3080 / 3090 / 3070 Gigabyte Eagle Gaming OC & Vision Power Connector Concerns

[harney]

***UPDATE 1.5

IMPORTANT INFO

To clarify for everyone and any one new here

the cards affected are as follows re serial number

WK39 onwards will have the revised new connector block *UPDATE however some cards may be mixed and still could be on the old connector block even after WK39

WK38 below is on the old faulty connector block

So check your serial number which will start with year 20 then second number is the week
So 2038 and below would be on old connector block & 2039 and above is on the new one

All the above is confirmed by the Gigabyte Rep

Hope this helps

GeForce Gigabyte RTX 3070 cards Gaming OC and Eagle are not effected by this issue.
There as now been reports of some 3070's Gaming OC having the same problems.
---------------------------------------

This also effects other cards with the same power connector from Gigabyte i will keep updating

GeForce Gigabyte RTX 3080 Eagle OC
GV-N3080EAGLE OC-10GD

GeForce Gigabyte RTX 3090 Eagle OC
GV-N3090EAGLE OC-24GD

GeForce Gigabyte RTX 3080 Gaming OC
GV-N3080GAMING OC-10GD

GeForce Gigabyte RTX 3090 Gaming OC
GV-N3090GAMING OC-24GD

*add seems these cards are effected also
GeForce Gigabyte RTX 3080 VISION OC This card is not effected by the issue
GV-N3080VISION OC-10GD
-------------------------------------

UPDATED images.

This is the old connector block as you can see the the cables are not moulded into the block and only held in via the crimp. Hence with enough force when you plug in your pcie power cables will push out as seen here.

Below is the new connector block as you can see the cables seem to be moulded into the block and there is a another block protruding out of the top block ..this is not seen on the old block above

Here is a photo of the blocks in the card to help you identify which block your on.

Original update on how to visually identify if your on Old or New connector block.

If you have a card that is WK38 and below take a look at the backside of the card and in the vents where the connectors are you will either see heat shrink or no heat shrink on the cables as seen in the photo's below.

No heat shrink means your on the faulty connector block
If there is heat shrink then all good its on the new revised connector block. please see photos below.

If the design changes in the future which gigabyte may revise and stop using the heat shrink on the cable this does not mean it will be on the old faulty block. So any card Wk39 above even without heat shrink will still be fine just to be clear.

So this is on the new revised block as you can see the heat shrink around the cable.

If you see no heat shrink in the gap and your card is Wk39 or below with only a cable tie then its the old faulty design.

Regarding support if your anywhere else in the world other than the UK please contact Gigabyte support via there website they are aware of this issue.

UK OWNERS ONLY.
Please refer to update 3 on how to proceed if you have these problems with the connector.


***UPDATE 2
from Gigabyte rep

We have investigated the issues that have been reported and have a solution to fix any cards that have developed lose or faulty power pins. Any customers that have experienced the same power connector problem as reported on this thread, please contact me directly and I will arrange to have the card fixed with a new connector as quickly as possible.

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***UPDATE 3
from Gigabyte rep

Any one that start to have these problems on the cards, please contact [email protected] and I'll get it fixed for you, to save time please include name, address, serial number, check number (these are on the box label) and best day for collection. I'll arrange to have the card collected, fixed and shipped back to you ASAP.

Future cards will have the fix, if you do have a card with an issue as there will be a small amount of mixed stock, contact me and I will make sure to get it fixed for you.

-------------------------------------

***UPDATE 4
from Gigabyte rep

Based on the current info I have, and this is limited to the reports I see here specifically. The connectors are not faulty, however some units after repeat use are developing a problem where the pins become lose and do not make proper connection with the pin outs form the PSU. I will make sure that anyone that has a card with this original connector, can report the problem to me directly or on here and I will make sure it gets fixed for you ASAP.

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Original Post..

This as me really worried ....re the eagles strange power connector even der8auer in a recent vid pointed this out link below.

