New GeForce RTX 5090 and 5080 graphics cards are not melting cables, reports confirm issue was with RTX 4090

Phew! Nvidia’s RTX 5080 and RTX 5090 launch has not been well-received by consumers. But it briefly appeared that things were going from bad to worse after reports emerged of the RTX 5090D and RTX 5080 melting power cables. Now, however, it appears that the burn marks were the result of user error when installing an RTX 4090.

The higher power limits in the RTX 5090 and RTX 5080 were always going to raise concerns that the cards might experience the same melting power connector issue that has plagued the RTX 4090.

Those concerns briefly appeared justified when Hong Kong-based outlet PCM reported (via VideoCardz) that it tested the RTX 5090D (the China-specific version of the flagship) and the RTX 5080 last week. The initial post states that the cards were tested under full load, which broke a 1200W power supply and resulted in two burned 600W 12VHPWR connectors.

hong kong media pcm reported 12vhpwr cable melted after testing 5090d and 5080.https://t.co/wuhqrqpDYB
google translate
No chance to win the 100 million Mark Six lottery, but you will win if you burn 12VHPWR😭. After the initial testing of the RTX 5090D and 5080 under full… pic.twitter.com/3rXa0Q41BM

– UNIKO’s Hardware 🌏 (@unikoshardware) February 3, 2025

Thankfully for all those who camped outside stores or paid scalpers a fortune for their new Blackwell cards, the outlet has now clarified that the burn marks were on the RTX 4090 Founders Edition. PCM added that the RTX 5090D and RTX 5080 were fine.

It seems that the problem was caused by user error. PCM says it repeatedly inserted and removed the 12VHPWR cable during testing, so it appears the cable was misaligned when placed into the RTX 4090.

The original 12VHPWR power connector has been a problem for RTX 4090 owners since the card launched in October 2022 as it can melt due to users not fully plugging it in correctly. This was sometimes due to the stiff cable bending too close to the connector, often caused by the card’s size, especially in smaller PC builds. Nvidia said cases were rare, but in April 2024, a repair shop revealed that it was receiving 200 melted RTX 4090s per month, an increase over the 100 per month it was receiving the previous fall.

CableMod’s 12VHPWR angled adapters were supposed to help mitigate the issue, but they were recalled due to becoming loose, overheating, and melting into the GPU.

Nvidia released the new, supposedly safer 12V-2×6 connectors in the summer of 2023. It has slightly shorter pins, meaning power won’t be fully delivered unless the cable is properly seated. They are also more flexible and durable.

In other Blackwell news, whistleblower Edward Snowden just called the RTX 5000 series a crime against consumers and blasted its paltry amounts of VRAM.