Nvidia’s soon-to-be-rumored GeForce RTX 3080 and its other Ampere consumer GPUs are configured to be very powerful graphics cards, to the point that they may need a new power connector.
Our sister site Tom’s Hardware was informed that next-generation Nvidia graphics cards will require a new 12-pin PCIe connector that is capable of delivering up to 600W of power. And rumors point that Ampere-based GeForce cards require 400W to power them.
Effectively, this means that people interested in upgrading their gaming PCs to the new high-end GeForce cards may need a new power supply unit (PSU) with a new PCIe connector. Currently, the GeForce RTX 20 series graphics cards use eight-pin connectors to supply power from the PSU to the cards.
You can create a 12-pin connection by combining two six-pin connectors. But that would mean using more cables from the power supply, which could make cable management a nightmare. And more cables in a box mean more potential airflow restrictions, which can cause PCs to get too hot and limit their performance.
But the Tom’s Hardware source said Nvidia will require new 12-pin connectors all together. Chances are, that means PC gamers need to get a new PSU, which would mean they have to take apart their PC.
The technical illustrations for the connection show that it measures 19 x 14 x 8.35 mm, which translates to approximately two 6-pin connectors together. But the illustrated connector pins have a new design, so combining two existing 6-pin connectors doesn’t seem to be a solution to this problem.
Even if this were not the case, the potential consumption of 400 W of the next generation GeForce graphics cards means that a powerful power supply will be needed. And that could again force people looking to upgrade their gaming PCs to get a new PSU.
Tom’s Hardware speculated that a single 12-pin cable could only be for GeForce Founders Edition cards and high-end third-party graphics cards, which aim to keep wiring as minimal and efficient as possible. Other versions of the Ampere-based GeForce cards could work with two 6-pin connections, provided they provide enough power to the GPUs.
With nothing official from Nvidia around its next-generation GeForce GPUs, we’ll have to wait and see if they require a major PC overhaul or simply be able to replace existing GeForce RTX graphics cards. Ampere-based GeForce graphics cards may be revealed sometime around September, when we hope to find out how much graphics firepower Nvidia can bring to the graphics world before the release of PS5 and Xbox Series X.
