AMD Radeon Pro 5500 XT vs NVIDIA Tesla M40 24 GB Comparison

The AMD Radeon Pro 5500 XT and the NVIDIA Tesla M40 24 GB represent two distinct eras of GPU design, separated by nearly five years of architectural evolution. The data shows a split decision: the Radeon Pro 5500 XT takes the OpenCL benchmark, while the Tesla M40 24 GB counters with a decisive victory in Vulkan. This creates a nuanced comparison where the "better" card depends entirely on the workload and API in question, rather than a single dominant performer.

Where Each One Wins

The benchmark results reveal a clear division of labor based on the compute API used. In Geekbench OpenCL, the AMD Radeon Pro 5500 XT scores 41,772, which is 11.6% higher than the Tesla M40 24 GB's 37,439. This is a substantial margin, indicating that the RDNA 1.0 architecture handles OpenCL workloads with notably greater efficiency. For users running legacy compute stacks, scientific simulations, or rendering pipelines that rely on OpenCL, the Radeon Pro 5500 XT is the stronger choice. Its 5.398 TFLOPS of FP32 throughput, while lower than the Tesla's 6.832 TFLOPS, appears to be better utilized in this API.

Conversely, the Vulkan test tells the opposite story. The NVIDIA Tesla M40 24 GB scores 45,975, which is 13.9% ahead of the Radeon Pro 5500 XT's 39,601. This is a significant reversal, suggesting that the Maxwell 2.0 architecture's driver stack and hardware scheduling are better optimized for Vulkan's low-level, multi-threaded nature. The Tesla's raw advantage in shading units (3,072 vs 1,536), texture mapping units (192 vs 96), and render output units (96 vs 32) gives it a hardware throughput advantage that manifests strongly in Vulkan. For modern game engines, Vulkan-based compute, or any workload leveraging this API, the Tesla M40 24 GB is the clear winner.

The overall average benchmark score favors the Radeon Pro 5500 XT at 45,384 versus 41,707 for the Tesla, but this aggregate figure masks the API-specific divergence. The Radeon sits at the 84th percentile of all GPUs, while the Tesla is at the 83rd. These near-identical percentile ranks confirm that neither card holds a universal advantage; their strengths are context-dependent.

Architecture Differences

The two GPUs are built on fundamentally different fabrication and design philosophies. The AMD Radeon Pro 5500 XT uses the Navi 14 chip on a 7 nm TSMC process, packing 6,400 million transistors into a 158 mm² die. This yields a transistor density of 40.5 million per square millimeter, showcasing the miniaturization advances of the late 2010s. In contrast, the NVIDIA Tesla M40 24 GB uses the GM200 chip on a 28 nm TSMC process, with 8,000 million transistors spread across a massive 601 mm² die, resulting in a much lower density of 13.3 million per square millimeter.

The RDNA 1.0 architecture in the Radeon Pro 5500 XT features 1,536 shading units, 96 TMUs, and 32 ROPs. Its memory subsystem consists of 8 GB of GDDR6 on a 128-bit bus, delivering 224.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The memory clock runs at 1750 MHz, effective 14 Gbps. The Tesla M40 24 GB, based on Maxwell 2.0, doubles the core counts: 3,072 shading units, 192 TMUs, and 96 ROPs. Its memory is 24 GB of GDDR5 on a 384-bit bus, providing 288.4 GB/s of bandwidth, with a memory clock of 1502 MHz, effective 6 Gbps.

Clock speeds also differ substantially. The Radeon Pro 5500 XT has a base clock of 1187 MHz and a boost clock of 1757 MHz, while the Tesla M40 24 GB runs at 948 MHz base and 1112 MHz boost. Despite the Tesla's higher core count, its lower clocks and older architecture result in a pixel rate of 106.8 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 213.5 GTexel/s, compared to the Radeon's 56.22 GPixel/s and 168.7 GTexel/s. The Tesla's FP32 performance of 6.832 TFLOPS exceeds the Radeon's 5.398 TFLOPS, but the Radeon offers FP16 capability at 10.80 TFLOPS (2:1), a feature entirely absent from the Tesla.

Power and physical characteristics diverge sharply. The Radeon Pro 5500 XT is rated at 125 W TDP and is an integrated graphics package (IGP) with no power connectors and no display outputs. The Tesla M40 24 GB is a dual-slot card with a 250 W TDP, requiring an 8-pin EPS connector and a 600 W suggested PSU. The Tesla measures 267 mm (10.5 inches) in length. The Radeon uses PCIe 4.0 x8, while the Tesla uses PCIe 3.0 x16. Both support DirectX 12 (12_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4.

FAQ

Q: Which card has higher FP32 compute performance?

A: The NVIDIA Tesla M40 24 GB has higher FP32 performance at 6.832 TFLOPS, compared to the AMD Radeon Pro 5500 XT's 5.398 TFLOPS.

Q: Does the AMD Radeon Pro 5500 XT support half-precision floating point?

A: Yes, the Radeon Pro 5500 XT supports FP16 at 10.80 TFLOPS (2:1). The Tesla M40 24 GB has no FP16 capability listed.

Q: What is the memory capacity difference between the two cards?

A: The Tesla M40 24 GB offers 24 GB of GDDR5, which is three times the 8 GB of GDDR6 found on the Radeon Pro 5500 XT.