Now we all know what the old Molex connectors can be like i have seen many of them burnt out in builds... hell even seen full burn outs and cause fires and this was just running hard drives cd roms ect . if its not a firm contact this can lead to high resistance within the plug

so will be even more with the amps being pulled with a 3080

Time @9:41

Also user on forums stated the following

"Grimfusion said: ↑
I just RMA'ed my 3080 Gigabyte Eagel OC today. The PCI connector pins looked like they were soldered on in a rush.

3 of the 8 pins in the connector closest to the back of the card are seated much lower than they should be and I suspect that might be a problem when it gets hot.

I ran a couple of games for like 15 minutes before the screen went black and the fans stopped on the card (logo was still illuminated) and I had a black screen.

Plugged my Radeon 7 in and played for hours. PSU is a 750W.

So sad..."

Not trying to scaremonger here ..i have one of these cards myself on order and i am now thinking of cancelling..

your thoughts?

 

[harney]

Could be the reason for the delay in these cards to suppliers

 

[harney]

Agree with you there does seem very rushed ..i may stick to my order

 

[harney]

Beware guys. I received my Eagle Tuesday 22nd, had trouble getting one of the the 8 pin connectors in, thought nothing of it, booted up and nothing but black screen. Upon further inspection 2 of the connector pins were sat really low, and many of them pushed tight against the side. I took it to my local pc guy who took the whole thing apart and got the pins back in place. He showed me the card was working on his rig. Took it home, and noticed the pins had moved again, tight against the sides, so I had to stick a paper clip in to bend them back to centre. It's working for now, managed a few ours of RDR2 on Ultra settings and it looks amazing, no issues with heat, but this has me very worried. Hopefully it's just an early batch issue.

Thx for the heads up Taffy

 

[harney]

I had forgot i had created this thread

must say this re-enforces my belief in these stupid connectors gigabyte have gone for
i knew these where trouble as soon as i set eyes on them

So thx for all the info everybody re this

and sorry you lot having to deal with such a crap design

At the price they are they should not be like this it unacceptable..i am sure they will have to redesign that connector

After a long weekend of heavy loads, the card is still working fine. However last time I checked, one of the pins has developed a little molten ball on top. Bit worrying!

I've been in touch with OC technical and they're being very helpful and offered me a replacement, but I'm reluctant untill we get word from Gigabyte as to whether this is normal or just a dodgy batch. It's been passed on to OC management who are looking into the issue. Will keep you updated.

that's no good i am amazed it did not melt the whole connector

Had same scare with Gaming OC card. I couldnt fit in connectors from Gigabyte psu , Luckily i have old EVGA Supernova 850W G2 and it was perfect fit in. Card works well no crashes on stock settings so far i tested it with Watch Dogs2 and GTA V. I tried manual overclock but it crashes over 2k Mhz. Im sure im not doing it right. Anyway stock boost is 1995Mhz which isnt bad
To be clear i changed whole psu and psu cables not just swap vga cables . Afaik cables from different psu manufacturers may not be compatible i didnt want to risk it

having to change psu to get the connector to fit not good ..i feel lots of peeps are going to have problems with these connectors on there cards..

Hey. So i am plan to buy Gigabyte 3090 Gaming Oc. Should i cancel because of that connectors or will be fine?

If it helps i am not paying over £650 to have a rubbish design problem like this so i am either cancelling and just sit a wait till AMD shows there hand or changing to another card one without a rubbish connector design

I have this exact issue, my 3090 Gaming OC doesn't start now. All it took was one unplugging and replugging to tidy up the cabling a bit after the initial testing. Looking at the pins they are definitely all over the place. Not happy, especially since it's such minor thing and easy to get right/wrong, yet so critical. I could try and get those pins in order with some tweezers, but for such an expensive product you wouldn't expect having to resort to such measures. Nor do I want to.

sry to see this

the money you have spent you should not have to be doing anything like this ..this is a big risk re resistance in power delivery with such high amps and will only get worse the more you re plug in and you run the risk of major damage not to the card itself but the psu hell even fire .... Gigabyte need to address this ASAP very poor design..

