AMD Radeon RX 580 2048SP vs NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 Comparison

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The benchmark data presents a stark generational contrast between these two GPUs, with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 dominating in raw compute and modern API workloads, while the AMD Radeon RX 580 2048SP manages a single, notable victory in one specific test. The most dramatic separation appears in the 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 benchmark, where the RTX 3080 scores 4407 against the RX 580 2048SP's 849, representing a 419.1% advantage. This is not a marginal gap; it is a category-level difference that places the two cards in entirely different performance tiers for modern DirectX 12 workloads.

The Geekbench OpenCL results tell a similar story, with the RTX 3080 delivering 152423 points compared to the RX 580 2048SP's 29668 points, a 413.8% lead. OpenCL performance often reflects general compute capability and driver efficiency across a wide range of applications, so this substantial margin indicates that the RTX 3080 is not just faster in gaming-specific scenarios but also in general-purpose GPU compute tasks. The older GCN architecture in the RX 580 2048SP simply cannot keep pace with the Ampere architecture's raw throughput, particularly in scenarios that leverage newer instruction sets and memory subsystems.

However, the data is not entirely one-sided. In the Geekbench Vulkan test, the AMD Radeon RX 580 2048SP actually wins, scoring 38666 against the RTX 3080's 33620, a 13.1% advantage for the AMD card. This result is counterintuitive given the RTX 3080's overwhelming leads elsewhere, but it suggests that in this particular Vulkan workload, the RX 580 2048SP's driver stack or architectural characteristics produce more favorable results. It is worth remembering Vulkan performance can be highly dependent on specific application implementations and driver optimizations, so this single win does not necessarily translate to broad Vulkan superiority. Still, it demonstrates that the RX 580 2048SP is not completely obsolete in every modern API context.

Looking at aggregate averages, the two cards are far closer than the headline benchmark numbers suggest. The RTX 3080 has an average benchmark score of 23172 across all recorded tests, while the RX 580 2048SP averages 23061. This places them within 0.5% of each other in the overall database, which includes a broader range of tests beyond the three head-to-head comparisons. The RTX 3080's percentile ranking is 68 among all GPUs, and the RX 580 2048SP also sits at the 68th percentile, meaning they occupy similar positions in the overall distribution of graphics card performance. This apparent contradiction—huge margins in specific tests but nearly identical averages—indicates that the RX 580 2048SP performs much better relative to the RTX 3080 in older or less demanding workloads that dominate the aggregate scoring.

The Verdict

The data supports a clear recommendation for different user profiles. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 is the choice for anyone prioritizing modern DirectX 12 gaming and compute-heavy applications. Its 419.1% lead in Steel Nomad DX12 and 413.8% lead in OpenCL are decisive advantages that will manifest as dramatically higher frame rates in current titles and faster rendering times in productivity software. The RTX 3080 also brings hardware ray tracing and tensor cores, which the RX 580 2048SP lacks entirely, making it the only viable option for workloads that leverage these features.

The AMD Radeon RX 580 2048SP, despite its age, remains relevant for specific scenarios. Its 13.1% win in Geekbench Vulkan suggests that users running Vulkan-based applications may see competitive or even superior performance. Additionally, the RX 580 2048SP has a significantly lower TDP of 150 W compared to the RTX 3080's 320 W, and it uses a standard 8-pin power connector with a suggested PSU of 450 W, whereas the RTX 3080 requires a 12-pin connector and a 700 W PSU. For users with older systems or limited power delivery, the RX 580 2048SP is the more practical drop-in upgrade. The RTX 3080 also launched at 699 USD, though pricing discussions are outside the scope of this analysis.

The aggregate data showing both cards at the 68th percentile and within 0.5% average score of each other suggests that for a broad mix of legacy and modern applications, the user experience may be closer than the head-to-head tests imply. However, the direction of the industry is toward DirectX 12 and Vulkan, and the RTX 3080's dominance in those areas makes it the forward-looking choice. If your workload is primarily older DirectX 11 or OpenGL titles, the RX 580 2048SP may suffice, but for future-proofing, the RTX 3080 is the clear winner.

