10K$ RTX PRO 6000 Becomes Unusable After PCIe Connector Board Snaps, Replacement Parts Not Provided

High end GPUs continue to prove that extraordinary performance often comes with extraordinary fragility. Another severe hardware failure has surfaced, this time involving a workstation grade NVIDIA RTX PRO 6000, a graphics card priced at nearly ten thousand dollars. The cause is the same structural issue that recently made headlines with the RTX 5090 Founders Edition.

According to a teardown video by NorthbridgeFix, the user shipped his full PC without removing the RTX PRO 6000. Due to the massive weight of the GPU, the card’s PCIe connector daughterboard broke cleanly into two pieces during transport. While the GPU core itself is undamaged, the card is now completely unusable.

This is because NVIDIA continues to use a modular design for both the RTX 5090 Founders Edition and the RTX PRO 6000. Instead of a single unified PCB, these cards rely on a separate PCIe interface board attached to the main GPU PCB. If that small board fails or cracks, the entire GPU loses its interface to the motherboard.

NorthbridgeFix highlights the core issue. Even though the failure is isolated to the detachable PCIe board, NVIDIA does not offer replacement connector boards to customers or repair providers. That means any damage to that component, even if the GPU itself is perfectly functional, effectively kills the card permanently.

This is especially troubling in the case of the RTX PRO 6000, a professional workstation GPU used in AI development, rendering, engineering workloads, and enterprise systems. At nearly ten thousand dollars, a failure of a removable interface part without a path to replacement raises serious questions about long term serviceability.

The damaged unit shown in the video demonstrates a fully intact main PCB and GPU die. The only failed part is the PCIe daughterboard. The YouTuber stresses that such a design is pointless if users cannot obtain replacement parts. As he puts it, if a card is modular, there must be a way to replace the modules.

Since NVIDIA does not sell the board and does not authorize its replacement, the user now owns an unusable card worth ten thousand dollars unless NVIDIA decides to replace it under goodwill, which is uncertain given the circumstances. Unlike the previous RTX 5090 case where GPU replacement was promised, this situation may not be treated similarly.

Users with workstation Blackwell GPUs have even fewer options for safer variants. While gaming cards often have AIB custom models with more robust PCB structures and reinforced PCIe connectors, there are no custom AIB versions of the RTX PRO 6000. The Founders Edition design is the only design available.

For now, the incident stands as another example of how structural design choices in today’s ultra heavy GPUs can lead to catastrophic failures that cannot be repaired. With replacement parts unavailable and cards increasing in weight each generation, users may soon be forced to treat GPUs as fragile instruments rather than durable components.

What do you think of NVIDIA’s modular board design for high end GPUs? Should replacement parts be mandatory for workstation hardware? Share your thoughts below.