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RTX 3080 emitted smoke and it smelt like firework - but it's still fine even under load?

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So yesterday I got my new GPU - a MSI RTX 3080 Gaming X Trio. I put it in my PC (everything was connected properly) and I wanted to do some stresstesting. 15 Minutes in I heard some click sound from my PC case and when I looked down I saw the GPU emitting a bit of smoke (not much) about 3 cm from the HDMI / DP connectors on the side opposite to the PCIe slot. MSI Afterburner said the GPU Temp in that exact moment was 77 Celsius. I immediately let the PC cool down. It smelt alot like burnt rubber or like some firework (still does when heating up).

The thing is that it ran absolutely fine after, both in Idle and under full load. Though when it heats up, the smell returns. Also, when I get close to the GPU with my ear I hear some kind of coil whine exactly where the smoke came from. I don't know if that sound was there before the smoke thing though, it is very quiet.

Later I removed the card from my PC and inspected it - you cant see anything unusual. Its only the smell that can be noticed right at the spot where the smoke came from. I did not want to remove the cooler because I would lose the warranty if I did so. I already contacted MSI about it but I'm sure they will be taking another week before they respond.

I did notice one thing though, I'm not sure if it is a real problem though:

1610110507175.png


The grey and the light blue thermal pads (marked red) seem to be a bit off compared to the one on the right (marked blue). As I said I'm not sure if this is a real problem. What if the other thermal pads you cant see are also a bit off and thats what caused the overheating? Just a thought though.

1610109569474.png

Image from https://www.techpowerup.com/review/msi-geforce-rtx-3080-gaming-x-trio/2.html - this is not my GPU ^^

I think the origin of the smoke should be somewhere near the "LR22" thing. Could any of these things have burned and be destroyed but the GPU said: no problem, I can still run?

What I'm trying to say is:
Should I just use the card and act like nothing happened?
Is my card broken and is it problematic if I use it, like can it be damaged further even though the temperatues are within acceptable range?
Is there a chance that something like a hair, some dust or anything else that isn't supposed to be on the PCB burned and thats what caused the smoke and smell?

Of course I'm going to wait for MSIs response before really doing anything, but some opinions and help are greatly appreciated!

sharp
 

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I'd take that sucker out ASAP and let MSI deal with smokey cards.
 
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I'd take that sucker out ASAP and let MSI deal with smokey cards.
I should have made this clear: the 3080 is not in use right now. Im using my backup GTX 960.
 

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I should have made this clear: the 3080 is not in use right now. Im using my backup GTX 960.
That's a relief. Keep us updated on what MSI says.
 
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RMA it, but you'll be waiting forever for a replacement.
 
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I'd just crack on and use it a few months, if it's working fine now anyway.
Yeah it could get more damaged possibly but that's not a concern if you're warranty is in tact, you will struggle to get a replacement ATM anyway and in a few months they can't replace your card with a lesser spec if it does go belly up.
You can't loose either way but acting now you will loose the use of it for longer.
 

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I'd just crack on and use it a few months, if it's working fine now anyway.
Yeah it could get more damaged possibly but that's not a concern if you're warranty is in tact, you will struggle to get a replacement ATM anyway and in a few months they can't replace your card with a lesser spec if it does go belly up.
You can't loose either way but acting now you will loose the use of it for longer.
Until more things smoke and fall off. Why risk killing other hardware? Sure a nail in a tire won't instantly cause a crash but why risk it?
 
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No, do not mess with the card. It is MSI's problem, it's probably in your interest to keep it that way. You should get them to replace your card ASAP, don't postpone until it's totaled.

About continuing to use your damaged card (while waiting for the process), err, I'm pretty sure they should still honor the warranty regardless if it makes thing worse or not.

Also, no. I don't think it had to do anything with the GPU temp, nor if the problem would show up at the GPU temp, nor even if the problem would show up as anything perceptible at all. Nothing feels/looks wrong doesn't means that there's nothing wrong. There's thousands of other components and parameters that aren't not monitored. It's under warranty, there's zero reason not to play safe.
 
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RMA it, but you'll be waiting forever for a replacement.
This is defenitely what Im fearing... though I checked and it seems that you cannot RMA MSI graphics cards here in Germany. I will have to get in touch with the store I bought it from and return it - a bit sad because its not easy to get your hands on a 3080.

I'd just crack on and use it a few months, if it's working fine now anyway.
Yeah it could get more damaged possibly but that's not a concern if you're warranty is in tact, you will struggle to get a replacement ATM anyway and in a few months they can't replace your card with a lesser spec if it does go belly up.
You can't loose either way but acting now you will loose the use of it for longer.
I defenitely get your point. I will try to get a refund but if that is not working I'm just going to open it up and see what was wrong (you can only make use of the warranty if the store accepts the refund according to MSIs website).
 
