AMD Radeon HD 7950 vs NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980 Ti Comparison

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The only directly comparable benchmark between these two GPUs is Geekbench Metal, and the result is a decisive victory for the AMD Radeon HD 7950. The AMD card scores 33,951 points, while the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980 Ti scores 19,520 points. That gives AMD a 73.9% advantage in this specific test. This is a striking outcome because the GTX 980 Ti holds a 73rd percentile rank across all GPUs in the database, while the HD 7950 sits at the 78th percentile, so the AMD card is already ranked higher overall.

Looking at the broader database context, the HD 7950's average benchmark score of 33,951 places it within 0.1% of the AMD Radeon RX 480 (33,997), and it trails the RX 560 XT (34,133) by only 0.5%. It also sits 0.3% above the RX 7700S (33,849). The GTX 980 Ti, by contrast, has an average benchmark score of 28,020, which puts it nearly 0.2% ahead of the AMD Radeon Pro W5500X (27,973) and 0.5% behind the AMD Radeon RX 7800M (27,883). The gap between the two cards' average scores is substantial: the HD 7950 leads by roughly 5,931 points, or about 21.2% of the GTX 980 Ti's average.

The head-to-head data records exactly one win for the HD 7950 and zero wins for the GTX 980 Ti. That said, the GTX 980 Ti has four recorded benchmark entries (3DMark Steel Nomad DX12, Geekbench Metal, Geekbench OpenCL, and Geekbench Vulkan), while the HD 7950 has only one (Geekbench Metal). The 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 1,321 for the GTX 980 Ti gives some indication of its DirectX 12 capability, but no comparable 3DMark result exists for the HD 7950 in this database, so a direct comparison on that workload is not possible.

In terms of percentile ranking, the HD 7950 outperforms its position relative to the GTX 980 Ti. The NVIDIA card's 73rd percentile is below the AMD card's 78th percentile, which suggests that across all recorded GPUs, the older AMD architecture is holding its own better than the newer NVIDIA part in the aggregate metrics.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU wins the only head-to-head benchmark in the database?

A: The AMD Radeon HD 7950 wins Geekbench Metal with a score of 33,951 against the GTX 980 Ti's 19,520, a 73.9% delta.

Q: How does the GTX 980 Ti compare to its nearest rivals in average score?

A: The GTX 980 Ti averages 28,020, which is 0.2% above the AMD Radeon Pro W5500X (27,973), 0.5% above the AMD Radeon RX 7800M (27,883), and 0.7% above the AMD Radeon Pro Vega 20 (27,839). It trails the AMD FirePro S7150 (28,117) by 0.3%.

Q: What is the HD 7950's nearest rival in aggregate score?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 480 is closest at 33,997, just 0.1% higher than the HD 7950's 33,951. The RX 560 XT (34,133) is 0.5% higher, and the RTX A2000 12 GB (34,154) is 0.6% higher.

Q: Does the GTX 980 Ti have a higher percentile rank than the HD 7950?

A: No. The HD 7950 ranks at the 78th percentile across all GPUs, while the GTX 980 Ti ranks at the 73rd percentile.

Q: How many benchmark wins does each card have in the head-to-head table?

A: The HD 7950 has 1 win (Geekbench Metal) and the GTX 980 Ti has 0 wins in the recorded head-to-head benchmarks.

Q: What does the GTX 980 Ti's 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score indicate?

A: The GTX 980 Ti scores 1,321 in that test, but since the HD 7950 has no corresponding 3DMark result, the database does not allow a direct comparison on that workload.

Architecture Differences

The two cards come from completely different architectural generations. The AMD Radeon HD 7950 uses the Tahiti chip built on GCN 1.0, part of the Southern Islands (HD 7900) generation. It is manufactured on a 28 nm process at TSMC, with 4,313 million transistors packed into a 352 mm² die, yielding a transistor density of 12.3 million per square millimeter. The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980 Ti uses the GM200 chip based on Maxwell 2.0, from the GeForce 900 generation. It is also built on TSMC's 28 nm node, but the die is far larger at 601 mm², containing 8,000 million transistors, for a density of 13.3 million per square millimeter.

The GTX 980 Ti has a substantially higher transistor count (nearly double) and a larger die, but both use the same process node. The compute configuration differs significantly: the HD 7950 has 1,792 shading units, 112 texture mapping units, and 32 ROPs. The GTX 980 Ti has 2,816 shading units, 176 TMUs, and 96 ROPs, which is more than double the ROP count. This explains the pixel rate difference: the HD 7950 delivers 25.60 GPixel/s, while the GTX 980 Ti delivers 103.3 GPixel/s. Texture rate also favors NVIDIA: 189.4 GTexel/s versus 89.60 GTexel/s.

Clock behavior differs as well. The HD 7950's base and boost clocks are not recorded in the database, while the GTX 980 Ti has a base clock of 1000 MHz and a boost clock of 1076 MHz. Memory clocks also differ: the HD 7950 runs at 1250 MHz (5 Gbps effective), while the GTX 980 Ti runs at 1753 MHz (7 Gbps effective). Both use GDDR5, but the GTX 980 Ti has 6 GB versus the HD 7950's 3 GB, and while both have a 384-bit bus, the GTX 980 Ti's bandwidth is 336.6 GB/s versus 240.0 GB/s for the AMD card.

API support shows a clear generation gap. The HD 7950 supports DirectX 12 (11_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.2.170. The GTX 980 Ti supports DirectX 12 (12_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. The NVIDIA card also has a different display output set: 1x DVI, 1x HDMI 2.0, and 3x DisplayPort 1.2, whereas the HD 7950 has 1x DVI, 1x HDMI 1.4a, and 2x mini-DisplayPort 1.2.