I hope you all manage to get things resolved ..i am cancelling for sure now..

this is not on Gigabyte !!

 

[harney]

So out of interest which other Gigabyte cards use these crap connectors ???

Eagle oc
Gaming OC

 

[harney]

All of them afaik, they all share the same if not very similar PCB. der8auer wasn't praising it (more about the design of it blocking some of the airflow than anything else), Steve Burke has taken the Eagle apart some 20 times (his own words from his review) and hasn't really complained about it. The KitGuru review hasn't complained about it.

So I don't think it's that big a deal.

All of them gee
Will have to wait and see once there is lots in the wild with all the different psu's peeps installing ect ..i still stick to it..it is a crap design

thx for the info

 

[harney]

There is a few peeps on reddit having the same problems with the pins on these cards ...guess this will increase once there is more cards out there...

https://www.reddit.com/r/gigabyte/comments/j2uf7p/gigabyte_rtx_3080_gaming_oc_problems/

In this one its half way down in the comments

https://www.reddit.com/r/gigabytegaming/comments/iz1l9s/rtx_3080_eagle_oc_wont_boot/

I will keep updating if more crop up if anybody else finds any post them up

 

[harney]

Are those 12 pins on the card itself?

Could you use your own 2 x 8 pin to 12 pin adapters instead of the included ones? If they're defective or fail over time.

By the looks its nothing standard ..looks like gigabytes own as you can see in these photos

Also spending this sort of money one should not have too

 

[harney]

Np EVH thx for unlocking

Thanks for the tip @Shiari

I have a Vision OC on pre order and if this supplied extension housing proves to be troublesome I might remove it altogether and modify the ends of my 2 x pcie cables so that they'll plug directly into the GPU with a couple of these:

https://uk.rs-online.com/web/p/wire-housings-plugs/7979079/

Thx for the info

 

[harney]

No problem @harney and thanks for bringing the whole subject to my attention before I receive the card as it has at least made me aware that I need to take care with these current connectors.

YW this is what this thread is here for

i too am very concerned re this yes we can mod it to do away with the connector box and use what Esxpaul posted straight onto the psu cable but one should not have too really ..
but its an option at least ..

now for people that plug in once that should not really be a problem but my guess its going to be hit or miss with certain PSU connectors we all know what them old molex 4 pin 12volt connectors are like ..

was reading up some comments on reddit and peeps where thinking its there fault when the pins come loose ..its not there fault its the fault of connectors used by gigabyte.

My biggest concern is not knowing if the pin or pins have come lose and is not a firm connection but still works.. over time resistance with build up as we have seen with other peeps in the above posts...this may cause serious problems later on..

 

[harney]

@GIGA-Man

Any official comment? I've got a Vision OC coming and would hate to have this happen with mine.

Yes agree @GIGA-Man are you able to shed any light on the matter

 

[harney]

Hey all,

I'm talking to my HQ and we're looking into the reports.

Thank you... would you keep us updated if they do revise the design on the connector going forward

Managed to sort out the pins, I AM BACK IN ACTION BABY!

First I just wanted to RMA it, and be done with it, but seeing some other people tackle the issue, I was like, I can do this ****. Nevermind it's a £1600 card, easypeasy. You can imagine my relief when the card booted up properly. Now I've finished some good old testing and it still holds, so I may just avoided bricking it, looks like.

I had to take off the backplate and unscrew the connector to be able to properly refit all the pins that got pushed back. First I tried through the ventillation holes on the backplate, but two of the pins wouldn't budge, so I had to take it apart. After reassembly I tried to make sure they are all in the middle of their socket, and I also fiddled a bit with the female power connectors on my Corsair PSU, so the couplings are not too tight, so there is less chance of them pushing back the pins again in the GPU connector.

The quality of the connector is abysmal really, this is something I remember from the old days of IDE HDDs and CDROM drives, when the pins would move around like they don't belong there. I don't know how on earth this could pass quality control. Just comparing with the connector on my old GB 1080, that's a proper thing. This is awful.

