NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090/5090 Prototypes Tested with Quad 16-Pin 12V-2x6 Connectors

[AleksandarK]

Recent engineering prototype leaks reveal NVIDIA's power delivery design for its RTX 5090 flagship GPU featured a jaw-dropping quad 12V-2x6 connector configuration. The prototype board, while not publicly photographed, is significantly different from the final version we have today. The quad-connector design serves multiple purposes beyond raw power delivery. Each 12V-2x6 connector, capable of delivering up to 600 W individually, creates a theoretical power ceiling far beyond reasonable requirements. More likely, the implementation allows for separate voltage rails and enhanced power stability, crucial for the card's reported 575 W TDP - a 125 W increase from the RTX 4090's specifications. This overengineered piece follows NVIDIA's historical engineering practices, where early prototypes typically feature expanded power delivery systems that are later optimized for production.

The timing of this leak happens just in time with ongoing discussions about 12V-2x6 connector reliability, particularly following documented failures. While the quad-connector design may seem excessive, it distributes power load more evenly across multiple connection points, potentially addressing thermal concentration issues that plagued single-connector implementations. Board partners like ASUS have already implemented sophisticated current monitoring solutions in their custom designs, using shunt resistors to detect overcurrent conditions across individual pins. Established hardware leaker, Panzerlied confirmed the prototype's existence on Chinese forums, alongside images of other engineering samples featuring similar power delivery experiments across multiple GPU generations.



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[SAINT ENZO]

the transient spikes would probably be stable this way lol

 

[Crackong]

is significantly different from the final version we have today.

And I bet it is significantly SAFER (in terms of fire hazard) from the final version we have today.

 

[ymdhis]

There's a line, and we have crossed it.

 

[Hereticbar]

Four 12V-2x6 Connectors, you know what that means?

Quadruple the chance of "user error"!

​

 

[bonehead123]

Sooooo....

now we have gone from 1 to 2 to.... not 3, but 4 connectors just to temper the outrageous power draw of these new cards & keep them from m*e*l*t*i*n*g like a bucket of ice cream at the gates of hell....like, w.T.f..... ?

 

[AGlezB]

There's a line, and we have crossed it.

The cost of power is more power. We've been crossing lines from the moment the legacy ATX 20-pin cable became insufficient and we decided to put up to three 8-pin connectors on our mobos and up to four in our graphics cards. And we still want more power, at least 20% gen over gen, but we don't want 5-slot cards (4 is enough) and we don't like a bunch of cables blocking the LED ligthing so we wanted a thinner cable with a single small connector that will do the same job we used to do with 4 bigger and beefier ones... and then we act surprised when it has issues.

 

[Denver]

So that's what made the lights flicker... thanks, Jensen.

 

[hsew]

Having that many connectors kinda defeats the purpose of the 12VHPWR in the first place… just ditch it already!

 

[maxfly]

One step forward two steps back.

 

[LabRat 891]

Since, I can't imagine even their lab pushing 2.4+KW
I can only assume nVidia's engineers have been well-aware of the transient current issue, and did something else to mitigate Vdrooping.

 

[FoulOnWhite]

Naah, i do not want 4 cables from the GPU. More expense on cables, and PSU on a already expensive GPU. What about just 2 thicker wires, +12/-12. Works on a motorcycle battery that draws more amps than these cards. Wires don't have to be so thick, and with only 2 the connectors can be much beefier.

 

[Paganstomp]

( Creates a theoretical power ceiling far beyond reasonable requirements. ) Seem to be a paradox. What is a requirement for reasonable, anyway? 600 watts seems to be excessive for a home computer. That's the thought I have in the back of my head.

 

[Vayra86]

Four 12V-2x6 Connectors, you know what that means?

Quadruple the chance of "user error"!

​

Maybe its more like a plane at that point that can still fly on one engine. Maybe. For a while. The fun fact is you're not wrong. Also let's just make a mental picture of four sets of 12 ittybitty sleeved cables hanging off your GPU. Now don't you dare get those 48 cables twisted in any way, because you know, user error

 

[Solaris17]

So that's what made the lights flicker... thanks, Jensen.

That and laser printers.

 

[x4it3n]

4x 16-pins is insane and only for R&D purposes. I understand that Nvidia just want to use 1 cable to make their GPUs look nicer, but 2x 16-pin connectors on each RTX 5090 should have been mandatory since it would be a lot safer!