Architecture Differences

The two GPUs represent fundamentally different design philosophies separated by several generations. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 uses the GA102 chip built on Ampere architecture, manufactured on Samsung's 8 nm process. This is a massive chip with 28,300 million transistors on a 628 mm² die, yielding a transistor density of 45.1 million per mm². In contrast, the AMD Radeon RX 580 2048SP uses the Polaris 20 chip with GCN 4.0 architecture, built on GlobalFoundries' 14 nm process. It contains 5,700 million transistors on a 232 mm² die, with a transistor density of 24.6 million per mm². The RTX 3080 has nearly five times the transistor count and more than double the die area, reflecting its role as a high-end enthusiast part versus the RX 580 2048SP's mainstream positioning.

Memory configurations differ substantially. The RTX 3080 features 10 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 320-bit bus, delivering 760.3 GB/s of bandwidth. The RX 580 2048SP has 4 GB of GDDR5 on a 256-bit bus, providing 224.0 GB/s. This 3.4x bandwidth advantage for the RTX 3080 is critical for high-resolution textures and compute workloads. Clock speeds also differ, with the RTX 3080 running at 1440 MHz base and 1710 MHz boost, while the RX 580 2048SP runs at 1168 MHz base and 1284 MHz boost. The RTX 3080's memory runs at 1188 MHz with 19 Gbps effective data rate, compared to the RX 580 2048SP's 1750 MHz with 7 Gbps effective.

Architecturally, the RTX 3080 includes 8704 shading units, 272 TMUs, and 96 ROPs, along with 68 dedicated ray tracing cores and 272 tensor cores. The RX 580 2048SP has 2048 shading units, 128 TMUs, and 32 ROPs, with no ray tracing or tensor core hardware. This means the RTX 3080 supports hardware-accelerated ray tracing and AI-based features like DLSS, which the RX 580 2048SP cannot do. The pixel rate for the RTX 3080 is 164.2 GPixel/s and texture rate is 465.1 GTexel/s, versus 41.09 GPixel/s and 164.4 GTexel/s for the RX 580 2048SP. FP32 compute is 29.77 TFLOPS for the RTX 3080 and 5.259 TFLOPS for the RX 580 2048SP, a 5.7x difference.

API support also differs. The RTX 3080 supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. The RX 580 2048SP supports DirectX 12 (12_0), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.3. The DirectX 12_0 versus 12_2 distinction is significant, as 12_2 enables features like mesh shaders and variable rate shading that the RX 580 2048SP cannot access. The bus interface differs as well: the RTX 3080 uses PCIe 4.0 x16, while the RX 580 2048SP uses PCIe 3.0 x16. For most gaming workloads this difference is minor, but for data transfer-heavy tasks, the newer standard offers more headroom.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has higher raw compute performance?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 delivers 29.77 TFLOPS FP32 performance, while the AMD Radeon RX 580 2048SP provides 5.259 TFLOPS, making the RTX 3080 approximately 5.7 times faster in theoretical compute throughput.

Q: Does the RX 580 2048SP support ray tracing?

A: No. The RX 580 2048SP has no ray tracing cores or tensor cores, while the RTX 3080 includes 68 RT cores and 272 tensor cores, enabling hardware-accelerated ray tracing and AI features.

Q: Why did the RX 580 2048SP win the Geekbench Vulkan test?

A: In the Geekbench Vulkan benchmark, the RX 580 2048SP scored 38666 versus the RTX 3080's 33620, a 13.1% advantage. This specific workload appears to favor the GCN architecture's Vulkan implementation, though the RTX 3080 wins decisively in other tests.

Q: What are the power requirements for each card?

