AMD Radeon RX 560X vs NVIDIA Tesla K40c Comparison

The AMD Radeon RX 560X and NVIDIA Tesla K40c are two very different GPUs aimed at different tasks, yet they land close in the aggregated benchmark data. The RX 560X is a small, efficient Polaris part for consumer systems, while the Tesla K40c is a large Kepler compute card from NVIDIA’s enterprise line. Their average benchmark scores are separated by less than 7%, making the choice less about raw speed and more about context and workload.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The only direct benchmark comparison available is Geekbench OpenCL, where the Tesla K40c edges out the RX 560X. The K40c scores 17468, while the RX 560X scores 17020, giving the Tesla a 2.6% lead (deltaPct of -2.6% for the AMD card). This is a narrow margin, well within the noise of typical synthetic testing, but it does establish a baseline: in raw compute throughput, the older Tesla holds a slight advantage.

Look at the broader context, though. The RX 560X’s average benchmark score across all tests is 18626, which is higher than its OpenCL result alone. This suggests that the RX 560X performs better in other workloads (like Vulkan, where it scores 20231) than it does in OpenCL. The Tesla K40c has no such additional data; its average score is identical to its OpenCL score at 17468. So while the head-to-head OpenCL result shows a Tesla win, the RX 560X’s overall average is 6.6% higher than the K40c’s (18626 vs 17468). That gap is far more meaningful than the 2.6% delta in the single shared test.

The nearest rivals for each card put this in perspective. The RX 560X sits at the 62nd percentile of all GPUs, with its closest competitors being the AMD Radeon Pro 5700 XT (average score 18685, deltaPct -0.3%), the AMD FirePro D500 (18533, deltaPct 0.5%), and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 (18789, deltaPct -0.9%). The Tesla K40c is at the 61st percentile, with nearest rivals including the AMD Radeon Pro 460 (17509, deltaPct -0.2%) and the AMD Radeon Pro 560 (17551, deltaPct -0.5%). In other words, the RX 560X is competing with much more modern and powerful cards (like the RTX 2070), while the K40c is hanging around with entry-level mobile Pro parts. The data shows that the RX 560X is the stronger overall performer despite losing the single direct test.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has the higher average benchmark score?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 560X has an average benchmark score of 18626, compared to the NVIDIA Tesla K40c’s average of 17468. That puts the RX 560X about 6.6% ahead in aggregate performance.

Q: Does the Tesla K40c ever beat the RX 560X?

A: Yes, in the Geekbench OpenCL test, the Tesla K40c scores 17468 against the RX 560X’s 17020, a 2.6% advantage. This is the only direct head-to-head result available, and it favors the Tesla.

Q: What explains the difference in average scores if the Tesla wins the direct test?

A: The RX 560X has additional benchmark results beyond OpenCL, including a Geekbench Vulkan score of 20231. That Vulkan result pulls its average up significantly. The Tesla K40c only has the one OpenCL score, so its average is lower.

Q: How do these cards compare to their nearest rivals?

A: The RX 560X is within 0.9% of the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 and 0.3% of the AMD Radeon Pro 5700 XT, showing it trades blows with much newer hardware. The Tesla K40c sits within 1% of the AMD Radeon Pro 460 and Pro 560, which are lower-tier mobile chips.

Q: What is the percentile ranking for each card?

A: The RX 560X is at the 62nd percentile of all GPUs, while the Tesla K40c is at the 61st percentile. They are essentially in the same tier, but the RX 560X is marginally ahead.

Q: Which card has more memory and bandwidth?

A: The Tesla K40c has 12 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 384-bit bus, providing 288.4 GB/s of bandwidth. The RX 560X has 4 GB of GDDR5 on a 128-bit bus, with 112.0 GB/s. The Tesla has triple the memory capacity and over 2.5 times the bandwidth.

Where Each One Wins

The RX 560X wins in overall synthetic performance. Its average benchmark score of 18626 exceeds the Tesla’s 17468 by a clear margin. It also has a strong Vulkan showing at 20231, which indicates it handles modern graphics APIs well. For gaming or consumer workloads that leverage Vulkan or DirectX 12 (the RX 560X supports DirectX 12_0, while the Tesla only supports 11_0), the RX 560X is the better choice. Its smaller footprint (170 mm length vs 267 mm) and lack of power connectors make it far easier to slot into a standard desktop build.

The Tesla K40c wins in memory capacity and bandwidth. With 12 GB of VRAM and 288.4 GB/s of bandwidth, it can hold larger datasets in memory, which matters for compute tasks like machine learning inference or scientific simulations that exceed 4 GB. Its raw FP32 throughput is also higher at 5.046 TFLOPS versus the RX 560X’s 2.611 TFLOPS, and it has more shading units (2880 vs 1024), TMUs (240 vs 64), and ROPs (48 vs 16). In pure compute density, the Tesla is the stronger card, which is why it wins the OpenCL test despite its age.

