There have been reports of melted power connectors on NVIDIA’s RTX 5090 graphics cards. The 12VHPWR power cable issues previously seen on the RTX 4090 model have been experienced again by RTX 5090 Founders Edition owners. Two different users have reported melting and burning marks on the power connectors of their graphics cards, damaging the power supply.
NVIDIA RTX 5090’s 12VHPWR power cable has also been found to be faulty
A Reddit user reported that after upgrading from an RTX 4090 to an RTX 5090, he noticed a burning smell while playing Battlefield 5 and shut down his computer. During his checks, he found traces of burnt plastic on both the graphics card and power supply connectors. He stated that the cable he used was from MODDIY, a brand that makes customized power cables, and that the connection was secure at both ends.
A similar situation was reported by Spanish YouTuber Toro Tocho. Tocho’s RTX 5090 Founders Edition graphics card experienced a meltdown on both the GPU and PSU connectors while using a power cable provided by PSU manufacturer FSP. The meltdown also damaged the PCIe 5.0 power connector.
A Tesla Cybertruck equipped with the Full Self-Driving (FSD) feature was involved in a traffic accident in Florida.
NVIDIA has started using the 12VHPWR power connector on its RTX 40-series graphics cards for the first time, and new power supplies that support the standard have been released. The RTX 4090 Founders Edition model draws 450 watts of power over the 12VHPWR connector, while the RTX 5090 model draws 575 watts with a cable that supports up to 600 watts. However, due to power connection issues experienced with the RTX 4090, the PCI-SIG organization developed a more secure version, the 12V-2×6 connector.
This new connection standard aims to increase reliability with shorter sensing pins and longer conductive terminals. According to Corsair, this change makes it easier to tell if the cable is connected correctly.
