AMD Radeon Pro 5600M vs NVIDIA Tesla K80 Comparison

FAQ

Q: How do the two GPUs compare in raw compute performance?

A: The AMD Radeon Pro 5600M delivers 5.857 TFLOPS of FP32 compute, while the NVIDIA Tesla K80 delivers 4.113 TFLOPS. The AMD part also offers FP16 capability at 11.71 TFLOPS (2:1), whereas the Tesla K80 has no recorded FP16 figure.

Q: Which GPU has higher memory bandwidth?

A: The AMD Radeon Pro 5600M uses 8 GB of HBM2 memory on a 2048-bit bus, yielding 394.2 GB/s of bandwidth. The NVIDIA Tesla K80 uses 12 GB of GDDR5 on a 384-bit bus, providing 240.6 GB/s. The AMD part holds a 153.6 GB/s advantage in raw bandwidth.

Q: What are the power requirements for each card?

A: The NVIDIA Tesla K80 has a TDP of 300 W, requires a dual-slot cooler, uses a single 8-pin power connector, and suggests a 700 W power supply. The AMD Radeon Pro 5600M has a 50 W TDP, is classified as an IGP, and requires no power connectors or suggested PSU.

Q: How do their API support levels differ?

A: The Tesla K80 supports DirectX 12 (11_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.2.175. The Radeon Pro 5600M supports DirectX 12 (12_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.3. The AMD part has a newer DirectX feature level and a newer Vulkan revision.

Q: What is the average benchmark score for each GPU?

A: The NVIDIA Tesla K80 has an average benchmark score of 18866, placing it at the 63rd percentile of all GPUs. The AMD Radeon Pro 5600M has an average benchmark score of 16351, placing it at the 59th percentile.

Q: Which GPU is newer and on what process node?

A: The AMD Radeon Pro 5600M was released on 2020-06-14 and uses a 7 nm process. The NVIDIA Tesla K80 was released on 2014-11-16 and uses a 28 nm process. Both are listed as end-of-life.

The Verdict

The recorded data separates these two GPUs by workload class rather than by simple speed. The AMD Radeon Pro 5600M wins both head-to-head benchmark comparisons decisively, but the NVIDIA Tesla K80 holds a higher average benchmark score overall.

For compute-oriented tasks in OpenCL and Vulkan, the data points directly to the AMD Radeon Pro 5600M. Its OpenCL score of 47783 is roughly 2.6 times the Tesla K80's 18620, and its Vulkan score of 46425 is about 2.4 times the Tesla K80's 19111. Any workload that relies on those APIs will favor the AMD part.

For users who need the higher percentile ranking, the NVIDIA Tesla K80 sits at the 63rd percentile versus the AMD part's 59th. The Tesla K80 also benefits from a larger 12 GB memory pool, which matters when dataset size exceeds the AMD's 8 GB capacity. The K80's nearest rivals include the GeForce RTX 2070 at a 0.4% delta and the Quadro K6000 at a -0.9% delta, indicating its average score sits squarely in that performance band.

The AMD Radeon Pro 5600M's nearest rivals include the Radeon RX 5700 XT at a -0.1% delta and the RTX PRO 6000 Blackwell at a -0.3% delta. Its lower average score is offset by its far higher peak performance in the recorded OpenCL and Vulkan tests, plus its significantly lower power draw.

The verdict from the database: the Tesla K80 suits environments where memory capacity and consistent mid-range scoring matter more than peak API performance. The Radeon Pro 5600M suits environments where OpenCL and Vulkan throughput are the primary metrics and where power constraints rule out a 300 W card.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The head-to-head section contains exactly two benchmark comparisons, and the AMD Radeon Pro 5600M wins both.

In the Geekbench OpenCL test, the AMD part scores 47783 against the Tesla K80's 18620. The delta is -61% from the AMD side, meaning the Tesla K80 trails by 61% of the AMD score. This is the largest recorded gap between the two cards. The AMD part's shading units (2560) outnumber the Tesla K80's 2496, and its FP32 throughput is higher at 5.857 versus 4.113 TFLOPS. Those factors align with the OpenCL result.

In the Geekbench Vulkan test, the AMD part scores 46425 against the Tesla K80's 19111. The delta is -58.8% from the AMD side. The Tesla K80's Vulkan support is version 1.2.175, while the AMD part supports Vulkan 1.3, which may contribute to the gap. The AMD part's texture rate of 183.0 GTexel/s also exceeds the Tesla K80's 171.4 GTexel/s, a smaller margin than the benchmark delta suggests.

The Tesla K80 records zero wins in the head-to-head set. Its higher average benchmark score (18866 versus 16351) comes from a different benchmark mix. The Tesla K80 only has two recorded benchmarks (OpenCL and Vulkan), while the AMD part has ten recorded benchmarks including Metal, several Passmark DX tests, and Passmark compute tests. The AMD part's lower average score is pulled down by its Passmark DirectX results, which range from 39 to 118, far below its OpenCL and Vulkan scores.

Specification Differences

The two GPUs differ across nearly every core specification category.

The NVIDIA Tesla K80 uses a GK210 chip on a 28 nm process with 7,100 million transistors on a 561 mm² die. The AMD Radeon Pro 5600M uses a Navi 12 chip on a 7 nm process; its transistor count and die size are not recorded. The AMD part's transistor density is not recorded either, while the Tesla K80 lists 12.7M transistors per mm².