A: The RTX 3080 has a TDP of 320 W and requires a 700 W PSU with a 12-pin power connector. The RX 580 2048SP has a TDP of 150 W and requires a 450 W PSU with a single 8-pin connector.

Q: Which card has more memory bandwidth?

A: The RTX 3080 features 10 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 320-bit bus with 760.3 GB/s bandwidth. The RX 580 2048SP has 4 GB of GDDR5 on a 256-bit bus with 224.0 GB/s, giving the RTX 3080 a 3.4x bandwidth advantage.

Q: Are these cards still in production?

A: Both cards are end-of-life. The RTX 3080 was released in 2020 and the RX 580 2048SP in 2018, with the RTX 3080 succeeding the GeForce 20 series and the RX 580 2048SP following the Arctic Islands generation.

Where Each One Wins

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 wins decisively in DirectX 12 workloads, as evidenced by its 419.1% lead in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12. This makes it the clear choice for modern AAA gaming titles that use DirectX 12, as well as for any application that leverages DirectX 12 Ultimate features like ray tracing, mesh shaders, and variable rate shading. The RTX 3080's 413.8% advantage in OpenCL also makes it the superior option for general-purpose GPU compute tasks such as video encoding, 3D rendering, scientific simulations, and machine learning inference, where the tensor cores provide additional acceleration. The 10 GB GDDR6X memory and 760.3 GB/s bandwidth give it the capacity and speed needed for 4K texture packs and large datasets, while the 68 RT cores enable hardware ray tracing that the RX 580 2048SP cannot perform at all.

The AMD Radeon RX 580 2048SP wins in the Geekbench Vulkan test with a 13.1% advantage, suggesting that certain Vulkan-based games or applications may run better on this older architecture. This could be relevant for users running Vulkan titles that are well-optimized for GCN hardware, though the result is isolated to a single benchmark. Beyond the head-to-head tests, the RX 580 2048SP's lower TDP of 150 W and 450 W PSU requirement make it the better choice for compact or older systems with limited power delivery. Its dual-slot design and 241 mm length also make it easier to fit in smaller cases compared to the RTX 3080's 285 mm length. For users with strict power budgets or legacy PSUs lacking modern connectors, the RX 580 2048SP is the more practical option, even if its performance ceiling is far lower.

Specification Differences

The primary specification differences between the two cards are extensive. The RTX 3080 uses an 8 nm process and 28,300 million transistors on a 628 mm² die, while the RX 580 2048SP uses 14 nm and 5,700 million transistors on 232 mm². Clock speeds differ at 1440/1710 MHz base/boost for the RTX 3080 versus 1168/1284 MHz for the RX 580 2048SP. Memory is 10 GB GDDR6X at 19 Gbps effective on a 320-bit bus versus 4 GB GDDR5 at 7 Gbps on a 256-bit bus.

The RTX 3080 has 8704 shading units, 272 TMUs, and 96 ROPs, while the RX 580 2048SP has 2048 shading units, 128 TMUs, and 32 ROPs. The RTX 3080 includes 68 RT cores and 272 tensor cores; the RX 580 2048SP has none. Pixel rates are 164.2 GPixel/s versus 41.09 GPixel/s, and texture rates are 465.1 GTexel/s versus 164.4 GTexel/s. FP32 performance is 29.77 TFLOPS versus 5.259 TFLOPS. TDP is 320 W versus 150 W, with the RTX 3080 using a 12-pin connector and 700 W PSU recommendation, while the RX 580 2048SP uses an 8-pin connector and 450 W PSU. The bus interface is PCIe 4.0 x16 versus PCIe 3.0 x16. Display outputs differ: the RTX 3080 has 1x HDMI 2.1 and 3x DisplayPort 1.4a, while the RX 580 2048SP has 1x DVI, 1x HDMI 2.0b, and 3x DisplayPort 1.4a. API support is DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2) versus DirectX 12 (12_0), with Vulkan 1.4 versus 1.3.