AMD Radeon R9 M295X vs NVIDIA TITAN RTX Comparison

The Verdict

The NVIDIA TITAN RTX and AMD Radeon R9 M295X occupy completely different tiers of the hardware spectrum, and the benchmark data reflects that divide without ambiguity. The TITAN RTX wins both shared head-to-head tests, with a 533.7% advantage in Geekbench OpenCL and a 367.7% advantage in Geekbench Vulkan. The TITAN RTX should be the choice for anyone processing heavy compute workloads, running modern DirectX 12 Ultimate titles, or working with large datasets, given its 24 GB memory allocation and 16.31 TFLOPS FP32 throughput. The Radeon R9 M295X, meanwhile, is a legacy mobile module from 2014, suited only for systems that require its specific MXM-B form factor or for users running older software that predates Turing-era feature sets. Its 74th percentile ranking among all GPUs is respectable for its era, but the TITAN RTX sits at the 76th percentile with a far higher absolute average score of 31,676 versus 28,580. The data is clear: the TITAN RTX is the compute powerhouse, while the R9 M295X is a historical footnote for portable workstation upgrades.

Architecture Differences

The two GPUs are separated by four years of silicon evolution, and the architectural gap is stark. The TITAN RTX uses the TU102 chip on a 12 nm TSMC process, packing 18,600 million transistors into a 754 mm² die, yielding a transistor density of 24.7 million per square millimeter. The R9 M295X uses the Amethyst chip on a 28 nm TSMC process, with 5,000 million transistors on a 366 mm² die, giving a density of 13.7 million per square millimeter. That process shrink alone explains much of the performance delta.

Core configurations diverge heavily. The TITAN RTX features 4,608 shading units, 288 texture mapping units, and 96 render output units. It also carries 72 ray tracing cores and 576 tensor cores, features entirely absent from the R9 M295X, which has 2,048 shading units, 128 TMUs, and 32 ROPs. The TITAN RTX supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), while the R9 M295X tops out at DirectX 12 (12_0). Vulkan support also differs: the TITAN RTX lists Vulkan 1.4, whereas the R9 M295X lists Vulkan 1.2.170. Both support OpenGL 4.6.

Memory subsystems tell a similar story. The TITAN RTX has 24 GB of GDDR6 on a 384-bit bus, delivering 672.0 GB/s of bandwidth at 14 Gbps effective. The R9 M295X has 4 GB of GDDR5 on a 256-bit bus, managing 160.0 GB/s at 5 Gbps effective. The TITAN RTX also has a much higher pixel rate of 169.9 GPixel/s versus 23.14 GPixel/s, and a texture rate of 509.8 GTexel/s versus 92.54 GTexel/s. FP16 compute is a differentiator too: the TITAN RTX hits 32.62 TFLOPS with a 2:1 ratio, while the R9 M295X stays at 2.961 TFLOPS with a 1:1 ratio, meaning it offers no FP16 advantage over FP32.

Physical design and power profiles also differ. The TITAN RTX is a dual-slot card requiring 2x 8-pin power connectors and a 600 W suggested PSU, with a TDP of 280 W. The R9 M295X is an MXM module with no power connectors, a TDP of 250 W, and display outputs described as portable device dependent. The TITAN RTX offers 1x HDMI 2.0, 3x DisplayPort 1.4a, and 1x USB Type-C outputs. The R9 M295X has no fixed display output array.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The shared test suite between these two GPUs is limited to two Geekbench workloads, but the results are decisive. In Geekbench OpenCL, the TITAN RTX scores 144,858 against the R9 M295X's 22,858, a delta of 533.7%. This is not a marginal win; it is a six-fold gap that reflects the combined effect of more shading units, higher clocks, and vastly superior memory bandwidth. The TITAN RTX's base clock of 1350 MHz and boost clock of 1770 MHz, combined with its 672.0 GB/s bandwidth, simply overwhelm the R9 M295X, which has no listed base or boost clocks but operates with 160.0 GB/s bandwidth.

In Geekbench Vulkan, the TITAN RTX scores 136,073 against 29,091, a delta of 367.7%. The Vulkan gap is narrower than OpenCL but still enormous. The TITAN RTX's Vulkan 1.4 support and modern driver stack likely contribute to this result, as does the raw compute throughput. The R9 M295X's Vulkan 1.2.170 support is older and less optimized for current workloads.

