In contrast to recent reports, Nvidia's modular PCIe connector on the GeForce RTX 5090, one of the best graphics cards, and the RTX Pro 6000 Blackwell may not be difficult to procure if you know where to look. The connector is readily available on Chinese second-hand e-commerce marketplaces, such as Goofish, for less than $25. This information is helpful in case you accidentally damage the connector and need a replacement.
If you have not been keeping up with the latest Nvidia gossip, there have been two incidents of damage to the modular PCIe connector in the past few weeks, with both incidents involving snapped connectors. One incident resulted from a failed liquid-cooling attempt on the expensive GeForce RTX 5090, while the other was caused by improper packaging during transportation, affecting an even more eye-watering $10,000 RTX Pro 6000 Blackwell. Although both damages were attributed to user error, the outcome was favorable, as Nvidia unexpectedly agreed to replace the entire GPU in both cases.
