Forget melting cables, a GeForce RTX 5090 capacitor exploded while someone was editing a video

A Redditor's PNY GeForce RTX 5090 ARGB EPIC-X RGB OC GPU caused sparks and smoke to pour out of their PC case after one of its capacitors exploded/popped.

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Kosta Andreadis

Senior Editor

Published Aug 27, 2025 11:59 PM CDT

1 minute & 45 seconds read time

TL;DR: A rare incident of a GeForce RTX 5090 capacitor explosion occurred during video editing, resulting in sparks, smoke, and damage despite normal operating temperatures and proper power supply usage. This incident highlights a potential manufacturing defect, unrelated to NVIDIA's GPU design, with the user already pursuing an RMA replacement.

There have been numerous cases of GPU cables melting on high-end and flagship GeForce RTX Series GPUs, making it somewhat normalized in 2025. And that's in the sense that we've seen enough cases now that it's surprising, and not in the sense that it's a widespread or standard issue. This has led to a shift from the 16-pin 12VHPWR connector that was introduced alongside the GeForce RTX 40 Series to the newer 12V-2x6 connector for the RTX 50 and Radeon RX 9000 Series.

Reddit user RoboDogRush's GeForce RTX 5090 after a capacitor exploded, image credit: Reddit/RoboDogRush.

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Today's report of a GeForce RTX 5090 failing, a PNY ARGC OC model, wasn't due to an improperly inserted cable or an overheated and melted connector. Instead, one of the GPU's capacitors exploded, and the noise was so loud that it caused the PC user to jump out of their chair.

This report, accompanied by the photos you see, originates from Reddit and the pcmasterrace Subreddit, with RoboDogRush reporting that their GeForce RTX 5090 "exploded" while they were editing a video, not while gaming. This indicates that the GeForce RTX 5090 wasn't being stressed in the same way it would be running DOOM: The Dark Ages in 4K with Path Tracing and an uncapped frame rate.

Read more: Radeon RX 9070 XT 16-Pin connector melts on Sapphire's premium Nitro model

As seen in the photos, the capacitor's failure and subsequent explosion caused the heatsink fins surrounding it to bend. "I was working on a video edit at 2AM when a firecracker went off next to me," RoboDogRush writes. "I jumped out of my chair, it was so loud. The screen went black, sparks and smoke poured out of the case, and the smell of electrical fire filled the room."

They also note that they continually "monitor temps" and that the RTX 5090 GPU temperature was under 70 degrees Celsius at the time, adding that it was connected to a Super Flower Leadex III 1300W 80+ Gold PSU with the included 12VHPWR cable. Either way, this sounds like a rare occurrence, and according to the user, PNY has already initiated the RMA process for a GPU replacement. This RTX 5090 failure is most likely due to a manufacturing issue on PNY's end or a faulty capacitor and is unrelated to NVIDIA's flagship GPU silicon.