Nvidia RTX 5090's 16-pin power connector hits 150C in reviewer's thermal camera shots
Some thermal imagery shared on Twitter/X underlines how toasty-hot power connectors servicing Nvidia GeForce RTX 5090 graphics cards can get. Veteran hardware reviewer Andreas Schilling, an editor at Germany's Hardware Luxx, took thermal photos of his water-cooled graphics card.
While the GPU barely broke a sweat, the power connectors could be seen "cooking at 150+ degrees." That's Celsius, and for those unfamiliar with metric units, 150 degrees Celsius equates to just over 300 degrees Fahrenheit.
Though reviewers at Tom's Hardware haven't experienced dangerously hot 12V-2x6 cable connectors first-hand, reports indicate this issue can affect anyone—from seasoned hardware veterans to budding enthusiasts. In previous generations and with earlier iterations of the 16-pin connector, there was often a nagging doubt about 'user error, ' but we seem to be fully past that notion now. We must face up to the problem that RTX 5090 power cables may be doomed to burn.
Schilling provided some background information on the thermal imagery he shared. The graphics card he was testing was a liquid-cooled Inno3D RTX 5090 Frostbite, and one of the images clearly shows the pipe fittings. The PSU in this PC build was a be quiet! Dark Power 13 and Schilling confirmed that the GPU pulled 600W during tests.
The Hardware Luxx editor sounds like he has run out of patience with Nvidia's graphics card power connector(s) choice. "The 12V-2x6 cable was cooking at 150+ degrees," he observed, backed up by the thermography. "This is no joke and will forever remain a weak point of this generation(s)."
Prompted by social media interest in the visuals, Schilling added some extra details. He said the cabling looked like it was still for now, despite the high temperatures seen. "But you can see that they have been subjected to thermal stress. I have zero trust in that solution of any kind," blasted the reviewer.
Later, Schilling recalled that the PSU-to-cabling mating cycles were still very low, "a handful." However, the connector might have been plugged and unplugged "several hundred" times on the GPU side. That second figure seems well beyond the 12V-2x6 connector's "mating cycle life of 30 cycles," mentioned by Corsair. The images show the unexpectedly high temperatures on both sides—the graphics card and PSU connections.
Before we go, it is important to remember that thermal cameras measure surface temperatures so that things could be far hotter inside the plastic connectors. Schilling didn't see actual melting during his later inspections but said there was evidence of some thermal stress. We expect the 12V-2x6 connector to use the same Nylon 66 and LCP housing as per 12VHPWR specs. The former has a melting point of 255 degrees Celsius (491 degrees Fahrenheit), and the latter melts above 335 degrees Celsius (635 degrees Fahrenheit).
Thankfully, Schilling's power connectors must not have quite reached these thresholds inside, but extended testing and use of this build – without changes – sounds like it could be hazardous.
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