Q: Which card consumes more power?

A: The Tesla M40 24 GB has a TDP of 250 W, double the 125 W TDP of the Radeon Pro 5500 XT. The Tesla also requires a 600 W suggested PSU versus 300 W for the Radeon.

Q: How do the cards compare in the Vulkan benchmark?

A: The Tesla M40 24 GB scores 45,975 in Geekbench Vulkan, which is 13.9% higher than the Radeon Pro 5500 XT's 39,601.

Q: Are both cards still in production?

A: No, both are end-of-life products. The Radeon Pro 5500 XT was released on 2020-08-03, and the Tesla M40 24 GB was released on 2015-11-09.

Specification Differences

| Specification | AMD Radeon Pro 5500 XT | NVIDIA Tesla M40 24 GB |

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

| Architecture | RDNA 1.0 | Maxwell 2.0 |

| Process Node | 7 nm | 28 nm |

| Transistors | 6,400 million | 8,000 million |

| Die Size | 158 mm² | 601 mm² |

| Transistor Density | 40.5M / mm² | 13.3M / mm² |

| Base Clock | 1187 MHz | 948 MHz |

| Boost Clock | 1757 MHz | 1112 MHz |

| Memory Size | 8 GB | 24 GB |

| Memory Type | GDDR6 | GDDR5 |

| Memory Bus | 128 bit | 384 bit |

| Memory Bandwidth | 224.0 GB/s | 288.4 GB/s |

| Shading Units | 1536 | 3072 |

| TMUs | 96 | 192 |

| ROPs | 32 | 96 |

| Pixel Rate | 56.22 GPixel/s | 106.8 GPixel/s |

| Texture Rate | 168.7 GTexel/s | 213.5 GTexel/s |

| FP32 | 5.398 TFLOPS | 6.832 TFLOPS |

| FP16 | 10.80 TFLOPS (2:1) | null |

| TDP | 125 W | 250 W |

| Slot Width | IGP | Dual-slot |

| Power Connectors | None | 8-pin EPS |

| Suggested PSU | 300 W | 600 W |

| Bus Interface | PCIe 4.0 x8 | PCIe 3.0 x16 |

| Dimensions | null | 267 mm (10.5 inches) |

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The two available head-to-head benchmarks provide a direct comparison. In Geekbench OpenCL, the AMD Radeon Pro 5500 XT wins with a score of 41,772 against the Tesla M40 24 GB's 37,439, a delta of 11.6% in favor of AMD. This is a significant victory, especially considering the Tesla's theoretical FP32 advantage. The Radeon's newer architecture and higher memory clock (1750 MHz vs 1502 MHz) likely contribute to its OpenCL efficiency, despite having only 224.0 GB/s of bandwidth versus 288.4 GB/s.

The Geekbench Vulkan test flips the result decisively. The NVIDIA Tesla M40 24 GB scores 45,975, beating the Radeon Pro 5500 XT's 39,601 by 13.9%. The Tesla's dominance here aligns with its hardware specifications: it has double the shading units, TMUs, and three times the ROPs. Its 6.832 TFLOPS of FP32 and 213.5 GTexel/s texture rate provide substantial raw throughput that Vulkan can exploit effectively. The Radeon's 5.398 TFLOPS and 168.7 GTexel/s, while respectable, simply cannot match these figures in a low-level API.

The average benchmark scores reflect this split. The Radeon Pro 5500 XT averages 45,384, placing it in the 84th percentile, with nearest rivals including the Intel Arc A730M at -0.5% and the NVIDIA RTX 5880 Ada Generation at -1.3%. The Tesla M40 24 GB averages 41,707, in the 83rd percentile, with rivals such as the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 Ti at 1.3% and the AMD Radeon Pro 5300 at 2%. These percentile positions confirm that while the Radeon has a slightly higher average, the Tesla is firmly in the same performance tier.

The Verdict

The choice between these two GPUs is dictated entirely by workload requirements. For OpenCL-based compute tasks, the AMD Radeon Pro 5500 XT is the superior option, delivering 11.6% higher performance while consuming half the power (125 W versus 250 W) and requiring a less demanding 300 W PSU. Its 7 nm process and RDNA 1.0 architecture provide modern features like FP16 support and PCIe 4.0 connectivity, making it a more efficient and future-proof choice for general compute.

For Vulkan-centric workloads, the NVIDIA Tesla M40 24 GB is the clear winner. Its 13.9% higher Vulkan score, combined with triple the memory capacity (24 GB versus 8 GB) and higher raw throughput metrics, makes it ideal for large datasets, machine learning inference, or rendering tasks that leverage Vulkan's capabilities. The Tesla's 288.4 GB/s bandwidth and 6.832 TFLOPS provide a solid foundation for memory-intensive operations.

The data does not support a single overall winner. The Radeon Pro 5500 XT wins the OpenCL test and has a higher average benchmark score (45,384 versus 41,707), but the Tesla M40 24 GB wins the Vulkan test by a larger margin. Users prioritizing OpenCL compatibility and energy efficiency should select the Radeon Pro 5500 XT. Users needing Vulkan performance and extensive memory capacity should select the Tesla M40 24 GB. The final decision hinges on the specific API and memory demands of the target application.