Power delivery and physical dimensions also diverge. The HD 7950 has a TDP of 200 W with 2x 6-pin power connectors and a suggested PSU of 550 W. The GTX 980 Ti has a TDP of 250 W with 1x 6-pin and 1x 8-pin connectors, and a suggested PSU of 600 W. Both are dual-slot cards, but the HD 7950 measures 278 mm long, 111 mm high, and 38 mm wide, while the GTX 980 Ti is 267 mm long, 111 mm high, and 40 mm wide.

The Verdict

Based strictly on the recorded data, the AMD Radeon HD 7950 is the stronger performer in the only directly comparable test. Its Geekbench Metal score of 33,951 versus the GTX 980 Ti's 19,520 represents a 73.9% lead, and its 78th percentile rank across all GPUs is higher than the GTX 980 Ti's 73rd percentile. The HD 7950 also has a higher average benchmark score (33,951 versus 28,020), which is not a fair apples-to-apples comparison since the averages cover different test sets, but the percentile ranks confirm the AMD card's superior standing in the database.

For users whose primary workload is Metal-based (common in macOS environments), the HD 7950 is clearly the better choice, and it also holds up well against its own nearest rivals, sitting within 0.6% of the RTX A2000 12 GB and 0.1% of the RX 480. However, the GTX 980 Ti has advantages in raw hardware specifications: more shading units, more ROPs, more memory, higher bandwidth, and higher clock speeds. Its 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 1,321 shows it can handle modern DirectX 12 workloads, but without a comparable HD 7950 score in that test, the database cannot be used to rank them on that workload.

The GTX 980 Ti's higher TDP (250 W versus 200 W) and larger power connector requirement suggest it needs a stronger PSU, but its physical length is shorter (267 mm versus 278 mm). Neither card is in production, and both are end-of-life products.

Specification Differences

| Specification | AMD Radeon HD 7950 | NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980 Ti |

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

| Chip | Tahiti | GM200 |

| Architecture | GCN 1.0 | Maxwell 2.0 |

| Generation | Southern Islands (HD 7900) | GeForce 900 |

| Transistors | 4,313 million | 8,000 million |

| Die Size | 352 mm² | 601 mm² |

| Transistor Density | 12.3M / mm² | 13.3M / mm² |

| Base Clock | Not recorded | 1000 MHz |

| Boost Clock | Not recorded | 1076 MHz |

| Memory Clock | 1250 MHz, 5 Gbps effective | 1753 MHz, 7 Gbps effective |

| Memory Size | 3 GB | 6 GB |

| Memory Type | GDDR5 | GDDR5 |

| Memory Bus | 384 bit | 384 bit |

| Memory Bandwidth | 240.0 GB/s | 336.6 GB/s |

| Shading Units | 1792 | 2816 |

| TMUs | 112 | 176 |

| ROPs | 32 | 96 |

| Pixel Rate | 25.60 GPixel/s | 103.3 GPixel/s |

| Texture Rate | 89.60 GTexel/s | 189.4 GTexel/s |

| FP32 | 2.867 TFLOPS | 6.060 TFLOPS |

| TDP | 200 W | 250 W |

| Power Connectors | 2x 6-pin | 1x 6-pin + 1x 8-pin |

| Suggested PSU | 550 W | 600 W |

| Display Outputs | 1x DVI, 1x HDMI 1.4a, 2x mini-DisplayPort 1.2 | 1x DVI, 1x HDMI 2.0, 3x DisplayPort 1.2 |

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

| Vulkan | 1.2.170 | 1.4 |

| Length | 278 mm | 267 mm |

| Height | 111 mm | 111 mm |

| Width | 38 mm | 40 mm |

Where Each One Wins

The AMD Radeon HD 7950 wins in the Geekbench Metal test, with a 73.9% higher score than the GTX 980 Ti. It also wins on percentile rank (78th versus 73rd) and on average benchmark score (33,951 versus 28,020). For anyone running Metal-based applications, the HD 7950 is the clear winner in this database.

The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980 Ti wins on nearly every raw hardware specification. It has 56.9% more shading units (2,816 versus 1,792), 57.1% more TMUs (176 versus 112), and triple the ROP count (96 versus 32). Its pixel rate is 4.0 times higher (103.3 GPixel/s versus 25.60 GPixel/s), and its texture rate is 2.1 times higher (189.4 GTexel/s versus 89.60 GTexel/s). FP32 compute is also much higher: 6.060 TFLOPS versus 2.867 TFLOPS. Memory capacity doubles from 3 GB to 6 GB, and bandwidth increases by 40.2% (336.6 GB/s versus 240.0 GB/s).

The GTX 980 Ti also wins on API support, offering DirectX 12 (12_1) versus the HD 7950's DirectX 12 (11_1), and Vulkan 1.4 versus Vulkan 1.2.170. It has a higher memory clock (1753 MHz versus 1250 MHz) and a smaller physical footprint in length (267 mm versus 278 mm), though it is slightly wider (40 mm versus 38 mm). Its 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 1,321 provides evidence of DirectX 12 capability, but the HD 7950 has no comparable score, so the database does not allow a direct comparison there.

The power envelope favors the AMD card, with a 200 W TDP versus 250 W for NVIDIA, and a lower suggested PSU (550 W versus 600 W). The HD 7950 also uses simpler 2x 6-pin power connectors, while the GTX 980 Ti requires a 6-pin and an 8-pin. In summary, the HD 7950 is the better choice for Metal workloads and overall database percentile, while the GTX 980 Ti dominates in pure compute throughput, memory bandwidth, and modern API features.