AMD Radeon RX 580 2048SP vs NVIDIA Quadro M4000M Comparison

Where Each One Wins

The recorded data splits this comparison cleanly along workload boundaries. The AMD Radeon RX 580 2048SP wins both head-to-head benchmark contests, establishing dominance in general-purpose compute and modern graphics API workloads. The NVIDIA Quadro M4000M, while losing those direct comparisons, still holds relevance in its specific niche through architectural traits rather than raw score wins.

For the AMD card, the wins are substantial and consistent. In Geekbench OpenCL, the RX 580 2048SP scores 29668 against 19989 for the Quadro M4000M, a 48.4% advantage. In Geekbench Vulkan, the margin expands further: 38666 versus 20971, a 84.4% lead. These are not marginal victories; they represent a clear tier separation in general-purpose GPU compute and modern graphics API efficiency.

The NVIDIA Quadro M4000M, despite losing both direct benchmarks, holds its ground through architectural characteristics. Its 64 ROPs double the AMD card's 32, and its pixel rate of 64.83 GPixel/s exceeds the RX 580 2048SP's 41.09 GPixel/s. For rasterization-heavy tasks that stress pixel throughput, the M4000M has an inherent advantage. Its 100 W TDP also makes it a lower-power option, suitable for environments where thermal or power budgets are constrained, though this is a qualitative observation based on the recorded TDP values.

The AMD card's percentile placement (68th among all GPUs) versus the NVIDIA card's 65th percentile further underscores that the RX 580 2048SP sits slightly higher in the overall performance distribution. The average benchmark score difference is notable: 23061 for the AMD card versus 20480 for the Quadro, a gap of roughly 12.6% in the database's aggregate metric.

Architecture Differences

The two GPUs come from different manufacturers, nodes, and architecture generations. The AMD Radeon RX 580 2048SP uses the Polaris 20 chip built on GlobalFoundries' 14 nm process. It packs 5,700 million transistors into a 232 mm² die, yielding a transistor density of 24.6 million per square millimeter. The architecture is GCN 4.0, part of the Polaris RX 500 generation, and it runs with a base clock of 1168 MHz and a boost clock of 1284 MHz.

The NVIDIA Quadro M4000M uses the GM204 chip on TSMC's 28 nm process. It contains 5,200 million transistors on a much larger 398 mm² die, resulting in a lower transistor density of 13.1 million per square millimeter. The architecture is Maxwell 2.0, from the Quadro Maxwell-M generation. Its base clock is 975 MHz, boosting to 1013 MHz. The die size difference is significant: the NVIDIA chip is 71.5% larger physically, yet houses fewer transistors, reflecting the older, less dense process node.

The shader configuration also differs sharply. The AMD card packs 2048 shading units, 128 texture mapping units, and 32 ROPs. The NVIDIA card has 1280 shading units, 80 TMUs, and 64 ROPs. The AMD card offers 60% more shading units and 60% more TMUs, but the NVIDIA card quadruples the ROP count. This explains the pixel rate advantage for the M4M.

Memory configurations share the same capacity and bus width: 4 GB of GDDR5 on a 256-bit interface for both. The AMD card runs memory at 1750 MHz with 7 Gbps effective transfer, while the NVIDIA card runs at 1253 MHz with 5 Gbps effective. The resulting bandwidth is 224.0 GB/s for the AMD card versus 160.4 GB/s for the NVIDIA card, a 39.6% advantage for the RX 580 2048SP.

Feature support shows a mix. Both support DirectX 12, but the NVIDIA card supports the 12_1 feature level while the AMD card supports 12_0. Both support OpenGL 4.6. Vulkan support is present on both, but the NVIDIA card supports Vulkan 1.4 while the AMD card supports 1.3. Neither card has dedicated ray tracing or tensor cores.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The direct comparison produces an unambiguous result. In Geekbench OpenCL, the AMD Radeon RX 580 2048SP scores 29,668 against the NVIDIA Quadro M4000M's 19,989. The delta is 48.4% in favor of the AMD card. This benchmark exercises general-purpose compute workloads, and the AMD card's higher shading unit count, higher fill rates, and higher memory bandwidth all contribute to the margin.

In Geekbench Vulkan, the separation widens considerably. The AMD card scores 38,666, while the NVIDIA card scores 20,971. The delta percentage is 84.4% in the AMD card's favor. This is the larger of the two wins, showing that the RX 580 2048SP's advantage grows in lower-level, modern API contexts. The memory bandwidth gap and the higher boost clock (1284 MHz versus 1013 MHz) likely play a role here, along with the texture rate of 164.4 GTexel/s versus the M4000M's 81.04 GTexel/s.