Good work solving the problem ..a little concerned that you should have to be doing this on a £1600 card ..but at least your up and running and not having to RMA it and be waiting god knows how long for a replacement .

As for fiddling with the corsair psu female end you want the connection to be tight so they would be less resistance being so...but what can you do if its to tight and pushing the pins back..

Its something i would keep checks on going forward

IMHO there is no room for molex connectors like this in modern computer components,they are among the worst connectors i have ever seen..they are the long lost brother of the tamiya connectors

Agree with you there

 

[harney]

I RMA'ed for exactly the same thing. Had my GB Eagle OC card for 4 days and it started having issues with power and black screens etc. Noticed 3 of the pins were lower than the rest.

I've been without it since returning to OC for just under 2 weeks now. So the last thing I want to go through is this again when I get my new GB OC card.

Being aware of this issue, I've actually purchased PCIe extensions to fit on the card so that I don't have to continually apply stress to the connector.

When I need to remove it from the case in the future or disconnect the GPU from power etc. it will be from the extension.

If it continues to be an issue then I'll return it and replace with another brand once shortages are resolved or I'll go with Big Navi if it's just as good as the 3080.

Hopefully GB will have a fix / replacement unit to offer people that have purchased the card by that point.

Thanks for the update hope you get your replacement back soon ..remember that adding more connections can lead to increased resistance.

I really do hope Gigabyte revise the connection box going forward.

 

[harney]

We have investigated the issues that have been reported and have a solution to fix any cards that have developed lose or faulty power pins. Any customers that have experienced the same power connector problem as reported on this thread, please contact me directly and I will arrange to have the card fixed with a new connector as quickly as possible.

[email protected]

Thanks for the update .I shall post this on the 1st page ..also me and others would like to know going forward as the connector box been revised ?

 

[harney]

Future cards will have the fix, if you do have a card with an issue as there will be a small amount of mixed stock, contact me and I will make sure to get it fixed for you.

Thanks for the updates .. So to be clear.. the original design of the connector block are defective.

But as since been revised fixed going forward.

Now i understand not all will have the problem on the original flawed design but i would guess eventually they will ..the more times the user unplugs re plugs back in ect ..

However what i am really concerned for is for the people that are unaware of this issue
and lets say some of plugs connectors do not make good contact with the pcie lead connectors but still work .. so over time as we have seen in the early post of this thread where the connector melted due to resistance building up.

Then surly this is a serious issue and could lead to something worse. then i would expect gigabyte to recall the cards that have the defective blocks ..as the last thing anybody wants and in the worse case is a fire on there hands.

So is there any other cards in the range with this connector issue other then the ones i have listed ?

 

[harney]

Vision has exactly the same layout so I would suspect early ones have the same issue.

Thank you OP updated

I also recieved a card with loose power connectors, and I've contacted my retailer for an RMA and hopefully a replacement. Seems like there are no replacements around and they're not expected until 2021, so they've decided to give me my money back. For me that's an absolute bummer, especially when i read that gigabyte are working on replacing the faulty cards as we speak. I'm from Norway though, and we don't have any official Gigabyte rep here, but do you think you could help me out in this situation? I would be very, very grateful. Thanks

sorry to hear this.. @GIGA-Man are you able to help here ?

 

[harney]

@GIGA-Man thanks for keeping us updated

 

[harney]

Oh, I almost forgot. All card now being produced have a new connector.

Any others that have the old type and that do develop a fault let me know.

Good to hear ... So just how many are out there in the wild atm or soon to be with the old connector box any rough estimate..and are you able to give the serial number info cut off point on the Old design ?

 

[harney]

Just to let everyone know. I've received my card back. Connector and pins look much better. I've yet to test it but will let you know how it goes when I've had some time this evening.

Fantastic after sales service.

Thanks @GIGA-Man !!!

That is great news Grimfusion quick turnaround too .keep us updated .enjoy the card

I've asked my HQ for more info and will share what I can.

thank you