AMD Radeon 540 vs AMD Radeon R9 M265X Comparison

Where Each One Wins

The benchmark data splits cleanly between these two legacy AMD mobile and low-profile desktop parts. The AMD Radeon R9 M265X wins the only directly comparable workload, Geekbench OpenCL, by a substantial margin. It posts a score of 8851 against the Radeon 540's 6184, a 43.1% advantage. That is not a small gap; that is a decisive victory in raw compute throughput for the older card.

The AMD Radeon 540, however, has one clear domain where it stands alone: Vulkan. The database records a Geekbench Vulkan score of 9162 for the Radeon 540. The R9 M265X has no Vulkan result recorded at all. If your workload or game leans on Vulkan, the Radeon 540 is the only one of these two that can even participate. This is not a case of one being faster; the R9 M265X simply has no data in that API.

In terms of overall standing, the R9 M265X sits at the 44th percentile among all GPUs in the database, while the Radeon 540 sits at the 41st percentile. The average benchmark score for the R9 M265X is 8851, matching its single OpenCL result. The Radeon 540's average is 7673, pulled down by its weaker OpenCL showing but partially rescued by its strong Vulkan number.

For use-case planning: if you are locked into OpenCL compute, the R9 M265X is the pick. If you need modern API support and are willing to accept lower raw OpenCL throughput, the Radeon 540 at least offers a working Vulkan path. The wins are not evenly distributed; they are split by API generation and workload type.

Architecture Differences

These two GPUs come from different eras of AMD's design philosophy. The R9 M265X uses the Venus chip built on GCN 1.0 architecture, manufactured on a 28 nm process at TSMC. It packs 1,500 million transistors into a 123 mm² die, giving a transistor density of 12.2 million per square millimeter. Its generation is listed as Gem System, specifically the R9 M200 family, and its predecessor and successor are Solar System and Polaris Mobile respectively.

The Radeon 540 uses the Lexa chip built on GCN 4.0 architecture, manufactured on a 14 nm process at GlobalFoundries. It contains 2,200 million transistors on a smaller 103 mm² die, resulting in a much higher transistor density of 21.4 million per square millimeter. Its generation is Polaris, specifically the RX 500 family, with Arctic Islands as predecessor and Vega as successor.

The compute resources differ significantly. The R9 M265X has 640 shading units, 40 texture mapping units, and 16 ROPs. The Radeon 540 has fewer shading units at 384, fewer TMUs at 24, but matches the ROP count at 16. Despite having fewer cores, the Radeon 540 achieves a higher pixel rate of 18.93 GPixel/s versus 10.00 GPixel/s for the R9 M265X, and a higher texture rate of 28.39 GTexel/s versus 25.00 GTexel/s. The FP32 throughput tells a similar story: the Radeon 540 delivers 908.5 GFLOPS, while the R9 M265X delivers 800.0 GFLOPS. The Radeon 540 also supports FP16 at 908.5 GFLOPS with a 1:1 ratio, while the R9 M265X has no FP16 data recorded.

Memory configurations diverge sharply. The R9 M265X has 2 GB of GDDR5 on a 128-bit bus, yielding 64.00 GB/s of bandwidth. The Radeon 540 has only 1024 MB (1 GB) of GDDR5 on a 32-bit bus, yielding just 24.00 GB/s. The memory clock differs too: the R9 M265X runs at 1000 MHz (4 Gbps effective), while the Radeon 540 runs at 1500 MHz (6 Gbps effective). The faster memory clock cannot compensate for the much narrower bus.

The Radeon 540 is a more modern part in terms of API support. It supports DirectX 12 (12_0), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.3. The R9 M265X supports DirectX 12 (11_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.2.170. The Radeon 540 also has a formal TDP of 50 W, a single-slot design, no power connectors, and a suggested PSU of 250 W. The R9 M265X has no TDP or power data recorded. The Radeon 540 uses a PCIe 3.0 x8 interface, while the R9 M265X uses PCIe 3.0 x16. Display outputs are listed only for the Radeon 540: two DisplayPort 1.4a connectors.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The only direct head-to-head benchmark in the database is Geekbench OpenCL, and it is a rout. The R9 M265X scores 8851, the Radeon 540 scores 6184. The delta is 43.1% in favor of the R9 M265X. That is a massive gap for two GPUs that are both end-of-life and occupy similar low-end positioning. If you are choosing purely on OpenCL compute, the R9 M265X is not just better; it is in a different class.

Contextualizing the R9 M265X's OpenCL score: its nearest rivals are the AMD Radeon Pro WX 5100 at 8863 (0.1% slower than the rival, meaning the R9 M265X is effectively tied), the AMD Radeon 550X at 8918 (0.8% behind), the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 A Mobile at 8746 (1.2% ahead), and the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 460 v2 at 8743 (1.2% ahead). So the R9 M265X sits in a tight cluster; it is competitive with much newer and more expensive parts in this specific synthetic test.

The Radeon 540's OpenCL score of 6184 places it near the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti at 7723 (the Radeon 540 is 0.6% behind that rival, which is odd given the score gap but reflects the averaging methodology), the AMD Radeon Pro WX 3100 at 7580 (1.2% ahead), the AMD Radeon R7 250 at 7557 (1.5% ahead), and the Intel Arc A310 at 7550 (1.6% ahead). The Radeon 540's OpenCL result is clearly below its nearest rivals, which all cluster in the 7550 to 7723 range.

