AMD Radeon RX 5700 vs NVIDIA Tesla K40m Comparison

Where Each One Wins

The AMD Radeon RX 5700 and the NVIDIA Tesla K40m occupy different corners of the GPU landscape, and the benchmark data reflects that split clearly. The RX 5700 is a modern gaming-oriented card with a broad benchmark footprint, while the Tesla K40m is a compute-oriented accelerator from an earlier era with a much narrower recorded test profile.

Looking at the recorded data, the RX 5700 wins the only head-to-head benchmark that both cards share: Geekbench OpenCL. In that test, the RX 5700 scores 69,603 against the Tesla K40m's 19,885, a 250% advantage. That is not a marginal win; it is a decisive gap that shows the architectural gulf between the two.

The RX 5700 also has a far wider set of benchmark results across different APIs and workloads. The database records scores for 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12, Geekbench Metal, Geekbench Vulkan, and multiple Passmark tests (DirectX 9, 10, 11, 12, G2D, G3D, and GPU Compute). The Tesla K40m, by contrast, has only a single recorded benchmark result: Geekbench OpenCL. This means the RX 5700 can be evaluated across gaming, compute, and general graphics workloads, while the Tesla K40m's profile is essentially limited to one OpenCL compute measurement.

The Tesla K40m does have one advantage in raw specifications: memory capacity. It carries 12 GB of GDDR5, whereas the RX 5700 has 8 GB of GDDR6. For workloads that need large datasets resident on the GPU, the Tesla K40m's larger frame buffer could be relevant, even if its bandwidth is lower.

The percentile rankings are close: the RX 5700 sits at the 67th percentile among all GPUs, while the Tesla K40m sits at the 65th. The average benchmark score tells a different story, however. The RX 5700 averages 22,170 across its benchmark suite, while the Tesla K40m averages 19,885. The RX 5700's nearest rivals by average score include the AMD Radeon RX 6700S (22,154, 0.1% ahead), the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 Mobile (22,435, 1.2% behind), the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 6 GB (21,856, 1.4% ahead), and the AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT (22,549, 1.7% behind). The Tesla K40m's nearest rivals include the AMD FirePro W7000 (19,905, 0.1% behind), the AMD Radeon RX 6650 XT (19,765, 0.6% ahead), the AMD FirePro D300 (19,637, 1.3% ahead), and the NVIDIA Quadro K5200 (19,602, 1.4% ahead).

The takeaway is clear: the RX 5700 wins where both are measured, and it has a much richer test record. The Tesla K40m's relevance is limited to its specific compute niche and its larger memory pool.

Architecture Differences

The two cards come from different manufacturing eras and different design philosophies. The RX 5700 uses the Navi 10 chip, built on TSMC's 7 nm process, with 10,300 million transistors on a 251 mm² die. That works out to a transistor density of 41.0 million per square millimeter. The Tesla K40m uses the GK110B chip, built on TSMC's 28 nm process, with 7,080 million transistors on a much larger 561 mm² die. Its transistor density is just 12.6 million per square millimeter.

The architectural generation gap is stark. The RX 5700 belongs to the RDNA 1.0 architecture, part of the Navi (RX 5000) generation. The Tesla K40m belongs to the Kepler architecture, part of the Tesla Kepler (Kxx) generation. The RX 5700's predecessor was Vega and its successor is Navi II. The Tesla K40m's predecessor was Tesla Fermi and its successor is Tesla Maxwell.

The RX 5700 supports PCIe 4.0 x16, while the Tesla K40m uses PCIe 3.0 x16. The RX 5700 has display outputs (1x HDMI 2.0b and 3x DisplayPort 1.4a), while the Tesla K40m has no display outputs at all, reflecting its compute-focused design.

The API support also differs. The RX 5700 supports DirectX 12 (12_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. The Tesla K40m supports DirectX 12 (11_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.2.175. Both support DirectX 12 and OpenGL 4.6, but the RX 5700's Vulkan support is newer.

Neither card has ray tracing cores or tensor cores, so that is not a differentiator.

The clock speeds reflect the process node difference. The RX 5700 has a base clock of 1465 MHz, a boost clock of 1725 MHz, and a game clock of 1625 MHz. The Tesla K40m has a base clock of 745 MHz and a boost clock of 876 MHz. The RX 5700's memory runs at 1750 MHz (14 Gbps effective), while the Tesla K40m's memory runs at 1502 MHz (6 Gbps effective).

The power situation is notable. The RX 5700 has a TDP of 180 W and requires a 450 W suggested PSU, with 1x 6-pin and 1x 8-pin power connectors. The Tesla K40m has a TDP of 245 W and requires a 550 W suggested PSU, with no power connectors listed in the database. Both are dual-slot cards.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The only benchmark where both cards have recorded scores is Geekbench OpenCL. In that test, the RX 5700 scores 69,603, while the Tesla K40m scores 19,885. The delta is 250% in favor of the RX 5700.

That 250% figure is the single most important comparative number in the database for these two cards. It shows that the RX 5700 is roughly three and a half times faster in this compute workload, despite the Tesla K40m having more shading units (2,880 vs. 2,304) and more texture mapping units (240 vs. 144). The Tesla K40m does have more ROPS? No, actually the RX 5700 has 64 ROPS against the Tesla K40m's 48.

The RX 5700's FP32 throughput is 7.949 TFLOPS, while the Tesla K40m's is 5.046 TFLOPS. The RX 5700 also has FP16 capability at 15.90 TFLOPS (2:1), while the Tesla K40m has no recorded FP16 figure. The pixel rate favors the RX 5700 (110.4 GPixel/s vs. 52.56 GPixel/s), as does the texture rate (248.4 GTexel/s vs. 210.2 GTexel/s).