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I seriously recommend to return it in situations like these and not mention a thing about any of this, don't take you're chances with an RMA unless you absolutely have to.

RMA it, but you'll be waiting forever for a replacement.

Chances are they'll send a replacement anyway or if you're unlucky they'll send the same card back claiming that it's working fine or that you broke it. Manufacturers never really perform board level repairs, they'll replace a fan, stuff like that but that's about it.
 
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This is defenitely what Im fearing... though I checked and it seems that you cannot RMA MSI graphics cards here in Germany. I will have to get in touch with the store I bought it from and return it - a bit sad because its not easy to get your hands on a 3080.
Can you negotiate with the seller if you want a replacement or refund? I mean, it's even still within the 14 day return period. Get a refund if they can't replace it in timely manner.
 
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It's been one day - return this POS and don't better with MSI's shitty RMA policy.

Don't even bother telling the store about it - unless the card goes toast they'll probably tell you to deal with it.
 
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Until more things smoke and fall off. Why risk killing other hardware? Sure a nail in a tire won't instantly cause a crash but why risk it?
I get you but a GPU dieing is not comparable to a car crash you might die in.
GPU death seldom results in motherboard death, I can happily report and with a reasonable grade of PSU with overcurrent and short protection should also be fine with any GPU death.
Given the additional info regarding warranty , maybe take it back to the shop though, as I said in my original post , warranty keeps you covered or not so much as in here.
 
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Can you negotiate with the seller if you want a replacement or refund? I mean, it's even still within the 14 day return period. Get a refund if they can't replace it in timely manner.
I can either get a refund or have it repaired. I will ask them to try and repair it and in case it won't work ask for a refund. A replacement is not an option I think, it will take a long time until they get in stock again.
 
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I vote with everyone who says send back or exchange.
As for something external causing it--this happened to me once for what it's worth:
On an old 770 card one day there was a loud ftzztt and a bright flash I could see through the fans and a burning smell. The card stopped working so I pulled it. What I found was the crispy remains of a beetle. One of the shiny kind that looks sort of metallic.
It had a scortched smell and I cleaned it off with alcohol but the smell remained. Reinstalled card but computer would never boot with that card even when I put it in my secondary x16 slot with a good 770 in the primary graphics slot. Permently dead card. Now I only buy cards with a back plate :) .
 

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I get you but a GPU dieing is not comparable to a car crash you might die in.
GPU death seldom results in motherboard death, I can happily report and with a reasonable grade of PSU with overcurrent and short protection should also be fine with any GPU death.
Given the additional info regarding warranty , maybe take it back to the shop though, as I said in my original post , warranty keeps you covered or not so much as in here.
Depends on how it failed. I remember R-T-B's card feeding power back into the board and killed it right there, and yeah it was defective like this one just not in the same way. All I'm saying is if something of high cost and high power is falling apart I sure wouldn't want it powered.
 
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I vote with everyone who says send back or exchange.
As for something external causing it--this happened to me once for what it's worth:
On an old 770 card one day there was a loud ftzztt and a bright flash I could see through the fans and a burning smell. The card stopped working so I pulled it. What I found was the crispy remains of a beetle. One of the shiny kind that looks sort of metallic.
It had a scortched smell and I cleaned it off with alcohol but the smell remained. Reinstalled card but computer would never boot with that card even when I put it in my secondary x16 slot with a good 770 in the primary graphics slot. Permently dead card. Now I only buy cards with a back plate :) .

That sounds like a........... Buggy GPU :cool:

If it were me, as much as I'd hate to, I'd return it.

It's a sizeable amount of money to pay for electronic equipment that 'smoked' the first day. I wouldn't want to risk any further chance of fire.
 
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I've googled the reviews of the same card and found the thermal pads on your card are shifted in comparison with reviewed ones.

+1 for contacting your store for moneyback or contacting MSI in order to replace the card.
 
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I've googled the reviews of the same card and found the thermal pads on your card are shifted in comparison with reviewed ones.

+1 for contacting your store for moneyback or contacting MSI in order to replace the card.
Thank you for the input! That would make perfect sense. Very unlucky that it happened but I think I can now be sure that I didnt do anything wrong.
 
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This is defenitely what Im fearing... though I checked and it seems that you cannot RMA MSI graphics cards here in Germany. I will have to get in touch with the store I bought it from and return it
Return to Store for either a Refund or a Replacment.
your in the EU so you have consumer Rights (if they get Asswipe about this just inform them of your local rights google them).
 
