Bumpgate
Bumpgate, also known as Nvidiagate, was a scandal where Nvidia and ATI Graphics Processing Units (GPUs) were prone to high failure rates due to a design flaw that led to cracked solder bumps under the die. Despite the "Nvidiagate" name, this defect not only affected many Nvidia GPUs made from approximately 2006 to 2010, but it also affected ATI GPUs from 2006 to 2008. Among retro console enthusiasts, the defect is best known to have likely been the culprit behind the high failure rate of Nvidia GPUs in Sony's early PlayStation 3 models and ATI GPUs in Microsoft's early Xbox 360 models.
Background
Graphics Processing Unit (GPU) Faults
From approximately 2005-2010, GPU manufacturers Nvidia and ATI developed some GPUs that had a serious design flaw. They had engineered GPUs that electrically connected the silicon chip (die) to the substrate (the "green square part") using high-lead solder bumps. High-lead solder bumps were chosen in order to fit the power delivery specifications that these GPUs needed[1]. To give these solder bumps more strength (especially when operating at high temperatures), it's standard to use an epoxy with silica filler known as underfill. Underfill needs to fit certain specifications, depending on how hot the processor it's used on is expected to get. If it's too hard, the underfill will crack the die. If it's too soft, it'll crack the bumps. It also needs to still fit within the right specifications at both high and low temperatures.
In 2006, IBM and Amkor published a study that explained that use of a low Tg underfill was not acceptable with high-lead solder bumps, and high Tg would be necessary to avoid defects. Therefore, because Nvidia and ATI chose to use high-lead solder bumps, they needed a high Tg underfill. However, this study was not out at the time that GPUs from 2005 were made, and the companies ended up using low Tg underfill in these processors.
This low Tg underfill would become too soft at high, but normal operating temperatures for these GPUs. When the processor went through normal thermal changes, the solder balls would soften under heat and harden as they cooled.[2] This would happen over and over again until they cracked under the thermal stress. When enough solder balls cracked, it would cause a failure in the unit, hence the term "Bumpgate".
[Incident]
Bumpgate was a widespread issue for any consumer that purchased these defective graphics processors. However, it's not fully clear who was the most responsible for the incident. Building a GPU is a specialized process that requires it to go through multiple hands before ultimately ending up with the company that sells the unit (i.e., Microsoft, Sony, etc.).
Company responses
Microsoft
[Red Ring, response to RRoD (FULL timeline of events)]
Sony
[Yellow Light, response to YLoD...]
Nvidia
[Discuss initial response. Briefly touch on the lawsuit; there's a dedicated section below]
Lawsuit(s)
[Nvidia Lawsuit]
Consumer response
[General Consumer Response (frustration at/satisfaction with Microsoft, Sony, etc.)]
Misdiagnosis/Poor Repair of Faults
There was a lot of speculation among affected consumers as to why so many GPUs were failing, and theories tended to vary between communities for devices. For example, consumers who purchased an Xbox 360 thought that the issue was related to the console overheating, or it was due to RoHS requiring Microsoft to use lead-free solder balls to connect the Xenos GPU to the motherboard. Some PlayStation 3 owners were convinced for some time that the fault wasn't even related to their RSX GPU, but rather, the NEC-Tokin capacitors surrounding it. The lack of clarity from manufacturers in what was really causing the fault led many retro console and repair enthusiasts to make bad choices in how to repair their machines.
A common bad practice between both the Xbox 360 and the PS3 was to reflow the entire motherboard. Ultimately, this would only fix the problem temporarily, if at all. In addition, a motherboard is not designed to go through this process more than once (at the time of manufacture), so this would damage the motherboard over time until it would be impossible to fix the system again. As this fault was caused by a defective GPU, though, the only way to fix it is to replace the faulty GPU with one that doesn't have the defect. How possible this is, however, depends much on a person's skills, tools, and how easy or difficult it is for consumers to repair and modify the system. For example, the PS3 has a modification called "Frankenstein", which makes it possible to replace a defective 90nm RSX GPU with a 65nm or 40nm one that is not defective. This modification was inspired by an "official" fix that Sony performed on some faulty PS3s. However, for a regular person to perform this repair, they would need a BGA rework station (and the skills to use it properly) and a softmodded PS3. Due to the specialized nature of this modification, most people will still recommend for consumers to find someone skilled enough to do the modification for them, buy an early PS3 that is already "Frankenstein" modded, or to simply avoid purchasing consoles impacted by Bumpgate.
References
- ↑ Williams, Rob (29 Sep 2008). "NVIDIA at a Disadvantage Due to their Choice of Solder?". Techgage. Retrieved 1 Jun 2025.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ Demerjian, Charlie (1 Sep 2008). "Why Nvidia's chips are defective". The Inquirer. Archived from the original on 20 May 2009. Retrieved 1 Jun 2025.