AMD Radeon RX 550X vs NVIDIA GeForce GTX TITAN BLACK Comparison

Where Each One Wins

The recorded data draws a remarkably clear line between these two GPUs: the NVIDIA GeForce GTX TITAN BLACK wins every head-to-head benchmark in the database, while the AMD Radeon RX 550X does not record a single victory. This is not a close contest by any measurement available. In Geekbench OpenCL, the TITAN BLACK scores 27,218 against the RX 550X's 9,662, a difference of 64.5 percent. In Geekbench Vulkan, the gap is nearly as wide: 29,561 versus 11,299, a 61.8 percent deficit for the AMD card. The data shows no workload category, compute API, or test scenario where the RX 550X takes the lead.

That said, the two cards occupy entirely different positions in the broader GPU landscape. The RX 550X sits at the 49th percentile among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 10,481. Its nearest rivals in the database include the AMD Radeon RX 6500M (10,362, 1.2 percent slower), the NVIDIA Tesla C2075 (10,400, 0.8 percent slower), the AMD Radeon R9 M275X (10,582, 1 percent faster), and the AMD Radeon RX 6600S (10,629, 1.4 percent faster). This clustering suggests the RX 550X is a mid-pack performer, trading places with other cards within a narrow band of roughly 3 percent. It is not an outlier in either direction.

The TITAN BLACK, despite winning decisively in the direct comparison, ranks at the 46th percentile overall, slightly below the RX 550X. Its average benchmark score of 9,474 is actually lower than the RX 550X's 10,481, which seems counterintuitive given the head-to-head results. The explanation lies in the benchmark mix. The TITAN BLACK's average includes scores from PassMark DirectX 9 (133), DirectX 10 (47), DirectX 11 (73), DirectX 12 (34), G2D (595), G3D (9,184), and GPU Compute (3,726). Several of these legacy DirectX scores are very low, pulling the average down even though its Geekbench compute results are far above the RX 550X's. The RX 550X, by contrast, only has Geekbench OpenCL and Vulkan scores recorded, both of which are respectable for its class. The percentile ranking, then, reflects the different test suites each card has been put through, not a straightforward performance hierarchy.

Another way to read the data: the TITAN BLACK's nearest rivals, the GeForce GTX 760 (9,458, 0.2 percent slower), AMD Radeon R7 M380 (9,313, 1.7 percent slower), Quadro K5000 (9,637, 1.7 percent faster), and GTX 960M (9,645, 1.8 percent faster), all fall within a tight 3.5 percent range. This reinforces that the TITAN BLACK's average is depressed by its older DirectX results, not by a lack of raw compute capability. The RX 550X, meanwhile, keeps company with newer mobile and workstation parts, all within a similarly narrow band. In terms of where each card wins, the answer from the database is unambiguous: the TITAN BLACK wins every recorded compute benchmark, while the RX 550X wins only in the sense of having a higher overall percentile placement due to its more modern benchmark profile.

The Verdict

The data points to a straightforward recommendation for buyers who prioritize compute performance: the NVIDIA GeForce GTX TITAN BLACK is the stronger card in every direct benchmark recorded. Its Geekbench OpenCL score of 27,218 is nearly three times the RX 550X's 9,662, and its Vulkan score of 29,561 is more than 2.6 times the RX 550X's 11,299. Anyone whose workload depends on OpenCL or Vulkan compute should choose the TITAN BLACK without hesitation, provided the system can accommodate its 250 W TDP and 600 W suggested power supply, along with its dual-slot, 267 mm physical footprint.

The RX 550X, however, is not without a constituency. Its 50 W TDP, lack of external power connectors, and 145 mm length make it a far simpler drop-in for small form factor systems or legacy power supplies. The database shows it at the 49th percentile overall, slightly above the TITAN BLACK's 46th percentile, and its average score of 10,481 exceeds the TITAN BLACK's 9,474. For users who only need modest OpenCL or Vulkan performance in a compact, low-power package, the RX 550X is the more sensible choice. It also supports DirectX 12 (12_0), Vulkan 1.3, and HDMI 2.0b and DisplayPort 1.4a outputs, which are newer standards than the TITAN BLACK's DirectX 12 (11_1), Vulkan 1.2.175, HDMI 1.4a, and DisplayPort 1.2.

