RTX 5090 and 5080 Melting Cable Reports Debunked, Issue Traced to RTX 4090

Initial concerns of power connector failures with Nvidia's RTX 50-series GPUs were clarified to involve a misaligned cable on an older RTX 4090 model.

Hong Kong-based PCM initially reported melted power connectors during testing of the RTX 5090D and RTX 5080, raising fears of a repeat of the RTX 4090's 'Meltgate' issue.
Further investigation revealed the melting occurred on an RTX 4090 Founders Edition due to a misaligned 12VHPWR cable, not the RTX 50-series cards.
The RTX 4090's original 12VHPWR connector has been prone to melting when improperly seated, prompting Nvidia to release a safer 12V-2x6 connector in 2023.
Manufacturers have introduced additional safeguards for RTX 50-series GPUs, including MSI's yellow-tipped cables and Zotac's safety light feature to ensure proper cable seating.
Despite the RTX 50-series' high power demands, no confirmed instances of cable failures have been reported during testing, alleviating initial concerns.