New line of graphics launch plagued by issues
The GeForce RTX 5000 is the first line of consumer graphics cards to harness the potential of the PCI-Express 5.0 bus. This new connector offers higher bandwidth but is causing some hardware operation issues.
The GeForce RTX 5000 graphics cards, part of NVIDIA's Blackwell generation, bring a host of exciting innovations. One of the key features is support for the PCI-Express 5.0 bus, which is gradually becoming mainstream in computers.
The PCI-Express 5.0 bus delivers twice the bandwidth of its predecessor, PCI-Express 4.0, but necessitates a more advanced graphics card design. These specific requirements can pose challenges for computer users, making stable system operation a concern.
Problems with the operation of GeForce RTX 5080 cards
German computer hardware overclocking expert Roman Hartung, known as "der8auer," published a video featuring tests of the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 Founders Edition graphics card.
According to the German overclocker, issues with the card's operation arose right at the beginning of testing. It was only after repeatedly disconnecting and reconnecting the hardware that it could be successfully launched, but difficulties persisted. The card would either revert to the slower PCI-Express 1.0 mode or not be detected by the computer at all.
Hartung also attempted to force the card to run in PCIe x16 Gen 5.0 mode via the motherboard's BIOS settings. However, these attempts resulted in unstable operation or system freezes during gameplay.
PCI-Express 5.0 may cause problems
According to Tom’s Hardware, these issues may stem from various sources, such as driver and BIOS configuration errors or faulty components on the test platform. Ultimately, switching the PCI-Express bus settings to 4.0 mode effectively resolved all problems. Such issues did not arise with other cards that also used PCI-Express 4.0.
It's reasonable to assume that the root of these problems lies with the new PCI-Express 5.0 bus. Although significantly faster than 4.0, it requires a specially adapted card design. In the Founders Edition model, complications may result from the use of three separate PCBs. Typical symptoms of signal integrity issues include failed initialization of the graphics processor, unexpected crashes, and system freezes.
