AMD Radeon 540 vs AMD Radeon R7 M370 Comparison

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has the higher average benchmark score?

A: The AMD Radeon 540 has the higher average benchmark score at 7673, placing it in the 41st percentile of all GPUs. The AMD Radeon R7 M370 averages 6764, which sits in the 38th percentile.

Q: How do the two GPUs compare in Geekbench OpenCL performance?

A: The Radeon R7 M370 wins the OpenCL test with a score of 7063, while the Radeon 540 scores 6184. The R7 M370 leads by 12.4% in this workload.

Q: Which GPU performs better in Geekbench Vulkan?

A: The Radeon 540 dominates the Vulkan test with a score of 9162, compared to the R7 M370's 6465. That is a 41.7% advantage for the Radeon 540.

Q: What are the memory specifications of each card?

A: The Radeon 540 has 1024 MB of GDDR5 on a 32-bit bus, delivering 24.00 GB/s of bandwidth. The Radeon R7 M370 has 2 GB of GDDR5 on a 128-bit bus, providing 57.60 GB/s of bandwidth.

Q: Which GPU has a higher transistor count and smaller process node?

A: The Radeon 540 uses 2,200 million transistors on a 14 nm process at GlobalFoundries, while the R7 M370 uses 950 million transistors on a 28 nm process at TSMC. The Radeon 540 also has a larger die at 103 mm² versus 77 mm².

Q: What API levels does each GPU support?

A: The Radeon 540 supports DirectX 12 (12_0), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.3. The Radeon R7 M370 supports DirectX 12 (11_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.2.170.

Where Each One Wins

The benchmark data splits the two GPUs cleanly along workload boundaries. The Radeon R7 M370 claims the Geekbench OpenCL test, posting 7063 against the Radeon 540's 6184. This 12.4% lead suggests the older GCN 1.0 architecture retains an edge in compute tasks that favor its memory layout. The R7 M370 also offers 2 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 128-bit bus with 57.60 GB/s of bandwidth, a notable advantage for memory-heavy compute tasks.

The Radeon 540, by contrast, wins decisively in Geekbench Vulkan with 9162 versus 6465. The 41.7% gap is the largest margin recorded in the head-to-head data. This result aligns with its newer GCN 4.0 architecture, which supports Vulkan 1.3 compared to the R7 M370's Vulkan 1.2.170. The Radeon 540 also has a higher pixel rate of 18.93 GPixel/s versus 7.680 GPixel/s, though the R7 M370 counters with a higher texture rate per memory channel arrangement.

When comparing average scores against nearest rivals, the Radeon 540 sits 1.2% ahead of the AMD Radeon Pro WX 3100, 1.5% ahead of the AMD Radeon R7 250, and 1.6% ahead of the Intel Arc A310, while trailing the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti by only 0.6%. The R7 M370, meanwhile, is 1% behind the AMD FirePro M5100, 1% ahead of the NVIDIA GeForce GT 1010, 2.3% ahead of the AMD Radeon R7 M460, and 2.6% behind the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 675M. Both GPUs are close to their closest competitors, but the Radeon 540's higher average score gives it a broader edge across the broader GPU field.

For users focused on OpenCL compute, the R7 M370 is the better pick. For those running Vulkan workloads, the Radeon 540 offers a substantial performance advantage. The Radeon 540 also wins on modern API support, newer architecture generation, and overall average score. Each GPU wins one of the two recorded benchmark tests, making the choice workload dependent rather than universally clear.

Architecture Differences

The Radeon 540 uses the Lexa chip built on GCN 4.0 architecture from the Polaris (RX 500) generation. The Radeon R7 M370 uses the Litho chip on GCN 1.0 from the Gem System (R7 M300) generation. The process node differs significantly as well: 14 nm at GlobalFoundries for the Radeon 540, 28 nm at TSMC for the R7 M370.

Transistor counts reflect the architectural jump. The Radeon 540 packs 2,200 million transistors on a 103 mm² die, giving a transistor density of 21.4M per mm². The R7 M370 contains 950 million transistors on 77 mm², a density of 12.3M per mm². This density improvement allows the Radeon 540 to deliver nearly double the transistors in only 26 mm² more die area.

