AMD Radeon RX 5700 XT vs NVIDIA Tesla K10 Comparison

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has the higher average benchmark score?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 5700 XT leads with an average benchmark score of 16361, while the NVIDIA Tesla K10 records 14029.

Q: How do the two cards compare in the Geekbench OpenCL test?

A: The NVIDIA Tesla K10 wins the only shared benchmark, scoring 14029 versus 9524 for the AMD Radeon RX 5700 XT, a delta of 32.1% in favor of the Tesla K10.

Q: What is the process node difference between the two cards?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 5700 XT is built on a 7 nm process, while the NVIDIA Tesla K10 uses a 28 nm process. Both are fabricated by TSMC.

Q: Which card has more memory bandwidth?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 5700 XT delivers 448.0 GB/s of bandwidth, compared to 160.0 GB/s for the NVIDIA Tesla K10.

Q: What are the respective launch MSRPs?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 5700 XT had a launch MSRP of 399 USD, and the NVIDIA Tesla K10 had a launch MSRP of 5,099 USD.

Q: Which card supports newer PCIe and APIs?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 5700 XT uses PCIe 4.0 x16 and supports DirectX 12 (12_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. The NVIDIA Tesla K10 uses PCIe 3.0 x16 and supports DirectX 12 (11_0), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.2.175.

Architecture Differences

The AMD Radeon RX 5700 XT is built on the Navi 10 chip with RDNA 1.0 architecture, part of the Radeon RX 5000 series. The NVIDIA Tesla K10 uses the GK104 chip with Kepler architecture, belonging to the Tesla Kepler generation. The manufacturing process differs significantly: the RX 5700 XT uses a 7 nm node, while the Tesla K10 uses a 28 nm node, both from TSMC. This process gap is reflected in transistor density, with the RX 5700 XT packing 41.0M transistors per mm² versus 12.0M per mm² for the Tesla K10. Total transistor counts also differ, with the RX 5700 XT at 10,300 million and the Tesla K10 at 3,540 million, though the Tesla K10 has a larger die size at 294 mm² compared to 251 mm².

The compute resources diverge sharply. The RX 5700 XT features 2560 shading units, 160 texture mapping units, and 64 ROPs. The Tesla K10 has 1536 shading units, 128 TMUs, and 32 ROPs. Neither card includes ray tracing cores or tensor cores. Clock behavior also differs: the RX 5700 XT lists base, boost, and game clocks of 1605 MHz, 1905 MHz, and 1755 MHz respectively, while the Tesla K10 has no recorded base, boost, or game clocks. Memory clocks show a similar gap, with the RX 5700 XT running at 1750 MHz (14 Gbps effective) and the Tesla K10 at 1250 MHz (5 Gbps effective).

The memory subsystems are built on different technologies. The RX 5700 XT uses 8 GB of GDDR6 on a 256-bit bus, while the Tesla K10 uses 4 GB of GDDR5 on a 256-bit bus. This results in a bandwidth advantage for the RX 5700 XT: 448.0 GB/s versus 160.0 GB/s. The RX 5700 XT also has a much higher pixel rate at 121.9 GPixel/s compared to 23.84 GPixel/s, and a higher texture rate at 304.8 GTexel/s versus 95.36 GTexel/s. FP32 throughput is 9.754 TFLOPS for the RX 5700 XT and 2.289 TFLOPS for the Tesla K10. The RX 5700 XT also supports FP16 at 19.51 TFLOPS (2:1), while the Tesla K10 has no recorded FP16 capability.

Connectivity and outputs reveal different design purposes. The RX 5700 XT uses PCIe 4.0 x16 and provides 1x HDMI 2.0b and 3x DisplayPort 1.4a outputs. The Tesla K10 uses PCIe 3.0 x16 and has no display outputs, indicating a compute-oriented role. Both cards are dual-slot with identical power connectors (1x 6-pin + 1x 8-pin) and the same suggested PSU of 550 W. The RX 5700 XT has recorded dimensions of 272 mm length, 111 mm height, and 36 mm width; the Tesla K10 shares the 272 mm length but has no recorded height or width. The RX 5700 XT was released in 2019, while the Tesla K10 was released in 2012. The RX 5700 XT succeeds Vega and precedes Navi II, while the Tesla K10 succeeds Tesla Fermi and precedes Tesla Maxwell.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The database contains only one directly comparable benchmark between these two cards: Geekbench OpenCL. In that test, the NVIDIA Tesla K10 scores 14029, while the AMD Radeon RX 5700 XT scores 9524. This represents a 32.1% advantage for the Tesla K10, the sole head-to-head win recorded. The RX 5700 XT has zero head-to-head wins in the shared test set.

