Key Takeaways
1. The Nvidia RTX 50 series, including the RTX 5070, has experienced power cable melting issues, although not as severe as the RTX 4090.
2. A user reported smoke from their RTX 5070 setup, indicating a melting power cable despite proper installation.
3. An investigation revealed a damaged pin on the GPU’s power connector, suggesting a possible manufacturing issue.
4. Current distribution problems in Blackwell GPUs may be causing excessive current to flow through specific wires in the power cable.
5. Similar issues with power connectors and cables have been found across multiple RTX 50 series models, raising concerns among gamers.
After the problems with melted power connectors on the RTX 4090, gamers were hoping that the Nvidia RTX 50 series would be less problematic. However, while the issues are not as severe, they still exist. Interestingly, even the Blackwell GPUs, which consume less power, are experiencing similar issues. The latest situation involves the RTX 5070, where it was the power cable that melted, not the connector on the graphics card itself.
Incident Report
VideoCardz shared the story of this incident, which was reported by a user named ere9w on X. This user built a new gaming setup with a Zotac RTX 5070 and a 750-watt Seasonic power supply. Ere9w mentioned that smoke appeared only moments after turning on the computer. To counter any assumptions of user mistakes, the poster emphasized that the power cable was properly installed. In the case of the RTX 40 series, Nvidia had previously pointed fingers at improperly seated cables but eventually supported an updated 12V-2×6 specification.
Investigation Findings
While searching for answers, ere9w found a pin that was damaged on the power connector of the GPU. A single misaligned pin might have led to the melting of the end of the power cable. Since it’s quite hard to misalign these components, some believe this failure could stem from a manufacturing issue.
Theories on Current Distribution
One hypothesis revolves around how Blackwell GPUs manage current flow through their power cables. Notable overclocker Der8auer took a look at an RTX 5090 that had a melted power connector and cable. Using a thermal imaging camera, he discovered that certain wires in the power cable were carrying too much current. The graphics card itself cannot gauge how much power is being drawn by the pins in the 12V-2×6 connector. This leads to poor load balancing and an overflow of current through some wires.
It seems that the same problems found in the RTX 5090 are also present in the RTX 5080 and RTX 5070. Whether Nvidia is to blame or not, gamers who spend a lot on these high-end GPUs still have their worries.
