NVIDIA plans to adopt the PCIe Gen 6 16-pin power connector for all its next-gen RTX 5090 GPUs. Or so claims Moore’s Law is Dead in his latest video. Also known as the 12V-2×6 connector, it is already in use by several GeForce RTX 40 Super graphics cards. Physically, the 12VHPWR and 12V-2×6 power connectors look very similar, but the latter can supply more power to the GPU.
The PCIe Gen 6 16-pin connector can provide up to 675W of power to the VGA, including 600W from the connector and 75W from the motherboard slot. The 12VHPWR connector maxed out at 600W (525W from the connector + 75W from the motherboard slot).
The reason for adopting the Gen 6 16-pin power connector is straightforward. First, it saves a lot of space on the PCB, requiring only one connector instead of two or three. The RTX 4090 is massive but with a tiny PCB. We can expect the same with the RTX 5090. Second, it reduces the BOM of the PCB due to the same reasons. Third, switching back to the 8-pin connectors will make the 12VHPWR adoption seem like a failure. By bumping up the connector to Gen 6, you’re reducing the risk of accidents and saving face.
AMD has no reason to opt for the 12V-2×6 power connector. It’ll focus on the midrange segment next cycle, mainly the Radeon RX 8700 XT and the 8800 XT. These GPUs will have a modest power requirement, up to 2 8-pin connectors at most. NVIDIA’s RTX 4090 has a TBP of 450W, and the RTX 5090 should be the same, if not higher.
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