However, the broader benchmark suite paints a different picture. The RX 5700 XT has a much larger benchmark footprint, with results across 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 (2134), Geekbench Metal (74647), Geekbench Vulkan (68310), and multiple Passmark tests. The Passmark suite includes DirectX 9 (226), DirectX 10 (97), DirectX 11 (116), DirectX 12 (64), G2D (922), G3D (16277), and GPU Compute (7650). The Tesla K10 only has the single Geekbench OpenCL result on record. The RX 5700 XT's average benchmark score of 16361 places it in the 59th percentile of all GPUs, while the Tesla K10's average of 14029 places it in the 55th percentile.

The RX 5700 XT's nearest rivals in the database, based on average score, are the AMD Radeon Pro 5600M (16351, delta 0.1%), the NVIDIA RTX PRO 6000 Blackwell (16408, delta -0.3%), the AMD Radeon PRO W7500 (16415, delta -0.3%), and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D V2 (16504, delta -0.9%). These deltas show the RX 5700 XT sitting within 1% of several much newer or higher-tier cards. The Tesla K10's nearest rivals are the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 680 (14150, delta -0.9%), the AMD Radeon RX 570X (13871, delta 1.1%), the NVIDIA RTX A2000 Mobile (13821, delta 1.5%), and the AMD Radeon 660M (13812, delta 1.6%). The Tesla K10 is within 1.6% of these cards, indicating it remains competitive with mid-range offerings from its era.

The discrepancy between the head-to-head OpenCL result and the average benchmark scores requires careful interpretation. The OpenCL test is the only common data point, and the Tesla K10 wins it decisively. Yet the RX 5700 XT's overall average is 16.6% higher (16361 versus 14029), driven by its strong performance across a wider range of workloads including Vulkan, Metal, and DirectX tests. The data suggests the Tesla K10 may have a specific advantage in OpenCL compute workloads, while the RX 5700 XT demonstrates broader capability across modern graphics APIs.

Specification Differences

The two cards differ in nearly every measurable specification. The RX 5700 XT uses a 7 nm process with 10,300 million transistors on a 251 mm² die, while the Tesla K10 uses a 28 nm process with 3,540 million transistors on a 294 mm² die. The RX 5700 XT has 2560 shading units, 160 TMUs, and 64 ROPs; the Tesla K10 has 1536 shading units, 128 TMUs, and 32 ROPs. Memory differs by capacity (8 GB GDDR6 versus 4 GB GDDR5), bandwidth (448.0 GB/s versus 160.0 GB/s), and clock speed (1750 MHz versus 1250 MHz). The RX 5700 XT records base, boost, and game clocks of 1605 MHz, 1905 MHz, and 1755 MHz; the Tesla K10 has none recorded. Pixel rate is 121.9 GPixel/s versus 23.84 GPixel/s, and texture rate is 304.8 GTexel/s versus 95.36 GTexel/s. FP32 throughput is 9.754 TFLOPS versus 2.289 TFLOPS, and FP16 is supported on the RX 5700 XT at 19.51 TFLOPS (2:1) but absent on the Tesla K10.

The bus interface differs: PCIe 4.0 x16 for the RX 5700 XT versus PCIe 3.0 x16 for the Tesla K10. Display outputs are present on the RX 5700 XT (1x HDMI 2.0b, 3x DisplayPort 1.4a) but absent on the Tesla K10. DirectX support is 12 (12_1) versus 12 (11_0), and Vulkan support is 1.4 versus 1.2.175, while OpenGL is 4.6 on both. Dimensions match in length (272 mm for both), but the RX 5700 XT also records height (111 mm) and width (36 mm), which the Tesla K10 lacks. Both are dual-slot, use 1x 6-pin + 1x 8-pin power connectors, require a 550 W suggested PSU, and have a TDP of 225 W. The release dates are separated by over seven years: 2019 for the RX 5700 XT and 2012 for the Tesla K10. The launch MSRP differs substantially: 399 USD versus 5,099 USD. Production status is end-of-life for both.

