An RTX 5090 owner claims to have solved Nvidia’s overheating 16-pin power connector problem by switching back to beefier, old-school wiring.
According to Tom’s Hardware Reddit user DallasGrave, an RTX 5090 was modified with a custom power distributor connected directly to the graphics card’s power rails. The setup splits the current across two conventional 8-pin PCIe connectors, reducing the load on each wire.
The modification involves soldering extra power connections directly onto the RTX 5090 PCB and routing them into a custom distributor mounted on the card. The distributor contains its own PCB and two female 8-pin connectors.
The distributor’s internal design is unclear, including whether it carries additional protection components such as capacitors or fuses. Its enclosure appears to be resin-printed for the card.
DallasGrave subjected the modified card to a 48-hour full-load stress test at roughly 550W. He said the connection “never crossed 40c even at the joint.”
That compares favourably with the continuing reports of Nvidia cards cooking their 12VHPWR and 12V-2×6 connections when current becomes unevenly distributed. The 16-pin connector effectively carries the main power through 12 pins. Four smaller contacts handle sensing, while six connections carry +12V and another six provide ground.
The cables are normally rated to handle up to 600W, but poor contact between pins can increase resistance and generate enough heat to damage the connector. Uneven current distribution makes matters worse.
Older multi-8-pin designs generally had larger safety margins because the load was spread across more connections. Nvidia’s push to feed increasingly thirsty GPUs through a smaller connector has made tolerances less forgiving.
The modification is invasive because the extra wires must be soldered directly to the card’s power rails, so attacking a several-thousand-dollar graphics card with a soldering iron will likely remain outside most owners’ comfort zone.
DallasGrave appears to be associated with GRAVEPC, which produces custom cooling hardware for small-form-factor PCs. Asked whether the modification would retain PNY warranty coverage, he said: “We’re a PNY partner. You’ll be able to buy a PNY-specific card with a similar modification directly from us with a full warranty.”
The modified card is not currently listed for sale, and PNY has not publicly confirmed the arrangement.
