AMD Radeon R9 370X vs NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 Comparison

The AMD Radeon R9 370X and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 represent two very different eras of GPU design, separated by nearly three and a half years of architectural evolution. The data places both cards at the 58th percentile of all GPUs, yet their benchmark scores and specifications tell a story of divergent strengths, with the RTX 2060 holding a commanding lead in every shared test while the R9 370X remains a functional, if dated, entry point.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The head-to-head results are stark, with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 winning both available comparisons decisively. In the Geekbench OpenCL test, the RTX 2060 scores 65,014 against the R9 370X’s 25,893, a delta of -60.2% from the AMD card’s perspective. This means the RTX 2060 is roughly 2.5 times faster in raw compute throughput, reflecting the massive gap in shading units (1,920 vs. 1,280), texture units (120 vs. 80), and clock speeds (1,680 MHz boost vs. 1,030 MHz boost).

The Vulkan test shows an even wider margin. The RTX 2060 posts 65,846 while the R9 370X manages only 9,018, a delta of -86.3%. This is not merely a doubling but a seven-fold difference, indicating that the newer architecture’s asynchronous compute and modern driver optimizations deliver outsized gains in this API. The R9 370X’s Vulkan support is listed as 1.2.170, while the RTX 2060 supports Vulkan 1.4, which may contribute to the disparity in real-world execution efficiency.

It is worth remembering the R9 370X’s average benchmark score of 15,862 across all its tests is actually higher than the RTX 2060’s average of 15,290, despite losing both head-to-head matchups. This paradox arises because the two cards were tested under different benchmark suites: the R9 370X has only three Geekbench entries (OpenCL, Vulkan, and Metal), while the RTX 2060 includes Passmark DirectX 9/10/11/12, G2D, G3D, and compute tests. The RTX 2060’s Passmark DirectX 9 score of 190 and DirectX 11 score of 110 are relatively low in absolute terms, dragging down its average. Consequently, the average scores are not directly comparable across different test distributions, and the head-to-head data remains the most reliable indicator of relative performance.

FAQ

Q: Which card has a higher average benchmark score?

A: The AMD Radeon R9 370X has an average benchmark score of 15,862, which is 3.7% higher than the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060’s 15,290. However, this is skewed by different test sets; in direct comparisons, the RTX 2060 wins both the OpenCL (65,014 vs. 25,893) and Vulkan (65,846 vs. 9,018) tests.

Q: What is the transistor density difference between the two GPUs?

A: The RTX 2060 has a transistor density of 24.3M per mm², nearly double the R9 370X’s 13.2M per mm². This is achieved despite the RTX 2060 using a larger 445 mm² die versus 212 mm², with 10,800 million transistors compared to 2,800 million.

Q: Does the RTX 2060 support hardware ray tracing?

A: Yes. The RTX 2060 includes 30 RT cores and 240 tensor cores, which are absent from the R9 370X. These are dedicated hardware units for ray-traced lighting and AI-driven features, respectively.

Q: What is the memory bandwidth advantage for the RTX 2060?

A: The RTX 2060 offers 336.0 GB/s of bandwidth from its 6 GB GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus. The R9 370X provides 179.2 GB/s from 2 GB GDDR5 on a 256-bit bus, meaning the RTX 2060 has 87.5% more bandwidth.

Q: Which card has a higher pixel fill rate?

A: The RTX 2060 achieves 80.64 GPixel/s, more than double the R9 370X’s 32.96 GPixel/s. This is driven by 48 ROPs at higher clocks compared to 32 ROPs.

Q: Are both cards the same physical size?

A: They are close but not identical. The R9 370X is 221 mm long and 111 mm tall, while the RTX 2060 is 229 mm long, 113 mm tall, and 35 mm wide (the R9 370X’s width is not specified). Both are dual-slot designs.

The Verdict

The data is unambiguous: the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 is the superior performer in every directly comparable benchmark. For users seeking modern API support, higher frame rates in Vulkan and OpenCL workloads, and hardware features like ray tracing, the RTX 2060 is the only rational choice. Its 6 GB VRAM double that of the R9 370X, and its 336 GB/s bandwidth positions it for higher-resolution textures and more demanding scenes.