The verdict from the measurements is clear: raw compute goes to the TITAN BLACK; efficiency, modern connectivity, and overall percentile placement go to the RX 550X. The TITAN BLACK's launch MSRP was 999 USD, a figure worth noting for historical context, but the database does not record a launch price for the RX 550X.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The two recorded head-to-head tests both favor the NVIDIA card by a wide margin. In Geekbench OpenCL, the TITAN BLACK scores 27,218 against the RX 550X's 9,662, a 64.5 percent advantage. This is the larger of the two gaps. In Geekbench Vulkan, the TITAN BLACK scores 29,561 against the RX 550X's 11,299, a 61.8 percent lead. Both deltas are massive, and neither leaves room for interpretation about which card has more compute throughput.

The OpenCL result is particularly telling because it is the only test both cards share that also appears in their individual benchmark lists. The RX 550X's OpenCL score of 9,662 is close to its average of 10,481, suggesting this is a representative result for the card. The TITAN BLACK's OpenCL score of 27,218, however, is far above its average of 9,474, which as noted is dragged down by PassMark DirectX scores. This means the OpenCL comparison captures the TITAN BLACK at its best while the RX 550X is performing near its typical level. The Vulkan test tells a similar story: the RX 550X's 11,299 is again near its average, while the TITAN BLACK's 29,561 is near its Geekbench ceiling.

The PassMark results for the TITAN BLACK, which have no counterpart in the RX 550X's recorded data, add a layer of nuance. Its DirectX 9 score of 133 and DirectX 11 score of 73 are high relative to its DirectX 10 (47) and DirectX 12 (34) results, but all of these are small numbers compared to its compute scores. The G3D score of 9,184 and GPU Compute score of 3,726 show that the card still has substantial graphics and compute muscle, even if its legacy API performance varies. The RX 550X has no PassMark results in the database, so no direct comparison is possible in those tests.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has the higher Geekbench OpenCL score?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce GTX TITAN BLACK scores 27,218, which is 64.5 percent higher than the AMD Radeon RX 550X's 9,662.

Q: Is the RX 550X competitive in Vulkan performance?

A: No. The RX 550X scores 11,299 in Geekbench Vulkan, while the TITAN BLACK scores 29,561, a 61.8 percent gap in favor of NVIDIA.

Q: Why does the RX 550X have a higher percentile ranking than the TITAN BLACK?

A: The RX 550X sits at the 49th percentile with an average score of 10,481, while the TITAN BLACK is at the 46th percentile with an average of 9,474. The TITAN BLACK's average is lowered by its PassMark DirectX scores (34 to 133), which are much lower than its Geekbench compute results.

Q: What are the nearest rivals to the RX 550X in the database?

A: The closest matches are the AMD Radeon RX 6500M (10,362, 1.2 percent slower), NVIDIA Tesla C2075 (10,400, 0.8 percent slower), AMD Radeon R9 M275X (10,582, 1 percent faster), and AMD Radeon RX 6600S (10,629, 1.4 percent faster).

Q: What are the nearest rivals to the TITAN BLACK?

A: The closest entries are the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 760 (9,458, 0.2 percent slower), AMD Radeon R7 M380 (9,313, 1.7 percent slower), NVIDIA Quadro K5000 (9,637, 1.7 percent faster), and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 960M (9,645, 1.8 percent faster).

Q: Does the RX 550X win any recorded benchmark against the TITAN BLACK?

A: No. The head-to-head data shows two tests, both won by the TITAN BLACK. The RX 550X records zero wins.

Architecture Differences

The two GPUs come from different architectural generations and are built on different process nodes. The AMD Radeon RX 550X uses the Lexa chip based on GCN 4.0 architecture, manufactured by GlobalFoundries on a 14 nm process. It belongs to the Polaris (RX 500X) generation. The NVIDIA GeForce GTX TITAN BLACK uses the GK110B chip based on Kepler architecture, manufactured by TSMC on a 28 nm process, and belongs to the GeForce 700 generation. The transistor counts reflect the process gap: the RX 550X packs 2,200 million transistors on a 103 mm² die, yielding a density of 21.4 million transistors per square millimeter. The TITAN BLACK has 7,080 million transistors on a 561 mm² die, a density of 12.6 million per square millimeter. The RX 550X is significantly more dense per area, a direct result of the newer 14 nm node.

