Defective GeForce RTX 5090 “GB202” Chips Identified; Potential Impact on All Variants in the Market

NVIDIA’s GeForce RTX 5090 GPUs seem to be running into a new problem as reports suggest defects in the onboard "Blackwell" GB202 chip affecting several units.

NVIDIA’s Flagship RTX Blackwell GPU Faces ROPs Issue in Performance Tests; The Problem Might Be Tied to the GB202 Chip

These days, finding peace in the GPU market feels like a distant dream for gamers. Just when we were grappling with stock shortages, there comes another snag with NVIDIA’s top-tier RTX Blackwell card. Recent reports have revealed performance issues due to defective units, causing significant slowdowns. Previously, there was news about a ZOTAC GeForce RTX 5090 facing this hurdle. Now, according to insights shared by @MEGAsizeGPU, the real culprit is the Blackwell GB202 chip. Let’s dive into the details.

The root cause is the chip. A small batch of GB202 is defective, and the bios can not do anything with this issue.

— MEGAsizeGPU (@Zed__Wang) February 21, 2025

For those not familiar, some NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 GPUs are turning up online with missing ROPs, as indicated by tools like GPU-Z. This essentially means that affected users have a GPU that’s not performing as well as it should. Initially, it was thought to be a glitch with GPU-Z for certain versions, but the drama seems to point to the faulty GB202 chip, which isn’t exactly encouraging news.

To dispel any doubts about the GPU-Z software being at fault, an RTX 5090 variant showing the issue was also evaluated using HWINFO, where the reduced ROP count was corroborated. This points to a more serious fault than initially anticipated. The extent of the issue is still unfolding, with a limited number of SKUs reported so far. However, it’s not confined to just one particular AIB card, as there are whisperings that nearly all models, including the Founder’s Edition, might be at risk.

Photo: @BuildLabEx

So, what’s the next step? We’ve reached out to NVIDIA for their take. If the GB202 chip is indeed the root of the problem, NVIDIA might need to start sending out replacements via RMA soon. This couldn’t come at a worse time, as their so-called "mid-range" GPUs are rumored to be facing production delays due to performance hiccups.

For now, we urge our readers to verify the ROP count in their models; if it falls short of 176, please tell us. We’re still gathering info on whether other models, like the GeForce RTX 5080, could be facing similar issues as the situation continues to evolve.