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I've had this burning smell issue before on a 980 TI and the card looks absolutely fine and the power connectors too. And it worked again after I swapped PCIE power cables. I couldn't locate the source of the smell until a year later when I inspected my PSU (Seasonic 850-X Gold) that I saw the modular plugs of the PCIE cable melted into the PSU hub. Just to make sure all rocks are left unturned, check that your PCI-E cables didn't melt on either end, because this is a high-TDP GPU and if not BNIB, a previous user may have flashed an even higher power target on it.

Also (not that you should have to) it's wise to inspect the assembly of your (very expensive) card before putting stress on it for the first time. I've had shoddy factory-assembly on my 980TI and 1080TI both by MSI in the last 6 years, where thermal pads did not fully cover VRAM chips, thermal paste dripped everywhere and was plastered on with insane thickness. I also got better overclocking headroom and temperatures after properly redoing it myself.
 
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I've had this burning smell issue before on a 980 TI and the card looks absolutely fine and the power connectors too. And it worked again after I swapped PCIE power cables. I couldn't locate the source of the smell until a year later when I inspected my PSU (Seasonic 850-X Gold) that I saw the modular plugs of the PCIE cable melted into the PSU hub. Just to make sure all rocks are left unturned, check that your PCI-E cables didn't melt on either end, because this is a high-TDP GPU and if not BNIB, a previous user may have flashed an even higher power target on it.

Also (not that you should have to) it's wise to inspect the assembly of your (very expensive) card before putting stress on it for the first time. I've had shoddy factory-assembly on my 980TI and 1080TI both by MSI in the last 6 years, where thermal pads did not fully cover VRAM chips, thermal paste dripped everywhere and was plastered on with insane thickness. I also got better overclocking headroom and temperatures after properly redoing it myself.
I looked into it and both PCIe cables are fine. Doesnt seem to be the case but thanks a lot for the reply.

Inspecting is a very good idea. Will do that when I get my hands on the next card.
 
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So yesterday I got my new GPU - a MSI RTX 3080 Gaming X Trio. I put it in my PC (everything was connected properly) and I wanted to do some stresstesting. 15 Minutes in I heard some click sound from my PC case and when I looked down I saw the GPU emitting a bit of smoke (not much) about 3 cm from the HDMI / DP connectors on the side opposite to the PCIe slot. MSI Afterburner said the GPU Temp in that exact moment was 77 Celsius. I immediately let the PC cool down. It smelt alot like burnt rubber or like some firework (still does when heating up).

The thing is that it ran absolutely fine after, both in Idle and under full load. Though when it heats up, the smell returns. Also, when I get close to the GPU with my ear I hear some kind of coil whine exactly where the smoke came from. I don't know if that sound was there before the smoke thing though, it is very quiet.

Later I removed the card from my PC and inspected it - you cant see anything unusual. Its only the smell that can be noticed right at the spot where the smoke came from. I did not want to remove the cooler because I would lose the warranty if I did so. I already contacted MSI about it but I'm sure they will be taking another week before they respond.

I did notice one thing though, I'm not sure if it is a real problem though:

View attachment 183003

The grey and the light blue thermal pads (marked red) seem to be a bit off compared to the one on the right (marked blue). As I said I'm not sure if this is a real problem. What if the other thermal pads you cant see are also a bit off and thats what caused the overheating? Just a thought though.

View attachment 182999
Image from https://www.techpowerup.com/review/msi-geforce-rtx-3080-gaming-x-trio/2.html - this is not my GPU ^^

I think the origin of the smoke should be somewhere near the "LR22" thing. Could any of these things have burned and be destroyed but the GPU said: no problem, I can still run?

What I'm trying to say is:
Should I just use the card and act like nothing happened?
Is my card broken and is it problematic if I use it, like can it be damaged further even though the temperatues are within acceptable range?
Is there a chance that something like a hair, some dust or anything else that isn't supposed to be on the PCB burned and thats what caused the smoke and smell?

Of course I'm going to wait for MSIs response before really doing anything, but some opinions and help are greatly appreciated!

sharp

Those are balancing insulation pads, not thermal pads.
The solid capacitors don't need cooling. It looks like those pads are used for weight distribution.

I can't even see the pad on the right side of this review here (the one that looks "level" on yours):


But this picture shows the pad much better on this review:



That being said, I HIGHLY doubt that that pad had anything to do with the magic smoke. There's nothing those pads touch that would cause a short from that position.
 
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