Zotac’s 12VHPWR Switch has a lifespan of up to 30 connections

On Tuesday, Nvidia lifted the lid on its new “Ada Lovelace” graphics architecture, as well as the Geforce RTX 4090 and RTX 4080 in two different versions. Nvidia believes, among other things, that the scanning performance will be twice that of the previous generation, while ray tracing It can reach four times the performance. The specific power output, though, is at roughly the same levels as with the Geforce RTX 3000, where the 450W RTX 3090 Ti’s TBP is replicated with the RTX 4090.

Nvidia unveils Geforce RTX 4000 architecture and ‘Ada Lovelace’

In the wake of the presentation, many third-party manufacturers showed their offers for the upcoming flagship cards. As expected, many seem to be following Nvidia’s example and using the new PCI Express 5.0 compatible 16-pin 12VHPWR connector, something that now raises some questions after a cautious lifetime set by Zotac. The company comes with a four-pin PCI Express to 12VHPWR adapter, with the caveat that it’s limited to 30 inputs and outputs.

These cautious specs appear to correlate with data from interest organization PCI-SIG, which appeared in a news feed a few weeks ago. It was then argued that some 12VHPWR solutions did not measure up and could lead to heat generation. This was accompanied by figures from Wccftech, which showed that transformers for the new connector type risk an uneven load. However, transformers are not necessarily the problem when it comes to heat generation Gamers Nexus is now being reported.

The technical publication is based on a follow-up to the warning sent by PCI-SIG. This article states that 12VHPWR connectors run the risk of melting if the wires are bent too tightly or the connector is side-loaded, or if the connector is damaged. The latter is said to require about 40 connections, after which heat development can occur without physical stress to the contact or cables.

To someone who often rebuilds or cleans a computer, 30-40 connections may seem like a bargaining chip, but Videocardz adds that there are similar specs regarding the lifespan of molex connections as well. It remains to be seen if worn contacts will be a problem for the Geforce RTX 4000 in the future, or if wear during use is a Zotac flags step, to be on the safe side.

source: video card