Another GeForce RTX 4090 user encountered a damaged power connector and the card was operating at a power limit of up to 80%. This equates to about 360 W instead of the standard 450 W, with the user themselves deliberately lowering the limit to reduce heating and power consumption.
The problem started with periodic black screens: the image would disappear, but the sound would continue to work. After inspecting the system, the owner discovered signs of damage on one of the contacts on the proprietary power adapter that comes with the Gigabyte RTX 4090. The graphics card connector itself is also marked in white. However, the rest of the connection looks normal.
It’s especially important to use an official adapter with multiple 8-pin connectors, rather than a third-party cable. The 2021 Corsair RM1000x power supply does not have its own 16-pin connector, so owners must use the included adapter. According to him, all the 8-pin connections on the PSU side are also fine.
The damage was discovered early on, so the graphics card itself apparently suffered no serious consequences.