Clock speeds differ substantially. The Tesla K80 runs at a 562 MHz base and 824 MHz boost, with memory at 1253 MHz (5 Gbps effective). The Radeon Pro 5600M runs at an 822 MHz base and 1144 MHz boost, with memory at 770 MHz (1540 Mbps effective). The AMD part has higher core clocks but lower memory clock.

Memory configuration diverges completely. The Tesla K80 has 12 GB of GDDR5 on a 384-bit bus with 240.6 GB/s bandwidth. The Radeon Pro 5600M has 8 GB of HBM2 on a 2048-bit bus with 394.2 GB/s bandwidth. The AMD part wins on bandwidth, the Tesla K80 wins on capacity.

Core counts: the Tesla K80 has 2496 shading units, 208 TMUs, and 48 ROPs. The Radeon Pro 5600M has 2560 shading units, 160 TMUs, and 64 ROPs. The AMD part has more shading units and ROPs, but fewer TMUs.

Rates: the Tesla K80 has a 42.85 GPixel/s pixel rate and 171.4 GTexel/s texture rate. The Radeon Pro 5600M has a 73.22 GPixel/s pixel rate and 183.0 GTexel/s texture rate. The AMD part leads in both.

Physical and power specs: the Tesla K80 is dual-slot, 267 mm long, uses a single 8-pin connector, and has a 300 W TDP with a 700 W suggested PSU. The Radeon Pro 5600M is an IGP with no slot width, no listed dimensions, no power connectors, no suggested PSU, and a 50 W TDP. The Tesla K80 has no display outputs; the AMD part's outputs are listed as portable device dependent.

Bus interface: the Tesla K80 uses PCIe 3.0 x16, the Radeon Pro 5600M uses PCIe 4.0 x16.

Architecture Differences

The architectural split is between NVIDIA's Kepler 2.0 and AMD's RDNA 1.0.

The Tesla K80 is built on Kepler 2.0, belongs to the Tesla Kepler (Kxx) generation, and uses the GK210 chip. It is fabricated by TSMC on a 28 nm process with 7,100 million transistors. The architecture supports DirectX 12 (11_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.2.175. It has no FP16 capability recorded and no ray tracing or tensor cores.

The Radeon Pro 5600M uses RDNA 1.0, belongs to the Radeon Pro Mac (Navi Mobile) generation, and uses the Navi 12 chip. It is also fabricated by TSMC but on a 7 nm process. The architecture supports DirectX 12 (12_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.3. It records FP16 at 11.71 TFLOPS (2:1) and also lacks ray tracing and tensor cores.

The process node difference is significant: 28 nm versus 7 nm. This explains the power envelope gap. The Tesla K80 consumes 300 W while the Radeon Pro 5600M consumes 50 W, a sixfold difference. The AMD part achieves higher FP32 throughput (5.857 versus 4.113 TFLOPS) at one-sixth the power draw.

The memory architecture also differs at a fundamental level. The Tesla K80 uses GDDR5 on a 384-bit bus; the Radeon Pro 5600M uses HBM2 on a 2048-bit bus. The HBM2 implementation gives the AMD part a 153.6 GB/s bandwidth advantage despite having 4 GB less capacity.

The Tesla K80 predates the Radeon Pro 5600M by roughly 5.5 years based on release dates. The Tesla K80's predecessor is Tesla Fermi and its successor is Tesla Maxwell; the Radeon Pro 5600M lists no predecessor or successor.

Where Each One Wins

The AMD Radeon Pro 5600M wins on every recorded head-to-head benchmark. It also wins on FP32 throughput, pixel rate, texture rate, memory bandwidth, process node efficiency, and power consumption.

The NVIDIA Tesla K80 wins on memory capacity (12 GB versus 8 GB), average benchmark score (18866 versus 16351), and percentile ranking (63rd versus 59th). It also has more TMUs (208 versus 160) and a wider memory bus in terms of GDDR5 layout, though the HBM2 bus on the AMD part is wider at 2048 bits.

For OpenCL-heavy workloads, the Radeon Pro 5600M is the clear choice. Its 47783 OpenCL score versus 18620 for the Tesla K80 is the largest single advantage in the data. For Vulkan workloads, the AMD part again leads with 46425 versus 19111.

For scenarios where memory capacity is the bottleneck, the Tesla K80's 12 GB pool provides 50% more storage than the AMD part's 8 GB. The database does not record a benchmark for memory-bound workloads, so this advantage is structural rather than measured.

For power-constrained environments, the Radeon Pro 5600M's 50 W TDP versus the Tesla K80's 300 W TDP is a decisive factor. The AMD part also requires no power connectors and no suggested PSU, fitting into mobile or compact platforms. The Tesla K80 requires a dual-slot footprint, a single 8-pin connector, and a 700 W power supply recommendation.

For DirectX workloads, the AMD part supports DirectX 12 (12_1) versus the Tesla K80's DirectX 12 (11_1). The AMD part's Passmark DirectX scores are low (62, 59, 39, 118 for DX10, DX11, DX12, and DX9 respectively), but the Tesla K80 has no recorded DirectX benchmarks at all.

The data supports a functional split: the Radeon Pro 5600M for compute throughput in OpenCL and Vulkan at minimal power, the Tesla K80 for larger memory capacity and a higher percentile standing in the overall GPU distribution.