Why it matters: Nvidia’s current flagship RTX 4090 is a beast in a pair of functions. On top of its phenomenal gaming efficiency, consumers maintain expressed disaster over its power requirements. Those fears also can now undergo out weeks after warnings regarding the GPU’s power connectors.
Nvidia acknowledged or no longer it’s investigating at the least two cases of burning and melting power adaptors for its current flagship RTX 4090 graphics card. The requirement of a brand current power connector authorized to use with the GPU has caused some controversy.
Two Reddit users shared photos of burnt and melted RTX 4090 power connectors on the stop of the cable and on the cardboard itself. Nvidia contacted one of the house owners in hopes of diagnosing the downside. It’s unclear if the incidents are related to points the Peripheral Ingredient Interconnect Special Hobby Neighborhood (PCI-SIG) highlighted in September.
The core of the controversy is the current power connector authorized the RTX 4000 series graphics playing cards use. The GPUs make use of the 16-pin 12VHPWR cable authorized for ATX 3.0 power offers. Those looking out to upgrade with out changing their ATX 2.0 PSUs can use adapters bundled with the playing cards connecting three 8-pins or four 8-pins to one 12VHPWR cable.
Final month, PCI-SIG warned that obvious conditions also can build the adaptors in probability of over-recent and over-power. Let’s tell, pushing the PSU to its limit in a hot case also can burn the adaptor connectors, but Nvidia claims it mounted the downside earlier than the official start. Cable vendor CableMod warns that bending the cables decrease than 35mm can threaten the connections for the rationale that 12VHPWR connectors are smaller than earlier generations.
It’s unclear if both of these concerns is behind the Reddit users’ incidents. In spite of every little thing, or no longer it’s potentially most accumulate to use RTX 4000 GPUs with ATX 3.0 PSUs while you occur to also can maintain the funds for the upgrade.
In step with the burnt connector photos, AMD confirmed its upcoming RTX 4000 competitor — the RDNA 3 GPUs — wouldn’t use 12VHPWR. Many users will likely celebrate the current playing cards maintaining fleshy compatibility with their present PSUs.
Worries over 12VHPWR got right here moreover to to early concerns that the RTX 4090 might well well maybe draw 800W. Nvidia confirmed that it only wanted 450W, recommending an 850W PSU for systems the use of the cardboard. On the opposite hand, some AIB partners counsel PSUs over 1,000W out of caution for users making an are trying to pair the GPUs with cheap PSUs.
Rumors point to Nvidia supposed to start a most attention-grabbing more powerful RTX 4000 card –the Lovelace Titan –but canceled it because it required too important energy. Reports tell that it melted PSUs and tripped breakers in internal checks. On the opposite hand, the monster card also can return with 27Gbps or GDDR7 memory.