Both GPUs have 384 shading units and 24 texture mapping units. The Radeon 540 doubles the render output units with 16 ROPs compared to the R7 M370's 8 ROPs. This ROP difference explains the pixel rate gap: 18.93 GPixel/s versus 7.680 GPixel/s. The texture rates are closer, with the Radeon 540 at 28.39 GTexel/s and the R7 M370 at 23.04 GTexel/s.

The memory subsystem differs in size and bus width. The Radeon 540 uses 1024 MB on a 32-bit bus, while the R7 M370 uses 2 GB on a 128-bit bus. Despite the narrower bus, the Radeon 540's memory runs at 1500 MHz (6 Gbps effective) versus the R7 M370's 900 MHz (3.6 Gbps effective). Even so, the R7 M370 achieves higher bandwidth at 57.60 GB/s versus 24.00 GB/s due to its wider bus.

API support reflects the newer architecture. The Radeon 540 supports DirectX 12 (12_0) and Vulkan 1.3, while the R7 M370 supports DirectX 12 (11_1) and Vulkan 1.2.170. Both support OpenGL 4.6. The Radeon 540 has no FP16 data recorded, while the R7 M370 lists FP16 at 908.5 GFLOPS (1:1) with its FP32. The R7 M370's FP32 is 737.3 GFLOPS, lower than the Radeon 540's 908.5 GFLOPS.

The Radeon 540 is a single-slot card with no power connectors and a 50 W TDP, plus a suggested PSU of 250 W. It outputs via 2x DisplayPort 1.4a. The R7 M370 has no recorded TDP, slot width, power connector, or display output data. Both use PCIe 3.0 x8.

Specification Differences

The two GPUs differ in nearly every major specification category. The Radeon 540 uses a 14 nm process at GlobalFoundries with 2,200 million transistors on a 103 mm² die. The R7 M370 uses a 28 nm process at TSMC with 950 million transistors on a 77 mm² die. Transistor density is 21.4M per mm² versus 12.3M per mm².

Clock speeds differ only where recorded. The R7 M370 has a base clock of 875 MHz and a boost clock of 960 MHz. The Radeon 540 has no recorded base or boost clock. Memory clocks differ: the Radeon 540 runs at 1500 MHz (6 Gbps effective), the R7 M370 at 900 MHz (3.6 Gbps effective).

Memory configuration is a major split. The Radeon 540 has 1024 MB on a 32-bit bus with 24.00 GB/s bandwidth. The R7 M370 has 2 GB on a 128-bit bus with 57.60 GB/s bandwidth. The Radeon 540 has 16 ROPs versus the R7 M370's 8 ROPs. Both share 384 shading units and 24 TMUs.

Pixel rate favors the Radeon 540 at 18.93 GPixel/s versus 7.680 GPixel/s. Texture rate is also higher on the Radeon 540 at 28.39 GTexel/s versus 23.04 GTexel/s. FP32 performance is 908.5 GFLOPS versus 737.3 GFLOPS. The Radeon 540 lists FP16 at 908.5 GFLOPS (1:1), while the R7 M370 has no FP16 data.

The Radeon 540 is single-slot with no power connectors, a 50 W TDP, and a 250 W suggested PSU. It has 2x DisplayPort 1.4a outputs. The R7 M370 has no recorded TDP, slot width, power connector, suggested PSU, or display outputs. Both use PCIe 3.0 x8. API support differs: DirectX 12 (12_0) versus DirectX 12 (11_1), and Vulkan 1.3 versus Vulkan 1.2.170. OpenGL 4.6 is common to both.

The Radeon 540 releases on 2017-04-19, while the R7 M370 releases on 2015-05-04. Both are end-of-life. The Radeon 540's predecessor is Arctic Islands and successor is Vega. The R7 M370's predecessor is Solar System and successor is Polaris Mobile.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The recorded head-to-head data contains two benchmark tests, one win for each GPU. In Geekbench OpenCL, the R7 M370 scores 7063 against the Radeon 540's 6184, a delta of -12.4% for the Radeon 540. This is the R7 M370's only win in the comparison.