However, the R9 370X is not without a niche. Its average benchmark score is higher, and it sits at the same 58th percentile, meaning that in older DirectX 11-era titles or lighter workloads, the gap may narrow. The R9 370X also draws 180 W TDP versus the RTX 2060’s 160 W, but both suggest a 450 W power supply. For a user with a legacy system that lacks a 8-pin power connector (the R9 370X uses 2x 6-pin), the older card might be the only drop-in option. Yet, given the RTX 2060’s 2.45x higher FP32 throughput (6.451 TFLOPS vs. 2.637 TFLOPS) and superior texture rate (201.6 GTexel/s vs. 82.40 GTexel/s), there is no scenario from this data where the R9 370X outperforms the RTX 2060 in modern workloads.

Specification Differences

The two cards diverge on nearly every core specification. The RTX 2060 has 1,920 shading units, 120 TMUs, and 48 ROPs, versus the R9 370X’s 1,280, 80, and 32 respectively. Clock speeds differ substantially: the RTX 2060 boosts to 1,680 MHz from a 1,365 MHz base, while the R9 370X boosts to 1,030 MHz from 980 MHz. Memory configurations are entirely different: the RTX 2060 uses 6 GB of GDDR6 at 14 Gbps effective on a 192-bit bus, while the R9 370X uses 2 GB of GDDR5 at 5.6 Gbps effective on a 256-bit bus. This yields bandwidth of 336 GB/s vs. 179.2 GB/s.

The power delivery also differs: the RTX 2060 requires a single 8-pin connector, while the R9 370X needs two 6-pin connectors. Both have a suggested PSU of 450 W, but the RTX 2060 has a lower TDP of 160 W. Display outputs vary as well: the RTX 2060 offers 1x DVI, 1x HDMI 2.0, 2x DisplayPort 1.4a, and 1x USB Type-C, while the R9 370X provides 2x DVI, 1x HDMI 1.4a, and 1x DisplayPort 1.2. The RTX 2060 is also slightly longer (229 mm vs. 221 mm) and taller (113 mm vs. 111 mm), with a specified width of 35 mm.

Architecture Differences

The architectural gulf is vast. The R9 370X is built on GCN 1.0 architecture using the Trinidad chip at 28 nm, fabricated by TSMC. It packs 2,800 million transistors on a 212 mm² die. In contrast, the RTX 2060 uses the Turing architecture with the TU106 chip at 12 nm, also from TSMC, but with 10,800 million transistors on a 445 mm² die. This represents a 3.86x increase in transistor count and a 2.1x increase in die area.

The RTX 2060 introduces hardware features entirely absent from the R9 370X: 30 RT cores for ray tracing and 240 tensor cores for AI acceleration. It also supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), whereas the R9 370X is limited to DirectX 12 (11_1). Both support OpenGL 4.6, but the RTX 2060 has Vulkan 1.4 support versus the R9 370X’s 1.2.170. The RTX 2060 also offers FP16 compute at 12.90 TFLOPS (2:1 ratio), while the R9 370X has no FP16 capability listed. The R9 370X’s GCN 1.0 architecture dates to 2015 with a launch MSRP of 199 USD, while the RTX 2060 launched in 2019 at 349 USD.

Where Each One Wins

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 wins decisively in compute-heavy tasks: OpenCL and Vulkan workloads show 60-86% improvements, making it the clear choice for modern game engines, GPU-accelerated rendering, and any application leveraging DirectX 12 Ultimate features. Its 6 GB VRAM and higher bandwidth also make it more suitable for 1440p gaming or texture-heavy mods. The inclusion of RT and tensor cores means it can handle ray-traced effects and DLSS-style upscaling, which the R9 370X cannot.

The AMD Radeon R9 370X has no benchmark wins in the head-to-head data. Its only advantages are qualitative: a lower launch MSRP (199 USD vs. 349 USD) and compatibility with dual 6-pin power connectors, which may matter for older power supplies. It also has a higher average benchmark score, but as noted, this stems from a different test suite. For a user exclusively running DirectX 9 or DirectX 11 titles from the mid-2010s, the R9 370X might perform adequately, but the data shows no scenario where it beats the RTX 2060 in any shared test. The RTX 2060 is the winner across compute, memory, and feature sets.