Tech publication outlet PCM from Hong Kong recently reported an incident while testing the RTX 5090D and RTX 5080 (via UNIKO's Hardware), sharing some all-too-familiar images. Two of the publication's 16-pin cables melted and their 1,200W PSU outright failed. While this news could lead to a new generation power connector scare, closer investigation reveals that an RTX 4090 FE was in fact the real culprit with visible burn marks evident ahead of the Blackwell testing. The damage wasn't initially obvious and further instability prompted the reviewer to check the GPU power cable, only to find that both ends had melted.
From our understanding of the source's machine translation, the reviewer likely tested the RTX 4090 FE beforehand. Nvidia silently revised the power connector on the 4090 FE to the updated 12V-2x6 standard after a few months. It is possible that their sample still used the fault-prone 12VHPWR connector. After testing both RTX 50 GPUs under full load, the reviewer noticed signs of instability, which led them to suspect the SSD had failed. Upon inspecting the 16-pin GPU power cable, they found clear signs of melting.
This led to the initial inference that Nvidia's RTX 50 series GPUs could still be vulnerable to power cabling meltdowns. Further examination revealed clear burn marks on the RTX 4090 FE, while the 50-series GPUs' connectors showed no signs of damage. This suggests that the RTX 4090 FE almost certainly caused the cable to melt. Breathe easy; this was just a false alarm. A translation of the story is available if you expand the tweet below.
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The elevated power limits on Blackwell GPUs did raise concerns, considering the melted power connector pandemic that plagued Ada Lovelace. However, Nvidia reassured customers that RTX 50 series power connectors were unlikely to melt. While the answer is a bit more complicated than a clear yes or no, AIBs are taking extra precautions, nonetheless. Zotac's new safety light feature prevents GPU power-on until the cable is seated correctly. MSI's new 16-pin cables feature an easily visible yellow indicator to help determine whether they are properly connected or not. In fact, the 16-pin connector on a handful of custom RTX 50 models is safeguarded by thermal pads, where the excess heat is dissipated through the metal backplate.
There have been reports by a few reviewers that suggest Nvidia's multi-PCB design for its Founders Edition cards is causing instability in PCIe 5.0 mode. We likely won't know the complete story until a proper investigation ensues; further exacerbated by the ongoing shortages which limit our ability to corroborate this issue with other users.