Memory bandwidth also favors the RX 5700: 448.0 GB/s against 288.4 GB/s. The Tesla K40m has a wider memory bus (384 bit vs. 256 bit) and more memory (12 GB vs. 8 GB), but the RX 5700's GDDR6 memory at higher effective speed delivers more bandwidth overall.

The RX 5700's average benchmark score of 22,170 across all its recorded tests is 2,285 points higher than the Tesla K40m's 19,885. Since the Tesla K40m's only recorded benchmark is Geekbench OpenCL, that 19,885 figure is both its single-test score and its average.

FAQ

Q: Which card is faster in Geekbench OpenCL?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 5700 scores 69,603, while the NVIDIA Tesla K40m scores 19,885, giving the RX 5700 a 250% advantage.

Q: Does the Tesla K40m have more memory?

A: Yes, the Tesla K40m has 12 GB of GDDR5, while the RX 5700 has 8 GB of GDDR6. However, the RX 5700 has higher memory bandwidth at 448.0 GB/s versus 288.4 GB/s.

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

A: The RX 5700 averages 22,170 across its benchmark suite. The Tesla K40m averages 19,885, which is also its only recorded benchmark score.

Q: How do the percentile rankings compare?

A: The RX 5700 sits at the 67th percentile among all GPUs, while the Tesla K40m sits at the 65th percentile.

Q: Which card has a higher transistor density?

A: The RX 5700 has a transistor density of 41.0 million per square millimeter on a 7 nm process, while the Tesla K40m has 12.6 million per square millimeter on a 28 nm process.

Q: Does the Tesla K40m support display outputs?

A: No, the Tesla K40m has no display outputs. The RX 5700 has 1x HDMI 2.0b and 3x DisplayPort 1.4a.

The Verdict

The data points to a clear winner for almost any use case. The AMD Radeon RX 5700 is decisively ahead in the only shared benchmark, with a 250% lead in Geekbench OpenCL. It also has a much broader benchmark footprint, higher FP32 throughput (7.949 TFLOPS vs. 5.046 TFLOPS), higher memory bandwidth (448.0 GB/s vs. 288.4 GB/s), and a higher average benchmark score (22,170 vs. 19,885).

Who should pick the RX 5700? Anyone who needs a general-purpose GPU that can handle gaming, compute, and graphics workloads. The RX 5700 has display outputs, supports DirectX 12 (12_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4, and has multiple recorded benchmark results across different APIs. Its nearest rivals by average score are all within 2% (the RX 6700S at 0.1% ahead, the RTX 5060 Mobile at 1.2% behind, the GTX 1060 6 GB at 1.4% ahead, and the RX 7700 XT at 1.7% behind), which suggests it sits in a competitive performance tier.

Who should consider the Tesla K40m? Only those with a specific need for its 12 GB memory capacity and who do not require display outputs. The Tesla K40m has no recorded benchmark results other than Geekbench OpenCL, so its performance profile is largely unmeasured in the database. Its nearest rivals by average score (the FirePro W7000 at 0.1% behind, the RX 6650 XT at 0.6% ahead, the FirePro D300 at 1.3% ahead, and the Quadro K5200 at 1.4% ahead) indicate it is roughly comparable to those cards, but none of them approach the RX 5700's scores.

The RX 5700 is newer by about six years, uses a more advanced 7 nm process, and has a lower TDP (180 W vs. 245 W). The Tesla K40m's advantages are limited to memory capacity and a wider memory bus. In every measured performance metric, the RX 5700 wins.

Specification Differences

The following specifications differ between the two cards:

• Process node: 7 nm (RX 5700) vs. 28 nm (Tesla K40m)
• Transistors: 10,300 million vs. 7,080 million
• Die size: 251 mm² vs. 561 mm²
• Transistor density: 41.0M / mm² vs. 12.6M / mm²
• Base clock: 1465 MHz vs. 745 MHz
• Boost clock: 1725 MHz vs. 876 MHz
• Game clock: 1625 MHz vs. none
• Memory clock: 1750 MHz (14 Gbps effective) vs. 1502 MHz (6 Gbps effective)
• Memory size: 8 GB vs. 12 GB
• Memory type: GDDR6 vs. GDDR5
• Memory bus width: 256 bit vs. 384 bit
• Memory bandwidth: 448.0 GB/s vs. 288.4 GB/s
• Shading units: 2304 vs. 2880
• TMUs: 144 vs. 240
• ROPs: 64 vs. 48
• Pixel rate: 110.4 GPixel/s vs. 52.56 GPixel/s
• Texture rate: 248.4 GTexel/s vs. 210.2 GTexel/s
• FP32: 7.949 TFLOPS vs. 5.046 TFLOPS
• FP16: 15.90 TFLOPS (2:1) vs. none
• TDP: 180 W vs. 245 W
• Power connectors: 1x 6-pin + 1x 8-pin vs. none
• Suggested PSU: 450 W vs. 550 W
• Bus interface: PCIe 4.0 x16 vs. PCIe 3.0 x16
• Display outputs: 1x HDMI 2.0b, 3x DisplayPort 1.4a vs. no outputs
• DirectX support: 12 (12_1) vs. 12 (11_1)
• Vulkan support: 1.4 vs. 1.2.175
• Dimensions: 268 mm length, 111 mm height, 36 mm width vs. 267 mm length, no recorded height or width
• Release date: 2019-07-06 vs. 2013-11-21
• Architecture: RDNA 1.0 vs. Kepler
• Chip: Navi 10 vs. GK110B
• Generation: Navi (RX 5000) vs. Tesla Kepler (Kxx)
• Predecessor: Vega vs. Tesla Fermi
• Successor: Navi II vs. Tesla Maxwell
• Launch MSRP: 349 USD vs. 7,699 USD