NVIDIA might have a problem with some RTX 4090 catching fire
Two redditors report that their RTX 4090 graphics cards are now dead, and melted power connectors might be the reason why.
Redditors reggie_gakil and NoDuelsPolicyy today posted photos of their RTX 4090 graphics cards with melted 16-pin (aka 12VHPWR) connectors. Their cards have gone bust, and NVIDIA’s new 600W might have been the culprit.
Burned RTX4090 power connector/adapter, Source: reggie_gakil & NoDuelsPolicyy
Reggie’s card caught fire and there was smoke involved, while Duel’s card simply went dead and the melted power adapter/connector were later discovered. Both cards the latest RTX 4090 graphics cards, which are the first models in the new lineup to feature the 16-pin power connector.
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Before the RTX 4090 card was even released, a story came up that PCI-SIG (the body behind the PCIe specs) was concerned about ‘thermal variance’ for new power adapters. It was later revealed that it was NVIDIA who reported the issue to PCI-SIG.
After testing various implementations of the new 12VHPWR connector, the company concluded that severe bending and exceeding connection cycles beyond 40 may result in thermal hotspots and in some cases even melting of the cables.
12VHPWR cable ‘thermal variance’ issue, Source: PCI-SIG
Unfortunately, do not know if these particular cards were affected by the bending issue, but it is a fact that many RTX 4090 users struggle to fit their cards into the chassis without bending the cable beyond the recommended ‘3 cm’.
Although it was to be expected that this might eventually happen, it is still not a good look for NVIDIA, who are the first adapters of the new cable. For now, these are just the first two reported cases of the new cards going up in smoke, but there are probably more to come. NVIDIA has already reached out to the first Redditor, so we might get a statement later.
Meanwhile, you may want to check Buildzoid’s and JayzTwoCents videos on the subject.
