Option C: Connect to Public-Pool (public-pool.io)

Public-Pool is open-source pool software anyone can run. The flagship public instance at public-pool.io requires no account — just your Bitcoin address. It’s a proportional pool: the reward from each block found is split among contributors by their share count. Because it’s a smaller pool, variance is higher (blocks are found less frequently).

Stratum details — Public-Pool

Hostname: public-pool.io
Port:     21496

Username format:

Your Bitcoin address, with an optional dot-separated worker name:

bc1qyouraddresshere.bitaxe1

Password: x (ignored)

Full example:

Hostname: public-pool.io
Port:     21496
Username: bc1qxy2kgdygjrsqtzq2n0yrf2493p83kkfjhx0wlh.gamma01
Password: x

Check your stats at:

https://public-pool.io/#/<your-bitcoin-address>

Official site: public-pool.io

Tip: Because Public-Pool is open-source, you can also run your own instance and point your Bitaxe at it — total sovereignty. The code is at github.com/benjamin-wilson/public-pool.

Step 6 — Enter your chosen pool into AxeOS

In AxeOS Settings, fill in the primary pool fields with whichever pool you chose in Steps 3–5.

Then fill in the secondary (fallback) pool fields. A sensible fallback for each choice:

Primary	Suggested fallback
Ocean (sg.mine.ocean.xyz:3334)	mine.ocean.xyz:3334
Braiins (stratum.braiins.com:3333)	stratum.braiins.com:443
Public-Pool (public-pool.io:21496)	mine.ocean.xyz:3334 (Ocean as fallback)

The fallback uses the same username/password format as the primary for Ocean and Public-Pool. For Braiins, use the same username.worker format.

Click Save (or Apply). AxeOS will restart the stratum connection — this takes 5–15 seconds.

Step 7 — Verify the connection is live

After saving, watch the Dashboard tab in AxeOS for:

Stratum status: Connected (with the pool hostname shown)
Accepted shares: A climbing counter — this confirms the pool is receiving and crediting your work
Hashrate: Should match your model’s rated speed within 5% after a 2–3 minute warm-up

If the status shows Rejected or shares aren’t incrementing after 5 minutes, the most common cause is a typo in the username (Bitcoin address). Copy your address from your wallet app and paste it fresh rather than typing it manually.

Step 8 — Check your pool stats page

Each pool provides a per-address stats page:

Ocean:

https://ocean.xyz/stats/<your-bitcoin-address>

Braiins: Log in at pool.braiins.com — your worker will appear in the dashboard once it submits shares.

Public-Pool:

https://public-pool.io/#/<your-bitcoin-address>

Allow 5–15 minutes for stats to populate. If you see your hashrate listed you’re fully set up and earning shares.

Step 9 — Let it run and check temperature

After 30 minutes, confirm:

Chip temperature: Keep BM1370/BM1397 below 65°C. Above 70°C check airflow or reseat the heatsink.
Hashrate stability: Should be within ±5% of rated spec.
Share acceptance rate: Aim for >99% accepted. A high rejection rate usually means latency issues — try a closer endpoint (e.g. the Singapore Ocean endpoint for Aussie miners).

Tip: At roughly 15W draw a Bitaxe Gamma costs around $0.05–$0.08 AUD per day on a standard NSW tariff. Running it on rooftop solar or Tassie hydro drops that cost to near zero.

Troubleshooting

AxeOS shows “Disconnected” or “Stratum error” Check your network can reach the pool. If on Ocean, try the global endpoint mine.ocean.xyz:3334 — the Singapore endpoint occasionally has maintenance. For Braiins try port 443 instead of 3333 in case your ISP blocks 3333.

Shares are being rejected Almost always a malformed username. Paste your Bitcoin address from your wallet (don’t retype). For Braiins Pool ensure you’ve created a worker in the dashboard and are using username.workername format.

Stats page shows zero after 15 minutes The pool may not have registered shares yet if you just started, or there’s a typo in your address/username. Cross-check the username in AxeOS settings character by character against your wallet address.

Hashrate is 30–50% below rated spec Thermal issue. Reseat the heatsink, check the thermal pad orientation, and ensure there’s clear airflow around the unit. Mild undervolting in AxeOS can also stabilise things.

Bitaxe keeps rebooting under load Your USB-C power supply may be under-spec. Use a quality 5V 3A adapter — cheap phone chargers often can’t sustain the current draw under sustained mining load.

High share latency / stale shares For Ocean, switch from mine.ocean.xyz to sg.mine.ocean.xyz — the Singapore node is meaningfully closer to Australia. For Braiins the GeoDNS on stratum.braiins.com should auto-route you to an Asian server.

What’s next

Want solo mining instead of pool mining? Read the ausolo.ckpool.org guide — Australia’s regional solo ckpool endpoint with 2% fee only on wins.
Interested in the Parasite Pool (PPLNS, Aussie-hosted)? See the Parasite Pool guide for another proportional option with local latency.
Ready to add another Bitaxe? Browse the Bitaxes collection — doubling your hashrate halves your variance on any pool.
Official pool documentation: ocean.xyz/docs · pool.braiins.com · public-pool.io

Frequently Asked Questions

Which pool is best for a single Bitaxe?

It depends what you value. Ocean gives you block-template sovereignty and TIDES payouts on every block found — great if decentralisation matters to you. Public-Pool costs you nothing to try and needs no account. Braiins suits miners who want predictable FPPS daily payouts and are happy to create an account. For a single Bitaxe the income difference is tiny; pool philosophy often matters more.

Do I need a pool account to use Ocean or Public-Pool?

No. Both Ocean and Public-Pool use your Bitcoin address as your identity — no email, no password, no KYC. Braiins Pool does require a free account registration.

What is DATUM and do I need it on a Bitaxe?

DATUM (Decentralised Alternative Templates for Universal Mining) is an Ocean protocol that lets your own Bitcoin full node build the block template instead of the pool. A standard Bitaxe doesn't support DATUM natively — it connects via regular Stratum V1. DATUM is for home node operators with a separate DATUM gateway device.

What password do I put in AxeOS for these pools?

For Ocean and Public-Pool enter anything — 'x' is conventional. The pools ignore the password field. For Braiins Pool the password field is also typically left as 'x'.

Is there an Australian or Asian server for Ocean?

Ocean has a Singapore endpoint — stratum+tcp://sg.mine.ocean.xyz:3334 — which gives meaningfully lower latency for Aussie miners compared to the US default. Use it as your primary and fall back to mine.ocean.xyz:3334.

What is FPPS versus TIDES versus proportional payout?

FPPS (Full Pay Per Share) pays a fixed rate per share regardless of whether the pool finds a block — Braiins absorbs variance for you but keeps a fee. TIDES (Ocean's model) pays proportionally from actual blocks found; variance is higher but the pool doesn't pre-smooth rewards. Public-Pool is proportional too — you only get paid when the pool finds a block.