It seems like every new generation of graphics cards requires more power, and that's likely to be the case with the upcoming NVIDIA RTX 5090. While NVIDIA has said that its “Blackwell” graphics architecture will bring performance/wattage improvements at the architecture level and the move to the TSMC 4NP node will see node-level improvements, the latest rumors suggest that the NVIDIA RTX 5090 could make use of dual 16-pin power inputs.
This report comes from TweakTown, and with two 16-pin power inputs, the RTX 5090 could theoretically draw up to 1200W of power. Now, this doesn’t mean that the total graphics power (TGP) of the card is 1200W, but if we’re seeing a number around 600W or more, then it’s likely that two 16-pin connections are required. Even if the TGP is exactly 600W, NVIDIA likely wants to add the second 16-pin connector to spread the load and be a safer solution for power spikes.
If NVIDIA does put two 16-pin connectors on the RTX 5090, older power supplies will likely not be compatible. I believe NVIDIA could include an adapter that takes 2 or 3 8-pin PCIe power connectors and converts them to a single 16-pin connector, but the second 16-pin connector will have to be a native connector. These connectors are only available on newer ATX 3.0 and ATX 3.1 PSUs.
There are currently some high-end power supplies that offer two native 12V and 2×6 connectors. One such power supply is the Seasonic Prime PX-2200W Workstationwhich launched earlier this week. We may see more of these in the future as we get closer to the launch of the RTX 5090 and NVIDIA's “Blackwell” series.
Through City of touch-ups