The average benchmark score in the database consolidates these results. The RX 580 2048SP averages 23051 across all recorded tests, while the M4000M averages 20480. The RX 580 2048SP is 12.6% higher in this overall metric. The nearest rivals for the AMD card include the Intel Arc B580 (23021, 0.2% behind), the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 (23172, 0.5% ahead), the RTX 2080 (22895, 0.7% behind), and the NVIDIA P106-100 (23249, 0.8% ahead). For the M4000M, the closest competitors are the RTX 3070 Mobile (20534, 0.3% ahead), the Intel Arc B570 (20556, 0.4% ahead), the Arc A750 (20582, 0.5% ahead), and the AMD Radeon R9 M390X (20662, 0.9% ahead). The data shows the RX 580 2048SP competes near the RTX 3080 level in average score, while the M4000M sits at a lower performance class.

Specification Differences

The two cards differ in nearly every major specification category except memory size, bus width, and some API support. The AMD card has a smaller die (232 mm² versus 398 mm²), a newer process node (14 nm versus 28 nm), and a higher transistor density (24.6M per mm² versus 13.1M per mm²). The AMD card uses a newer architecture (GCN 4.0 versus Maxwell 2.0) and a different foundry (GlobalFoundries versus TSMC).

Clock speeds favor the AMD card: base 1168 MHz versus 975 MHz, boost 1284 MHz versus 1013 MHz. The memory clock also favors AMD: 1750 MHz versus 1253 MHz, with effective rates of 7 Gbps versus 5 Gbps. Memory bandwidth is 224.0 GB/s versus 160.4 GB/s.

The AMD card has more shading units (2048 versus 1280), more TMUs (128 versus 80), but fewer ROPs (32 versus 64). This shows in the pixel rate: 41.09 GPixel/s versus 64.83 GPixel/s, a win for the NVIDIA card. Conversely, the texture rate is 164.4 GTexel/s versus 81.04 GTexel/s, a win for the AMD card. The FP32 performance is 5.259 TFLOPS versus 2.593 TFLOPS; the AMD card has more than twice the single-precision throughput. FP16 exists on the AMD card at 5.259 TFLOPS (1:1), while the NVIDIA card has no recorded FP16 data.

Power and physical form factor differ significantly. The AMD card has a 150 W TDP, requires a single 8-pin power connector, and suggests a 450 W power supply. The NVIDIA card has a 100 W TDP, requires no power connectors (MXM form factor), and has no suggested PSU. The AMD card is a dual-slot desktop card at 9.5 inches long, while the NVIDIA card is an MXM module, portable-device dependent, with no length recorded. Display outputs: the AMD card provides 1x DVI, 1x HDMI 2.0b, and 3x DisplayPort 1.4a, while the NVIDIA card's outputs are listed as "Portable Device Dependent."

Release dates differ by three years: October 14, 2018 for the AMD card versus August 17, 2015 for the NVIDIA card. Both are end-of-life. The AMD card's predecessor is Arctic Islands and successor is Vega; the NVIDIA card's predecessor is Quadro Kepler-M and successor is Quadro Pascal-M.

FAQ

Q: Which card is faster in compute workloads?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 580 2048SP is significantly faster. In Geekbench OpenCL, it scores 29668 versus 19989 for the NVIDIA Quadro M4000M, a 48.4% advantage. Its FP32 compute is 5.259 TFLOPS versus 2.593 TFLOPS.

Q: Does the NVIDIA card win any performance category?

A: Yes. The Quadro M4000M has a higher pixel rate, 64.83 GPixel/s versus 41.09 GPixel/s, due to its 64 ROPs compared to the AMD card's 32 ROPs. It also supports DirectX 12_1 feature level, while the AMD card supports only 12_0.

Q: Which card has better memory bandwidth?

A: The AMD card has 224.0 GB/s of bandwidth versus 160.4 GB/s for the NVIDIA card. Both have 4 GB of GDDR5 on a 256-bit bus, but the AMD memory runs at 1750 MHz (7 Gbps effective) versus 1253 MHz (5 Gbps effective).

Q: How do their average benchmark scores compare?

A: The RX 580 2048SD averages 23061 points across all recorded benchmarks, while the Quadro M4000M averages 20480 points. The AMD card is 12.6% higher. The AMD card's percentile is 68, compared to the NVIDIA's 65th percentile.

Q: What is the power consumption difference?

A: The AMD card has a 150 W TDP and requires a 450 W power supply with a single 8-pin connector. The NVIDIA card has a 100 W TDP and is an MXM module with no power connectors, making it suited for portable devices.

Q: Which card is more modern?

A: The AMD card is newer. It was released on October 14, 2018, uses a 14 nm process, and belongs to the Polaris generation. The NVIDIA card was released on August 17, 2015, uses a 28 nm process, and belongs to the Maxwell generation. The AMD card also has a higher transistor density, 24.6M per mm² versus 13.1M per mm².