I’ve often thought the same thing. I get s19’s and the like require 220v and that’s not standard in USA, using a s9 would be a more efficient way to mine in my humble opinion.
Some people will spend hundreds of dollars on BitAxe or variant, achieving less than 5 TH/s, when they could have a used miner with 10-20x the hashrate.
2.5TH/s for € 400,00 for NerdQAxe+
https://www.gobrrr.me/product/nerdqaxe/
1.2TH/s for 220.00 CAD for BitAxe Gamma
Buy 2, to get 2.4TH/s combined for about $300 USD
https://d-central.tech/product/the-bitaxe/
93TH/s for $300 for Avalon Miner 1246
https://kaboomracks.com/product/used-avalon-miner-a1246-93t/
Some providers of used S19s
https://www.asicprices.com/en/miner/antminer-s19
Note: This is not a testimonial for any of these vendors or products. Buy at your own risk. DYOR. DYOK.
Discussion
Not to difficult to put a 220 in.
My S9s use 85w per TH.
My bitaxe uses 20w per TH.
Yes, but that's quite a premium to pay on the capex that will never pay off in prolonged opex
Show me any miner that has the same efficiency as a bitaxe. Only thing I can find close is the S19 XP Hydro, but not everyone can afford to run something like that. So getting a bitaxe at a bit of a premium and bit better efficiency without the full upfront cost or high electric bill, suits some folks better.