The RTX series of GPUs by Nvidia seems to be plagued by poor benchmarking performance and many users have blamed the Nvidia Founders Edition power cables included with the RTX 2080 and RTX 2080 Ti cards as the culprits for poor results. Gamers Nexus may have uncovered why, and it might not be what you think... or at least, what I expected it to be.

Introduction

Gamers Nexus may have solved the mystery as to why gamers are not experiencing a significant improvement in frame rates over previous generations of cards like the RTX 2080, despite this card costing significantly more. Even AMD’s new 2000 series has been outselling Nvidia and performing better than it, which is quite shocking considering AMD typically hasn’t been in the running with Nvidia until now.

RTX 4090 power cables and how they were redesigned by Nvidia supposedly could be what’s causing these anomalous behaviors. They switched from 8-pin power connectors to two 6-pin connectors and believe that was what led to more throttling among some GPUs. According to their testing, it does appear that the RTX 4090 uses less power than older models.

That being said, if you’re upgrading from an old card like a GTX 1060 or 1070 and plan on overclocking your GPU then you may want to invest in an additional PSU cable if you are planning on purchasing a RTX 4090 or any other new model Nvidia graphics card.

What is the issue?

Gamers Nexus may have solved the mystery of why some RTX graphics cards, like the Nvidia RTX 2080 and 2080Ti, were experiencing poorer than expected performance. Gamers Nexus writes that a loose power connector may be the culprit. They suggest that when using an extension cord to plug in your RTX GPU with a stock 6-pin cable, it is possible for the cable to become loose or unstable during gameplay.

This can cause your PC to crash or experience graphical glitches. The solution would be to use a higher quality 12-pin cable so that you don't need an extension cord. The only downside is this will take up more space on your motherboard, but it will solve any issues caused by the faulty 6-pin connector.

The issue was reported back in October 2018 as well, according to GamersNexus. RTX 4090 owners said they were seeing crashes after installing the latest version of Microsoft Windows 10 called October 2018 Update. The update had apparently installed itself automatically without asking users first if they wanted the update.

Many gamers had previously believed it was because their RTX 4000's lack of driver updates that had been causing these problems but now think that it was really because their connectors are not connecting correctly and might even be defective!

Who is affected?

Gamers Nexus may have solved why RTX 4090 cards are performing poorly on their YouTube channel. The video explains that the RTX 4090 cards are being underpowered due to the short length of their included 6-pin PCIe cables. The size of the card, which is not as compact as other GPUs, means that it needs more wattage.

This requires longer cable lengths in order to supply enough power, but the provided cable is not long enough and thus, underpowered. There has been no word from NVIDIA yet about a possible solution or recall for RTX 4090 cards with this issue, but this seems like an easy fix if you're experiencing the same issue. If you want to continue using your RTX 4090 card, simply swap out the included power cable with a longer one - such as one made by EVGA - that can reach the nearest plug socket.

Conclusion

Gamers Nexus has concluded that RTX 4090 power cables may be the culprit. This is a significant find because many gamers are not aware that they must use this specific RTX cable and not a generic one. If your machine has an RTX card, you should purchase the correct RTX cable from your graphics card's manufacturer.

Other than purchasing the correct cable, there are other steps you can take to improve your game performance as well. One way is by using Refresh Rate Optimization Tool which is available on Nvidia's website. Using the tool will decrease input lag, increase FPS rates and overall improve gameplay performance. The tool is especially useful for games like PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds or Fortnite Battle Royale. 

In conclusion, Gamers Nexus has shown that RTX 4090 power cables may be responsible for some of the problems people are having with their RTX cards but it is just one of many solutions for better gameplay.