Repair shop reports receiving 200 melted RTX 4090s per month, up from last year

A hot potato: The controversy surrounding melting RTX 4090 power cable adapters continues. Users began reporting burned connectors over a year ago, and the problem persisted long after Nvidia's official statement blamed user error. Although the company upgraded to safer plugs, CableMod recalled its third-party adapters, and a repair shop still receives hundreds of damaged units each month.

In a new video showcasing the repair of yet another burned RTX 4090 power connector, repair shop Northridge Fix states that it restored around 200 GPUs in a month. The number indicates a concerning increase since last fall when the shop's YouTube channel reported around 100 per month.

Northridge Fix says that it currently receives 4090s with melted connectors every day. The shop's latest video shows a box full of dozens of connectors to show the scale of the problem (below).

Users have complained of burning 4090 power cables since October 2022. Nvidia acknowledged around 50 cases worldwide and blamed user error, while others, including the PCIe consortium, suggested a design flaw was to blame.

Despite Nvidia rolling out GPUs with safer connectors last summer, incidents remain worryingly frequent. Custom vendor CableMod began a voluntary recall for its V1.0 and V1.1 12VHPWR 90-degree and 180-degree adapters last December. That became a mandatory recall in February after the Consumer Product Safety Commission got involved.

Many of the adapters that Northridge repaired were CableMod units, but other manufacturers are also affected. When asked for thoughts on the recalled adapters, the channel said that CableMod built a good product on a lousy foundation and got caught in the crossfire, suggesting that the problem lies with Nvidia – a criticism it has held since the beginning of the mess.

Several companies have come up with innovative solutions to the problem. For instance, Seasonic suggests gradually angling the cables with a hairdryer. Meanwhile, MSI has introduced brightly colored connectors that clearly indicate when they aren't fully connected. Gigabyte has taken a different route by designing a GPU with a 'cut out' to provide extra cable space.

Asus has an idea of building GPUs without power cables. In January, the company unveiled an RTX 4070Ti and 4090 that receive power through a new motherboard socket, reducing cable clutter and hopefully eliminating a potential safety hazard.