The Radeon 540's Vulkan score of 9162 is not directly comparable to the R9 M265X because the latter has no Vulkan result. However, it is notable that the Radeon 540's Vulkan score is higher than its OpenCL score by a wide margin (9162 versus 6184, roughly 48% higher). This suggests the Radeon 540's architecture is much better suited to Vulkan workloads, or that its OpenCL drivers are comparatively weak.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has the higher OpenCL benchmark score?

A: The AMD Radeon R9 M265X scores 8851 in Geekbench OpenCL, while the AMD Radeon 540 scores 6184. The R9 M265X leads by 43.1%.

Q: Does the AMD Radeon 540 support Vulkan?

A: Yes, the Radeon 540 has a Geekbench Vulkan score of 9162 and supports Vulkan 1.3. The R9 M265X supports Vulkan 1.2.170 but has no recorded Vulkan benchmark result.

Q: How do their memory configurations compare?

A: The R9 M265X has 2 GB of GDDR5 on a 128-bit bus with 64.00 GB/s bandwidth. The Radeon 540 has 1024 MB of GDDR5 on a 32-bit bus with 24.00 GB/s bandwidth.

Q: What are the pixel and texture rates for each?

A: The R9 M265X has a pixel rate of 10.00 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 25.00 GTexel/s. The Radeon 540 has a pixel rate of 18.93 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 28.39 GTexel/s.

Q: Which GPU has more shading units?

A: The R9 M265X has 640 shading units, while the Radeon 540 has 384 shading units. Despite this, the Radeon 540 has higher FP32 performance at 908.5 GFLOPS versus 800.0 GFLOPS.

Q: What is the process node difference?

A: The R9 M265X is built on a 28 nm process at TSMC, while the Radeon 540 is built on a 14 nm process at GlobalFoundries.

The Verdict

The data tells a clear story for OpenCL users: the AMD Radeon R9 M265X is the superior compute part. A 43.1% lead in Geekbench OpenCL is not a marginal difference; it is a decisive one. Its 2 GB memory capacity and 128-bit bus provide 64.00 GB/s of bandwidth, which is more than double the Radeon 540's 24.00 GB/s. For any workload that saturates memory bandwidth, the R9 M265X will pull further ahead than the raw compute scores suggest.

However, the Radeon 540 is not without merit. Its Vulkan score of 9162 indicates strong modern API performance, and it supports DirectX 12 (12_0) versus the R9 M265X's DirectX 12 (11_1). Its pixel rate of 18.93 GPixel/s is nearly double the R9 M265X's 10.00 GPixel/s, which matters for fill-rate-bound scenarios. Its 14 nm process and 50 W TDP suggest better efficiency, and it requires no power connectors with a 250 W suggested PSU.

Who should pick which? If your software stack is OpenCL-heavy, choose the R9 M265X without hesitation. Its benchmark dominance in that API is overwhelming, and its larger memory pool is a practical advantage. If you need Vulkan support or run modern games that prefer DirectX 12 with feature level 12_0, the Radeon 540 is the only viable option between the two. The R9 M265X simply does not have the API coverage or the recorded Vulkan performance to compete there.

The percentile rankings reflect this split: the R9 M265X sits at the 44th percentile overall, the Radeon 540 at the 41st. The R9 M265X is the better all-around performer in the measured benchmarks, but the Radeon 540 offers a future-proofing element with newer API support that the older card cannot match.

Specification Differences

| Specification | AMD Radeon R9 M265X | AMD Radeon 540 |

|---|---|---|

| Chip | Venus | Lexa |

| Architecture | GCN 1.0 | GCN 4.0 |

| Process Node | 28 nm | 14 nm |

| Foundry | TSMC | GlobalFoundries |

| Transistors | 1,500 million | 2,200 million |

| Die Size | 123 mm² | 103 mm² |

| Transistor Density | 12.2M / mm² | 21.4M / mm² |

| Memory Size | 2 GB | 1024 MB |

| Memory Bus Width | 128 bit | 32 bit |

| Memory Bandwidth | 64.00 GB/s | 24.00 GB/s |

| Memory Clock | 1000 MHz (4 Gbps effective) | 1500 MHz (6 Gbps effective) |

| Shading Units | 640 | 384 |

| TMUs | 40 | 24 |

| ROPs | 16 | 16 |

| Pixel Rate | 10.00 GPixel/s | 18.93 GPixel/s |

| Texture Rate | 25.00 GTexel/s | 28.39 GTexel/s |

| FP32 | 800.0 GFLOPS | 908.5 GFLOPS |

| FP16 | Not recorded | 908.5 GFLOPS (1:1) |

| TDP | Not recorded | 50 W |

| Slot Width | Not recorded | Single-slot |

| Power Connectors | Not recorded | None |

| Suggested PSU | Not recorded | 250 W |

| Bus Interface | PCIe 3.0 x16 | PCIe 3.0 x8 |

| Display Outputs | Not recorded | 2x DisplayPort 1.4a |

| DirectX | 12 (11_1) | 12 (12_0) |

| Vulkan | 1.2.170 | 1.3 |

| Release Date | 2014-03-20 | 2017-04-19 |

| Production Status | End-of-life | End-of-life |