The RTX 4090 Ships With 2 Different Cables And You Should Avoid One
NVIDIA’s RTX 4090 GPUs are suffering from burning and melting issues due to the new PCIe Gen 5 12VHPWR adapter. Igor’s Lab has been working around the clock to pinpoint the exact issue, but the giant NVIDIA has remained silent, up until now. After a long internal investigation including some NVIDIA officials, Igor’s Lab managed to know that currently, 2 different manufacturers supply NVIDIA’s new cables.
Choose Your Cables Wisely
As per Igor’s Lab, the RTX 4090 uses a cable manufactured by either Astron or NTK. The latter has a better latching system and an audible click after insertion. In contrast, Astron’s design differs from the specified standards. Igor claims this may be a production error thus explaining why such a case is rare but still possible.
In fact, after rigorous testing, it was revealed that NTK adapters have lower resistance even after being plugged in and out 10 times. Don’t take our word for it, this has been showcased by NVIDIA themselves. Igor’s Lab posted an exclusive chart highlighting the difference between both brands. The test below basically shows the resistance after x number of cycles (connects/disconnects).
Who’s at Fault?
Many experts have given their opinion about this new adapter fiasco. JonnyGuru claims that this issue is due to the user’s own fault, although others have conflicting opinions. Gamer’s Nexus theorized that 150V cables, used by Igor’s Lab were the main cause. To prove this, he tested a 300V cable and could not reproduce the failures Igor’s Lab faced.
(Chart via Igor’s Lab)
| Problem | Cause | Solution |
|---|---|---|
| Poorly fitting plug, straight plugging impossible | Injection molding, Protruding casting residues | Light chamfering with cutter knife, do not use contact grease! |
| Poor fitting connector, no snap in at the end | Injection molding, Protruding casting residues, Poor locking mechanism | Visual control by user |
| Hot contacts, Melting of the connector (1) | Bent up Tulip contact by angled insertion or moving the connector afterwards | Replacing the cable or adapter |
| Hot contacts, Melting of the connector (2) | Bending the adapter or power supply cable | Replacing the cable or adapter |
| Hot contacts, Melting of the connector (3) | All relevant causes | Use ATX3 power supplies with native 12VHPWR connector or spare PSU cables (crimped in each case) |
| Insufficient gripping surface for the correct insertion to the end stop | Cooler design | None |
| Insufficient gripping surface for the correct loosening of the Connection without bending | Cooler design | None |
| Hot leads between adapter and PSU | Adapter with broken solder joints or broken cable | Exchange adapter |
| Hot plugs/sockets on the PSU side | PSU design too weak | Replace PSU |
Conclusion
All in all, it’s high time for NVIDIA to step in and give an official clarification regarding this problem. Whether it be a slight modification or a new cable altogether, it is of utmost importance. Besides, to save itself from the hassle AMD decided to drop out of this new ‘Gen 5 power connector’ bandwagon. All such accusations are harming Ada’s sales because at the end of the day who would want a broken RTX 4090 and $1599 less in cash?