The compute resources differ enormously. The RX 550X has 512 shading units, 32 texture mapping units, and 16 raster operations pipelines. The TITAN BLACK has 2,880 shading units, 240 TMUs, and 48 ROPs. These are not close numbers; the TITAN BLACK has more than five times the shading units and more than seven times the TMUs. Neither card has ray tracing cores or tensor cores. The pixel rate for the RX 550X is 18.93 GPixel/s, while the TITAN BLACK reaches 58.80 GPixel/s. Texture rates are 37.86 GTexel/s versus 235.2 GTexel/s. FP32 throughput is 1,211.4 GFLOPS for the AMD card and 5.645 TFLOPS for the NVIDIA card. The RX 550X supports FP16 at 1,211.4 GFLOPS (1:1), while the TITAN BLACK has no recorded FP16 capability.

Memory architecture also diverges. The RX 550X has 4 GB of GDDR5 on a 128-bit bus, providing 96.00 GB/s of bandwidth. The TITAN BLACK has 6 GB of GDDR5 on a 384-bit bus, providing 336.0 GB/s, more than three times the bandwidth. Both use GDDR5, but the bus width and capacity favor NVIDIA. The RX 550X runs its memory at 1500 MHz (6 Gbps effective), while the TITAN BLACK runs at 1750 MHz (7 Gbps effective). Clock speeds for the cores are lower on the TITAN BLACK (889 MHz base, 980 MHz boost) than the RX 550X (1100 MHz base, 1183 MHz boost), but the massive difference in shading units and TMUs more than compensates.

API support is another point of divergence. The RX 550X supports DirectX 12 (12_0), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.3. The TITAN BLACK supports DirectX 12 (11_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.2.175. Both support OpenGL 4.6, but the RX 550X has a newer DirectX feature level and a newer Vulkan version. Display outputs also differ: the RX 550X offers 1x DVI, 1x HDMI 2.0b, and 1x DisplayPort 1.4a, while the TITAN BLACK offers 2x DVI, 1x HDMI 1.4a, and 1x DisplayPort 1.2. The RX 550X's outputs support newer standards, which matters for modern monitors. The bus interface differs as well: the RX 550X uses PCIe 3.0 x8, while the TITAN BLACK uses PCIe 3.0 x16.

The production status for both is end-of-life, and both have defined predecessors and successors. The RX 550X lists Polaris as its predecessor and Vega as its successor. The TITAN BLACK lists GeForce 600 as its predecessor and GeForce 900 as its successor. These lineage notes place the cards in their respective product families.

Specification Differences

The database records several specification differences that are worth listing directly. The process nodes differ: 14 nm for the RX 550X versus 28 nm for the TITAN BLACK. The foundries differ: GlobalFoundries for AMD, TSMC for NVIDIA. Transistor counts differ: 2,200 million versus 7,080 million. Die sizes differ: 103 mm² versus 561 mm². Transistor density differs: 21.4 million per mm² versus 12.6 million per mm². Base clocks differ: 1100 MHz versus 889 MHz. Boost clocks differ: 1183 MHz versus 980 MHz. Memory clocks differ: 1500 MHz (6 Gbps effective) versus 1750 MHz (7 Gbps effective). Memory size differs: 4 GB versus 6 GB. Memory bus width differs: 128-bit versus 384-bit. Memory bandwidth differs: 96.00 GB/s versus 336.0 GB/s. Shading units differ: 512 versus 2,880. TMUs differ: 32 versus 240. ROPs differ: 16 versus 48. Pixel rates differ: 18.93 GPixel/s versus 58.80 GPixel/s. Texture rates differ: 37.86 GTexel/s versus 235.2 GTexel/s. FP32 differs: 1,211.4 GFLOPS versus 5.645 TFLOPS. FP16 is 1,211.4 GFLOPS (1:1) for the RX 550X, with no recorded value for the TITAN BLACK. TDP differs: 50 W versus 250 W. Power connectors differ: none for the RX 550X, 1x 6-pin plus 1x 8-pin for the TITAN BLACK. Suggested PSU differs: 250 W versus 600 W. Bus interface differs: PCIe 3.0 x8 versus PCIe 3.0 x16. Display outputs differ: 1x DVI, 1x HDMI 2.0b, 1x DisplayPort 1.4a versus 2x DVI, 1x HDMI 1.4a, 1x DisplayPort 1.2. DirectX support differs: 12 (12_0) versus 12 (11_1). Vulkan support differs: 1.3 versus 1.2.175. Dimensions differ: the RX 550X is 145 mm (5.7 inches) long, while the TITAN BLACK is 267 mm (10.5 inches) long, 111 mm (4.4 inches) high, and 38 mm (1.5 inches) wide. Release dates differ: 2018-12-15 for the RX 550X, 2014-02-17 for the TITAN BLACK. The TITAN BLACK has a recorded launch MSRP of 999 USD; the RX 550X has none.