4090 hotspot temperature > 110C

[Ambiguous11]

Hello all,

I purchased an Asus TUF RTX 4090 about a year and a half ago. About 2 months ago, the card started becoming very noisy when playing most games, with he fans immediately throttling to 100% because the GPU hotspot temperature was reaching 110C and staying there while the load on the GPU continued. The GPU otherwise works ok but in GPU-Z one can see signs of thermal throttling.

Since it is still under warranty, over a month ago I contacted the reseller (in the UK) and after showing them evidence of what was happening, I sent the card back for repair/replacement under warranty. They then sent the card back to me, claiming that they had not been able to replicate the issue I was seeing.

I have since tried the card on different systems and observed the same behavior (i.e. hotpot temperature spiking almost immediately to 110C while the GPU temperature stays at around 60-70C - that is a 40-50C difference!). I contacted the reseller again, showing them evidence of this and they have now changed their tune (excerpt from a recent email):

These hotspot temperatures aren't a cause for concern, looking through the speeds you're experiencing the clock speed is only dipping by a small amount which wouldn't indicative of a fault per say, especially when the machine is in use and the card is undergoing GPU intensive tasks. the temperature being so high also isn't necessarily an issue, especially with 4090 cards as they run significantly hotter than the previous versions.

This is obviously not normal behaviour as the card never behaved like this before and it is not supposed to from other evidence that is easily available online (reviews, videos, etc). I have told them that I suspect of a bad thermal contact and that the GPU may need to be repasted, but I don't want to have to risk doing that myself while the card is still under warranty (it is, after all, an expensive GPU).

I have sent them numerous images of games and benchmarks highlighting the issue (attaching a couple of those below).

The systems I have tried the card on (both running Win 11 with latest drivers and updates):

AMD Ryzen 7800x3d
Arctic Liquid Freezer III 360
MSI MAG X670E Tomahawk
32GB (2x16GB) DDR5 Corsair Vengeance
Crucial T500 M.2 SSD 2TB
Corsair RM1000x PSU

AMD Ryzen 5800x
NH-D15 chromax.black
Asus X570 ROG Crosshair VIII Hero
32 GB (2x16GB) DDR4 Teamgroup
Sabrent Rocket 4 Plus M.2 SSD 1TB
Corsair RM850x PSU


Based on all of this, what is your advice on how to proceed?

Thank you


PS:
I forgot to mention this initially: I had contacted ASUS initially and they said that all warranty for these products would have to be dealt with the reseller directly first... This was part of their reply: :/

For such products (components, accessories and networking), the warranty applies trough your retailer, not directly to you as end user, therefore, if you would like to take advantage of your warranty, I can only suggest that you contact your place of purchase for further assistance in regards to repair/replacement procedures, strengthened by the fact that you did not acquired the unit directly from ASUS, but through a seller.

 

[eidairaman1]

Lemee guess, no warranty

 

[Ambiguous11]

It is still under warranty.

 

[ir_cow]

Send it to ASUS directly under RMA. The reseller clearly doesn't want to deal with it. IF they won't, you will just have to repaste yourself.

 

[Ambiguous11]

Actually, and I forgot to mention this, I contacted ASUS initially and they said that all warranty for these products would have to be dealt with the reseller directly first... This was part of their reply:

For such products (components, accessories and networking), the warranty applies trough your retailer, not directly to you as end user, therefore, if you would like to take advantage of your warranty, I can only suggest that you contact your place of purchase for further assistance in regards to repair/replacement procedures, strengthened by the fact that you did not acquired the unit directly from ASUS, but through a seller.

Would you suggest I may have to go back to them again?

 

[DirtyDingusMcgee]

ASUS TUF Gaming GeForce RTX 4090 OC Edition 24GB GDDR6X Warranty card/Warranty agreement

Good luck

 

[DarkDreams]

Would you suggest I may have to go back to them again?

Yes and be demanding. Companies often try to weasel out of warranties if they think they can get away with it. Don't let them bullshit you, even on the official Nvidia page under specs -> view full specs it says maximum temperature is 90°C. 110 is just not accaptable and throttling isn't even relevant here since the resulting fan behaviour alone would warrant a replacement imo. Also, probably never buy at that place again if their customer suport is this horrid.

 

[Vya Domus]

Are you sure the manufacturer's warranty still applies, that one is usually a year, I don't know what the law is in the UK but it's possible they're refusing to deal with it directly because of that. Thing is it's likely that the same thing would happen, they're probably just gonna send it back or ask for more money.

Buy some PTM7950 and repaste it yourself, it's really not that difficult.

 

[erik120597]

classic asus, using the cheapest crappiest thermalpaste that pumps out after a few months leaving you with nasty hotspot temps like this

 

[Sithaer]

The same thing happened to my TuF 3060 Ti after a few months of my purchase and since it was a second hand card I assume 1+ year total usage is also about right in my case.
When I first got the card the temps were all fine and then it started to go up to the point of concern/loud fans and thats when I said yea that aint normal.

