NVIDIA already deployed an improved power connector for its RTX 4070 series
Earlier this week, Igor’sLAB published a report discussing the recently unveiled 12V-2×6 power connector.
NVIDIA and PCI-SIG have been working on an improved version with a better latching system and modified pins, all in an effort to ensure better connection between the GPU and power supply. As revealed by the partial specifications, the new connector has shortened sense pins (the four data pins that define the wattage for the cable). This rather simple idea will basically disable high-power modes unless the cable is fully inserted.
Turns out, NVIDIA has already launched the first graphics cards with such improved sense pins, namely the RTX 4070 graphics card were the first to feature such a design. Although the majority of RTX 4070 cards featured an 8-pin design, the cards that did not, such as MSI Gaming series, had the improved connector as well. MSI has also deployed this new ’12V-2×6′ connector on their upcoming power supplies, as shown at Computex.
Since the GeForce RTX 4070 FE, NVIDIA has already been using a modified 12VHPWR connector with significantly recessed pins! While the GeForce RTX 4080 Founders Edition still relies on the header from the CEM 5.0 with only 0.45 mm offset, the GeForce RTX 4070 Founders Edition has been using a modified variant with 1.7 mm inward offset since its launch, similar to the 12V-2×6 connector.
— Igor’sLAB
This may not be a full and implementation of the 12V-2×6 cable yet, in fact, nothing in official communication has even mentioned that RTX 4070 has improved power connectors. The MSI design is also labeled as H+, which refers to the older 12VHPWR design. Yet, the evidence is clear and there were some obvious changes to the power connector design. It is possible that NVIDIA simply did not want to touch on such a sensitive topic by mentioning it, or MSI simply wanted to ensure safer connection on their new GPUs with this simple change.
The next installment in the RTX 40 series, the RTX 4060 Ti and RTX 4060 models already featured 8-pin power connectors exclusively, so RTX 4070 was the first known card to feature this design of power connector. Hopefully, we will learn more about this innovation soon, this time directly from NVIDIA.
Source: Igor’sLAB
