GPU Failure: RTX 5090 Founders Edition Suffers 16-pin Meltdown in Veteran Reviewer's Hands, Despite Decades of Testing Experience, User Ponders If User Error Could Be the Culprit.
John Papadopoulos, the editor-in-chief of DSOGaming, recently experienced a power connector meltdown with an RTX 5090 graphics card while playing the game Wuchang: Fallen Feathers. Despite the melted power connector, his system ran perfectly fine without any crashes or problems.
Nvidia is currently investigating the cause of the RTX 5090's power connector meltdown. The incident occurred despite Papadopoulos claiming that the power connector was fully inserted into the graphics card.
Power imbalances across the pins of the 12VHPWR power connector are believed to be the primary cause of the issue. Key safety mechanisms to prevent this include per-pin power sensing and balancing, next-generation PSU and connector integration, robust physical connection design, and user precautions.
Some board partners, such as ASUS ROG Astral RTX 5090, use technology to monitor and ensure that power is evenly distributed across each pin of the connector. Manufacturers like Seasonic are developing power connectors combined with advanced PSUs capable of detecting power delivery issues and alerting users to prevent damage.
Ensuring the connector is fully and securely seated is crucial. Meltdowns can result if the connector is even slightly loose, as poor contact increases resistance and localized heat buildup. Users are advised to always use the original cables and verify proper seating.
Improved connector construction and materials are also part of long-term solutions by manufacturers. However, it's worth noting that Nvidia Founders Edition GPUs do not implement per-pin sensing and treat the connector as a single entity, increasing the risk.
In light of this, it's essential to follow safety guidelines to prevent such incidents. If you suffer from a melted power connector, immediately shut off your computer and RMA the GPU so that the manufacturer can repair or replace it.
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John Papadopoulos will not be running any gaming benchmarks on the RTX 5090 at this time. This incident marks the first time he has encountered such an issue with an RTX 50-series GPU.
The investigation by Nvidia is focusing on power imbalances across the pins of the 12VHPWR power connector, with per-pin power sensing and balancing, next-generation PSU and connector integration, robust physical connection design, and user precautions being key safety mechanisms to prevent similar incidents.
Some board partners, such as ASUS ROG Astral RTX 5090, are utilizing technology to monitor and ensure that power is evenly distributed across each pin of the connector, while manufacturers like Seasonic are developing power connectors combined with advanced PSUs capable of detecting power delivery issues.