The TITAN RTX also holds broader benchmark coverage in the database, with scores across 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 (3,794), Passmark DirectX 10 (147), DirectX 11 (189), DirectX 12 (88), DirectX 9 (223), G2D (860), G3D (20,491), and GPU compute (10,034). The R9 M295X has only Geekbench Metal (33,790), OpenCL, and Vulkan scores recorded. The TITAN RTX's average benchmark score across all recorded tests is 31,676, while the R9 M295X averages 28,580. Both cards sit near the 74 to 76 percentile range among all GPUs, but the TITAN RTX's higher absolute scores matter more for demanding applications.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has more memory and bandwidth?

A: The NVIDIA TITAN RTX has 24 GB of GDDR6 on a 384-bit bus with 672.0 GB/s bandwidth. The AMD Radeon R9 M295X has 4 GB of GDDR5 on a 256-bit bus with 160.0 GB/s bandwidth.

Q: What is the transistor count difference?

A: The TITAN RTX contains 18,600 million transistors, while the R9 M295X contains 5,000 million. The TITAN RTX also uses a 12 nm process versus the R9 M295X's 28 nm process.

Q: Does the TITAN RTX support ray tracing?

A: Yes, the TITAN RTX has 72 dedicated ray tracing cores and 576 tensor cores. The R9 M295X has no ray tracing or tensor cores listed in the database.

Q: What is the FP32 compute throughput of each card?

A: The TITAN RTX delivers 16.31 TFLOPS FP32, while the R9 M295X delivers 2.961 TFLOPS FP32. The TITAN RTX also achieves 32.62 TFLOPS FP16 with a 2:1 ratio; the R9 M295X stays at 2.961 TFLOPS FP16 with a 1:1 ratio.

Q: Which card has a higher average benchmark score?

A: The TITAN RTX has an average benchmark score of 31,676, and the R9 M295X has an average score of 28,580. The TITAN RTX ranks in the 76th percentile of all GPUs; the R9 M295X ranks in the 74th percentile.

Q: What are the power requirements?

A: The TITAN RTX has a 280 W TDP, requires 2x 8-pin power connectors, and suggests a 600 W PSU. The R9 M295X has a 250 W TDP, requires no power connectors, and has no suggested PSU listed.

Where Each One Wins

The TITAN RTX wins in every measurable category where both cards have data. Its OpenCL score of 144,858 crushes the R9 M295X's 22,858, making it the clear choice for compute-heavy workloads like machine learning inference, rendering, or scientific simulation. Its Vulkan score of 136,073 versus 29,091 cements its dominance in modern cross-platform graphics APIs. The 24 GB memory pool is double the capacity of most professional cards from its era and allows for massive dataset residency without spilling to system RAM. The 576 tensor cores give it a hardware acceleration path for AI workloads that the R9 M295X simply cannot match, as it has no tensor cores at all.

The R9 M295X wins only in niches defined by hardware constraints rather than performance. Its MXM-B (3.0) form factor means it can slot into portable workstations and all-in-one systems where the TITAN RTX's dual-slot, 267 mm length, 116 mm height, and 35 mm width simply cannot fit. Its lack of external power connectors makes it usable in systems without supplementary GPU power headers, where the TITAN RTX's 2x 8-pin requirement would be a non-starter. The R9 M295X also has a lower TDP of 250 W versus 280 W, which matters in thermally constrained chassis. Its 2014 release date and GCN 3.0 architecture mean it supports older DirectX 12 (12_0) titles natively without driver quirks that may affect legacy software on newer architectures, though the TITAN RTX's DirectX 12 Ultimate support covers the same API level and extends beyond it.

The Geekbench Metal score of 33,790 for the R9 M295X is the only benchmark in the database where the TITAN RTX has no recorded result, so it is the sole Apple ecosystem data point for the AMD card. The TITAN RTX has no Metal benchmark listed, so for macOS-specific compute comparisons, the R9 M295X is the only card with data. However, this is a narrow distinction, as the TITAN RTX's OpenCL and Vulkan wins dwarf the R9 M295X's Metal score in absolute terms. The database shows a clear split: the TITAN RTX is for users who need maximum compute and graphics throughput in a desktop chassis, while the R9 M295X is for those repairing or upgrading legacy portable systems with MXM slots.