Surprisingly, lower end RTX 4060 Ti GPUs are not safe from melting either
In an interesting turn of events, a lower end Nvidia RTX GPU has now caught fire and melted. This case, however, could be an isolated incident as there were a few factors that were unique to this occurrence. We’ve heard of power supply cables and GPU power connectors on more powerful GPUs like the RTX 5080 and RTX 5090 melting, but the melted ice cream seen in the photos shared by the unlucky user suggest a board partner manufacturing defect.
As posted on Quasar Zone, a user shared the unfortunate story, along with some images, of how their EmTek StormX Dual RTX 4060 Ti caught fire and melted. The GPU did not have any overclock and the most demanding load was from PUBG, so nothing alarming there. However, after two years of using the GPU, the computer suddenly turned off. When the user turned it back on, there was smoke and then fire.
Examining the GPU revealed melted areas of the backplate around the screw just above the PCIe connector going upwards towards the top of the card, towards the power supply side. The PCIe slot on the motherboard had burn marks as well but the cable and power connector seemed fine.
Notably, not everything was stock in this particular system. While it is unclear to determine accurately due to translation issues, the user had either replaced their motherboard with a refurbished one or replaced the refurbished motherboard with a new one a few months before the incident. Regardless, commenters and the user do not believe it was a motherboard issue. One of the comments states that it could be excessive screw torque that caused a short circuit or a manufacturing defect that weakened the PCB.
The user has sent the system back to the repair shop but is wondering if it is not a motherboard issue, whether the GPU will be covered or not. Some commenters stated that EmTek being a trusted brand, should replace it for a fee or even for free.
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