I've decided to do it myself and took the card apart and I kid you not the factory paste was literally gone and turned into a thin layer of white dust. 'I've repasted cards in the past but this I've never seen before..'
Ever since I've repasted it the temps and the fan speed went back to normal.

 

[Chomiq]

Actually, and I forgot to mention this, I contacted ASUS initially and they said that all warranty for these products would have to be dealt with the reseller directly first... This was part of their reply:



Would you suggest I may have to go back to them again?

That's bullshit reply from them, that would basically mean that any purchase outside of ASUS cannot be processed as a warranty claim by ASUS.

ASUS TUF Gaming GeForce RTX™ 4090 24GB GDDR6X OG OC Edition | Graphics Card | ASUS | Global

ASUS TUF Gaming GeForce RTX™ 4090 24GB GDDR6X OG OC Edition optimized inside and out for lower temps and durability.

www.asus.com

Tell them that reseller is claiming that they can't replicate the issue but card still shows these symptoms when you're doing your tests so you want to have ASUS verify the card by Asus Authorized Service Provider.

Alternatively do what everyone else is saying - disassemble the card and repaste it yourself.

 

[GamreCaleb]

put it in an oven at 300c until all of the everything is melted, and then send it to them asking if it is in good working order. simple as that. but in all seriousness, I'd yell at them until you get a new one. They can't ignore you, and that is definitely not a cheap card. Just don't open it, or they will have a real reason to say no. Sapphire would have never had this problem.

 

[Ambiguous11]

Thank you all for your input.

That's bullshit reply from them, that would basically mean that any purchase outside of ASUS cannot be processed as a warranty claim by ASUS.

ASUS TUF Gaming GeForce RTX™ 4090 24GB GDDR6X OG OC Edition | Graphics Card | ASUS | Global

ASUS TUF Gaming GeForce RTX™ 4090 24GB GDDR6X OG OC Edition optimized inside and out for lower temps and durability.

www.asus.com

Tell them that reseller is claiming that they can't replicate the issue but card still shows these symptoms when you're doing your tests so you want to have ASUS verify the card by Asus Authorized Service Provider.

Alternatively do what everyone else is saying - disassemble the card and repaste it yourself.

Indeed, I was expecting this kind of behaviour from Asus, but initially the reseller seemed welcoming to my claims, although ultimately their response has proven disappointing as well.

Are you sure the manufacturer's warranty still applies, that one is usually a year, I don't know what the law is in the UK but it's possible they're refusing to deal with it directly because of that. Thing is it's likely that the same thing would happen, they're probably just gonna send it back or ask for more money.

Buy some PTM7950 and repaste it yourself, it's really not that difficult.

Fortunately (or is it unfortunately, in this case?...) the warranty period in the UK is 2 years for products such as these. The reseller are simply not admitting that it is an issue and considering the card to be operating in a perfectly normal manner, which is hard to dispute seeing as one can game on the card, but the experience is not so great as it is extremely noisy (even noticeable over noise cancelling headphones - I have tried ).


I think I will take up all of the advice you all have given me here:

1) send a final email to the reseller to bluntly state my position (behaviour not within spec) and await their response;

2) get back to Asus, citing the retailer replies - I am not expecting much from them to be honest;

3) finally, and a quite likely outcome: repaste the card myself - I had seen that most people say good things about PTM7950. Thermal Grizzly pads have also been suggested in similar hotpost issues. Are there any downsides to the latter (the application would be easier though)?

Thank you

 

[Chomiq]

Thank you all for your input.



Indeed, I was expecting this kind of behaviour from Asus, but initially the reseller seemed welcoming to my claims, although ultimately their response has proven disappointing as well.



Fortunately (or is it unfortunately, in this case?...) the warranty period in the UK is 2 years for products such as these. The reseller are simply not admitting that it is an issue and considering the card to be operating in a perfectly normal manner, which is hard to dispute seeing as one can game on the card, but the experience is not so great as it is extremely noisy (even noticeable over noise cancelling headphones - I have tried ).


I think I will take up all of the advice you all have given me here:

1) send a final email to the reseller to bluntly state my position (behaviour not within spec) and await their response;

2) get back to Asus, citing the retailer replies - I am not expecting much from them to be honest;

3) finally, and a quite likely outcome: repaste the card myself - I had seen that most people say good things about PTM7950. Thermal Grizzly pads have also been suggested in similar hotpost issues. Are there any downsides to the latter (the application would be easier though)?

Thank you

Try to make the point about hotspot temps being the major factor. They might be just checking GPU temps, which seem normal but simply verification with GPU-Z will show it hitting thermal limit due to hotspot temp.

 

[thesmokingman]

Actually, and I forgot to mention this, I contacted ASUS initially and they said that all warranty for these products would have to be dealt with the reseller directly first... This was part of their reply:



Would you suggest I may have to go back to them again?

UK consumer protection laws suck ass. Only thing you can do is push your retailer then get their denial in writing and you can then take that to Asus.