Specification Differences

The two cards differ on nearly every major specification. The RX 560X is built on a 14 nm process at GlobalFoundries, with 3,000 million transistors on a 123 mm² die. The Tesla K40c uses a 28 nm process at TSMC, packing 7,080 million transistors on a 561 mm² die. The transistor density tells the story: the RX 560X has 24.4M transistors per mm², while the Tesla has 12.6M per mm². The RX 560X’s newer node makes it far more efficient.

Clock speeds also diverge sharply. The RX 560X runs at a 1175 MHz base and 1275 MHz boost, while the Tesla K40c is much slower at 745 MHz base and 876 MHz boost. Memory clocks follow suit: the RX 560X uses 1750 MHz (7 Gbps effective) GDDR5, while the Tesla uses 1502 MHz (6 Gbps effective). Despite the lower clocks, the Tesla’s wider 384-bit bus gives it far more bandwidth.

Power and physical requirements are another major split. The RX 560X has a TDP of 75 W, requires no power connectors, and suggests a 250 W PSU. The Tesla K40c has a TDP of 245 W, needs a 6-pin and 8-pin connector, and suggests a 550 W PSU. The RX 560X is 170 mm long, while the Tesla is 267 mm. The bus interface also differs: the RX 560X uses PCIe 3.0 x8, while the Tesla uses PCIe 3.0 x16. The RX 560X has display outputs (1x DVI, 1x HDMI 2.0b, 1x DisplayPort 1.4a), whereas the Tesla has no display outputs at all.

Architecture Differences

The architectural gap is generational. The RX 560X uses AMD’s GCN 4.0 architecture on the Polaris 21 chip, part of the Polaris (RX 500X) generation. It supports DirectX 12_0, OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.3. The Tesla K40c uses NVIDIA’s Kepler architecture on the GK180 chip, part of the Tesla Kepler (Kxx) generation. It supports DirectX 12 (11_0), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.2.175. The RX 560X has a more modern API feature set, particularly in DirectX and Vulkan versions.

Compute capabilities differ as well. The RX 560X has 1024 shading units, 64 TMUs, and 16 ROPs. The Tesla K40c has 2880 shading units, 240 TMUs, and 48 ROPs. The Tesla has nearly three times the shading units and nearly four times the texture units. The RX 560X delivers 2.611 TFLOPS of FP32 performance and supports FP16 at a 1:1 ratio (2.611 TFLOPS). The Tesla K40c delivers 5.046 TFLOPS of FP32 but has no FP16 support listed. The Tesla’s pixel rate is 52.56 GPixel/s versus the RX 560X’s 20.40 GPixel/s, and its texture rate is 210.2 GTexel/s versus 81.60 GTexel/s.

Neither card has ray tracing cores or tensor cores. The RX 560X was released on 2018-04-10, while the Tesla K40c is older, released on 2013-10-07. The RX 560X’s predecessor is Polaris and its successor is Vega; the Tesla’s predecessor is Tesla Fermi and its successor is Tesla Maxwell. The Tesla K40c has a launch MSRP of 7,699 USD, stated here once for reference.

The Verdict

The data supports a clear split. If you need a card for general consumer use, modern gaming APIs, or any workload that benefits from Vulkan, the RX 560X is the stronger pick. Its average benchmark score of 18626 is higher, its Vulkan score of 20231 is excellent, and it runs on 75 W with no external power. It also has display outputs, making it usable in a standard desktop. The RX 560X is end-of-life, but it is a practical, low-power option that holds its own against far more expensive modern cards like the RTX 2070.

The Tesla K40c is for compute-heavy tasks that demand memory capacity and raw throughput. Its 12 GB of VRAM, 288.4 GB/s bandwidth, and 5.046 TFLOPS of FP32 performance make it a better fit for large datasets or batch processing. It wins the only head-to-head OpenCL test, proving that its older architecture can still deliver in compute-bound scenarios. However, it requires a 550 W PSU, dual power connectors, and has no display outputs. It is also slower in overall average score, sitting at the 61st percentile versus the RX 560X’s 62nd.

Choose the RX 560X for a balanced, efficient card that works in a desktop with minimal power draw and supports modern APIs. Choose the Tesla K40c if you specifically need massive VRAM and raw FP32 compute and can accommodate its power and physical footprint. The numbers show the RX 560X is the better all-rounder, but the Tesla has a niche where its memory and compute density win out.