It has emerged that Nvidia have decided to lock down the core voltage of the new GTX 590 in their latest driver package. BETA drivers are also affected. This is most likely a reaction to the reports of GTX 590 cards exploding, though the main video showing this is now suspected to be a staged event of a replacement card being overvolted for the camera and no doubt thousands of internet hits.
A stock GTX 590 card
ASUS have also released a new BIOS for the GTX 590, which also reportedly holds back the maximum voltage available on their cards, which was previously set at 1.2V, more than enough to kill the VRM circuitry with a ~550W power draw. Nvidia claim the stock BIOS has no problems, so this aspect, at least, remains an ASUS issue.
There is no doubt that the reports of dead cards have been slightly sensationalised, but such a strict cap on core voltage from Nvidia it does seem the change may be PR driven, perhaps an attempt to save face for their new flagship card.
What do you think about this? Any overclocked GTX 590 owners considering their options? Share your thoughts in the forums
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