 

[leonavis]

Actually, and I forgot to mention this, I contacted ASUS initially and they said that all warranty for these products would have to be dealt with the reseller directly first... This was part of their reply:



Would you suggest I may have to go back to them again?

When it comes to RMA and customer support, I heard so much bad things about ASUS.

Gamer's Nexus actually made a whole series about it. ASUS scammed us and Confronting ASUS face to face (there is more, just search for it if you're interested)

They also, after a pretty big echo, got at least some reaction from ASUS. So if ASUS really does try to scam you out of an RMA, GN's always looking for such stories. And if you have a medium-sized name like GN on your side, maybe getting an RMA is easier. But first, yeah, try to get it the "normal" way. Could prove hard though.

Fortunately (or is it unfortunately, in this case?...) the warranty period in the UK is 2 years for products such as these. The reseller are simply not admitting that it is an issue and considering the card to be operating in a perfectly normal manner, which is hard to dispute seeing as one can game on the card, but the experience is not so great as it is extremely noisy (even noticeable over noise cancelling headphones - I have tried ).

It's also not safe on the long run. The longevity of your card decreases plenty.

 

[thesmokingman]

When it comes to RMA and customer support, I heard so much bad things about ASUS.

Gamer's Nexus actually made a whole series about it. ASUS scammed us and Confronting ASUS face to face (there is more, just search for it if you're interested)

They also, after a pretty big echo, got at least some reaction from ASUS. So if ASUS really does try to scam you out of an RMA, GN's always looking for such stories. And if you have a medium-sized name like GN on your side, maybe getting an RMA is easier. But first, yeah, try to get it the "normal" way. Could prove hard though.


It's also not safe on the long run. The longevity of your card decreases plenty.

He's in the UK, got jack to do with the problems in the US. In the UK the laws dictate customer deals with retailer before ever contacting the vendor.

 

[phanbuey]

Bald spot on GPU from paste pump out, same thing happened to me. Super common with these.

Get a kryosheet and "repaste".

If you repaste with normal paste it will just pump out again after X months (also happened to me)

 

[thesmokingman]

Bald spot on GPU from paste pump out, same thing happened to me. Super common with these.

Get a kryosheet and "repaste".

If you repaste with normal paste it will just pump out again after X months (also happened to me)

This, but be careful if they put stickers on it. In the US those stickers have no authority but iirc they do in the EU.

 

[phanbuey]

This, but be careful if they put stickers on it. In the US those stickers have no authority but iirc they do in the EU.

yeah if you're in warranty and worried about voiding then for sure RMA, if the RMA is not working, then just repaste with a kryosheet and you should be all set.

Monitor RAM, HOTSPOT, and GPU temps with HWmonitor before and after, just to make sure the different spacing with kryosheet didn't mess up the contact with the ram modules, and order some extra ram pads in case you tear yours apart during the repaste.

 

[remekra]

If it's under RMA don't do the work for the reseller or manufacturer. Had the same thing happen on my 7900XTX, Gigabyte just went silent, but seller stepped up and gave me my money back.
110 under load on hotspot is not normal, it's a pump out issue. For the amount of money paid for 4090 they should thank you and service it properly.
Just push them until they do what they are supposed to do.
Don't just write an email, call them if you can and then send email attach all the screenshots and complain until they will comply.

 

[GamreCaleb]

I had a ROG Strix 3070 from Asus during Covid when they wanted an arm and a leg for anything and it came with a missing screw on the inside holding the heat sync. Still have that card you need to prop it just right so the fan doesn't make any noise.

 

[Ambiguous11]

The reseller agreed to an RMA.

Now it's going to ASUS... Wish me luck. I'll keep you posted.

 

[PassportBro]

I am not very optimistic.

Read Amazon.com reviews of ASUS GPU's and motherboards and see what happens when they send them back for RMA.

Usually ASUS just ships them their part back claiming they could find nothing wrong with it. W/e sends ASUS their part in original package lose the original package too. Sometimes the part is shipped back to the customer damaged in some way or inexpertly assembled.

I wouldn't want to go through an RMA with ASUS under any circumstances. I would just find a good technician and pay them to service my card if I was unwilling to do it myself. I mean, it's a 4090, you dumped on it abt $2k, might as well pay another $50 to have it properly serviced by a pro.

 

[MaexxDesign]

So much trouble because someone came up with the idea of saving a few cents when making the card.
This is not an isolated case, but a common practice for some manufacturers to save money where they can.
Here is a german video in which this cheap thermal paste-soup is tested:

It's about a Manli GeForce RTX 4080.
Manli RTX 4090 has the same problem.

35% of the thermal paste is simply gone!

The person responsible should be held liable with his private assets!
That just sucks!

This problem has been known for years by the board partners and also by nVIDIA itself.
nVIDIA has a Greenlight program that has to inspect and approve every single screw at board partners such as Manli, otherwise the card cannot be sold.
What is not checked, however, is the thermal paste, among other things.
Something so essential for the operation of the card is not checked!