The Verdict

The data supports a clear split verdict depending on workload priorities. For anyone running modern graphics APIs, gaming workloads, or general-purpose compute across DirectX, Vulkan, or Metal, the AMD Radeon RX 5700 XT is the stronger choice. Its average benchmark score of 16361 versus 14029 represents a 16.6% overall advantage, and it sits in the 59th percentile of all GPUs compared to the 55th percentile for the Tesla K10. The RX 5700 XT also offers 8 GB of GDDR6 memory, 448.0 GB/s of bandwidth, and 9.754 TFLOPS of FP32 performance, all of which are substantial advantages over the Tesla K10's 4 GB GDDR5, 160.0 GB/s, and 2.289 TFLOPS.

For OpenCL-specific compute workloads, the NVIDIA Tesla K10 is the surprising winner in the only direct head-to-head test, scoring 14029 versus 9524, a 32.1% margin. This result indicates that the Tesla K10 retains a niche advantage in OpenCL compute despite its older architecture and lower overall scores. However, this single win is narrow in scope. The Tesla K10 has no display outputs, no recorded FP16 support, and no benchmark results outside of Geekbench OpenCL in the database. Its nearest rivals include the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 680 (14150, delta -0.9%) and the AMD Radeon RX 570X (13871, delta 1.1%), showing that it clusters with mid-range cards from its own generation.

The RX 5700 XT's nearest rivals include the NVIDIA RTX PRO 6000 Blackwell (16408, delta -0.3%) and the AMD Radeon PRO W7500 (16415, delta -0.3%). This proximity to much newer professional cards highlights the RX 5700 XT's enduring competitiveness. The verdict is straightforward: the RX 5700 XT is the better all-round GPU, while the Tesla K10 is only preferable in the narrow case of OpenCL compute where its 32.1% head-to-head win applies.

Where Each One Wins

AMD Radeon RX 5700 XT wins on: overall average benchmark score (16361 versus 14029), modern API support (DirectX 12_1, Vulkan 1.4, Metal), memory capacity and bandwidth (8 GB GDDR6 at 448.0 GB/s versus 4 GB GDDR5 at 160.0 GB/s), raw compute throughput (9.754 TFLOPS FP32 versus 2.289 TFLOPS), pixel and texture rates (121.9 GPixel/s and 304.8 GTexel/s versus 23.84 GPixel/s and 95.36 GTexel/s), and display output capability. The RX 5700 XT also benefits from a 7 nm process node, higher transistor count (10,300 million versus 3,540 million), and PCIe 4.0 support. Its average score places it within 1% of cards like the NVIDIA RTX PRO 6000 Blackwell and AMD Radeon PRO W7500, indicating strong performance relative to much newer hardware.

NVIDIA Tesla K10 wins on: the single shared benchmark, Geekbench OpenCL, where it scores 14029 against 9524 (32.1% higher). This suggests an OpenCL compute advantage that persists despite the card's older Kepler architecture and 28 nm process. The Tesla K10 also matches the RX 5700 XT in some physical characteristics: both are dual-slot, both use 1x 6-pin + 1x 8-pin power connectors, both require a 550 W suggested PSU, and both have a TDP of 225 W. The Tesla K10's length is identical at 272 mm. Its launch MSRP of 5,099 USD reflects its original positioning as a high-end compute product, though the database does not provide evidence that this pricing translated into superior performance outside of OpenCL.

The use-case split is therefore clear. Users prioritizing OpenCL compute workloads, particularly those from the Tesla K10's 2012 era, may find the K10's 32.1% head-to-head advantage relevant. Users prioritizing everything else, including modern gaming, Vulkan, Metal, DirectX, or higher memory bandwidth, should choose the RX 5700 XT. The RX 5700 XT's 59th percentile standing and its cluster of nearest rivals within 1% of its average score reinforce its position as the more capable and versatile card in this comparison.