In Geekbench Vulkan, the Radeon 540 scores 9162 against the R7 M370's 6465, a delta of 41.7% in favor of the Radeon 540. This is the larger margin of the two tests and represents the Radeon 540's strongest result. The average benchmark score also favors the Radeon 540 at 7673 versus 6764, a difference of roughly 13.4%.

The Vulkan result is the most striking figure in the data. A 41.7% lead in Vulkan suggests the newer GCN 4.0 architecture provides substantially better driver and hardware support for this modern API. The Radeon 540's Vulkan 1.3 support versus the R7 M370's Vulkan 1.2.170 likely contributes to this outcome. The OpenCL result is narrower at 12.4%, showing that the R7 M370's wider memory bus (128-bit versus 32-bit) and higher bandwidth (57.60 GB/s versus 24.00 GB/s) can offset the Radeon 540's higher raw compute rates in certain workloads.

The Radeon 540's FP32 output of 908.5 GFLOPS versus 737.3 GFLOPS does not translate into an OpenCL win, which indicates that memory bandwidth plays a larger role in that test. The R7 M370's pixel rate of 7.680 GPixel/s is less than half the Radeon 540's 18.93 GPixel/s, but pixel rate does not appear to be the deciding factor in either recorded benchmark. The texture rates are closer (28.39 GTexel/s versus 23.04 GTexel/s), and the Radeon 540 still leads there.

The nearest rival data puts both GPUs in context. The Radeon 540's average score of 7673 is within 0.6% of the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti's 7723, and it beats the AMD Radeon Pro WX 3100 by 1.2%, the AMD Radeon R7 250 by 1.5%, and the Intel Arc A310 by 1.6%. The R7 M370's average of 6764 sits 1% behind the AMD FirePro M5100, 1% ahead of the NVIDIA GeForce GT 1010, 2.3% ahead of the AMD Radeon R7 M460, and 2.6% behind the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 675M. These deltas show that both GPUs occupy a tightly contested mid-range segment, with the Radeon 540 holding a higher overall position.

The Verdict

The data points to a clear split based on workload. The AMD Radeon R7 M370 is the better choice for OpenCL compute tasks, where its 7063 score beats the Radeon 540's 6184 by 12.4%. Its 2 GB memory capacity and 57.60 GB/s bandwidth provide a material advantage for memory-bound workloads. Users running OpenCL applications should favor the R7 M370.

The AMD Radeon 540 is the better choice for Vulkan workloads, where its 9162 score beats the R7 M370's 6465 by 41.7%. It also has the higher average benchmark score at 7673 versus 6764, placing it in the 41st percentile versus the 38th. Its newer GCN 4.0 architecture, 14 nm process, and Vulkan 1.3 support make it the more future-facing option.

For users who need broader API compatibility, the Radeon 540 supports DirectX 12 (12_0) and Vulkan 1.3, while the R7 M370 is limited to DirectX 12 (11_1) and Vulkan 1.2.170. The Radeon 540 also offers higher pixel rate (18.93 GPixel/s versus 7.680 GPixel/s), higher texture rate (28.39 GTexel/s versus 23.04 GTexel/s), and higher FP32 performance (908.5 GFLOPS versus 737.3 GFLOPS).

The R7 M370 counters with double the memory capacity (2 GB versus 1024 MB), a 128-bit bus versus 32-bit, and more than double the bandwidth (57.60 GB/s versus 24.00 GB/s). It also has a higher base clock (875 MHz) and boost clock (960 MHz), though the Radeon 540 has no recorded clocks to compare.

The verdict from the data is straightforward: choose the Radeon 540 for Vulkan, modern API support, and overall average performance. Choose the R7 M370 for OpenCL tasks and memory-heavy workloads. Neither GPU is a universal winner. The Radeon 540's 41.7% Vulkan lead is the single largest margin in the comparison, and its higher average score makes it the stronger overall product for most modern use cases. The R7 M370 remains competitive only in the specific OpenCL test where its memory subsystem shines.