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ASRock has just released a new GPU power cable that the company says is protected from overheating, thanks to the use of thermal sensors inside it. The launch follows numerous reports about melted graphics cards, particularly Nvidia GeForce RTX 4090 and 5090 models, which draw a large amount of power over the cable. There’s a catch, though, which is that you need to use it with an ASRock power supply in order to use the thermal sensors.
While it’s undoubtedly the fastest gaming GPU in our guide to buying the best graphics card, the Nvidia GeForce RTX 5090 also has a total graphics power rating of 575W, and in some cases, the cables attached to it have overheated, resulting in melted power plugs and sockets. The cable has been shown to get extremely hot in some tests as well, with renowned overclocker Roman ‘der8auer’ Hartung even showing an RTX 5090 cable temperature hitting 153°C at the PSU end. This new ASRock cable is designed to prevent overheating, though.
With the new ASRock CB-12V2X6L600W, ASRock says it can monitor the temperature of the cable and effectively shut off power before it overheats. It’s already rated to run at a temperature of up to 105°C, but the CB-12V2X6L600W also contains a minuscule negative temperature coefficient (NTC) sensor inside the plug that connects to your graphics card.
This sensor is then linked to a two-pin cable that plugs into the PSU at the other end. If you use the cable in conjunction with one of ASRock’s own Taichi or Phantom power supplies, which have the NTC socket next to the 12V-2×6 connectors, then you should have a burn-proof cable setup.
ASRock has also added a splash of green coloring to the plugs on either end, as other companies such as MSI have done with different colors – if you can still see any green when you’ve plugged in the cable, then it’s not securely plugged in. Meanwhile, the right-angled plug at the graphics card end enables you to route the cable straight down from the graphics card without having to bend the cable, which can also cause it to become insecure.
It’s not cheap, though. Not only can you only use this 700mm cable’s thermal sensors if you have a compatible ASRock power supply, but it will also cost you $40 to buy the cable. Nevertheless, it’s interesting to see a graphics card and PSU maker take this issue into its own hands – it will be interesting to see if it does indeed prove to prevent overheating.
If you’re thinking of upgrading your power supply, check out our guide to the best PC PSU, where we take you through all our favorite options right now.
Don’t forget, you can also chat with us and other PCGamesN readers about GPUs and their power cables on our community Discord channel.
