AMD Radeon RX 580 2048SP vs NVIDIA TITAN Xp Comparison

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The recorded data shows a clear pattern across all three shared benchmark tests, with the NVIDIA TITAN Xp taking every win. The largest gap appears in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12, where the TITAN Xp scores 2372 against the AMD Radeon RX 580 2048SP's 849. That is a delta of -64.2% from the AMD card's perspective, meaning the NVIDIA part delivers nearly three times the performance in this DirectX 12 workload. This is the kind of result that separates a high-end enthusiast GPU from a mid-range part, and it sets the tone for the rest of the comparison.

In Geekbench OpenCL, the TITAN Xp posts 72585, while the RX 580 2048SP manages 29668. The delta here is -59.1%, a slightly smaller but still substantial margin. OpenCL compute workloads often scale with raw shader throughput and memory bandwidth, and the TITAN Xp holds decisive advantages in both areas. The Vulkan result follows the same trajectory: 87180 for the TITAN Xp versus 38666 for the AMD card, a -55.6% delta. Vulkan is a lower-overhead API that tends to expose raw hardware capability, and the NVIDIA part's lead remains consistent.

It is worth remembering the RX 580 2048SP has zero wins across the head-to-head tests, while the TITAN Xp claims all three. The average benchmark score in the database tells a slightly different story, however. The AMD card averages 23061 across its recorded benchmarks, which places it at the 68th percentile of all GPUs. The TITAN Xp averages 19177, sitting at the 64th percentile. That seems counterintuitive given the head-to-head results, but it reflects the different benchmark suites recorded for each card. The RX 580 2048SP has only three benchmarks in the database, while the TITAN Xp has ten, including several Passmark DX9, DX10, DX11, and DX12 tests that pull its average down.

The nearest rivals for each card reinforce this mixed picture. The RX 580 2048SP sits within 1% of the Intel Arc B580, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080, and the NVIDIA P106-100. Its average score is 0.2% above the Arc B580, 0.5% below the RTX 3080, 0.7% above the RTX 2080, and 0.8% below the P106-100. The TITAN Xp, meanwhile, sits within 1% of the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780, the NVIDIA Tesla K20m, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4050 Mobile, and the AMD Radeon RX 6600. Its average is 0.1% above the GTX 780, 0.5% above the Tesla K20m, 0.7% above the RTX 4050 Mobile, and 0.7% above the RX 6600. These rival clusters show that the RX 580 2048SP competes with a different performance tier in aggregate terms, even though it loses decisively in the specific tests both cards share.

FAQ

Q: Which card wins in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12, and by how much?

A: The NVIDIA TITAN Xp wins with a score of 2372 against the AMD Radeon RX 580 2048SP's 849. The AMD card trails by -64.2% in this DirectX 12 workload.

Q: Does the RX 580 2048SP beat the TITAN Xp in any benchmark?

A: No. In the three head-to-head tests recorded (3DMark Steel Nomad DX12, Geekbench OpenCL, and Geekbench Vulkan), the TITAN Xp wins all of them. The RX 580 2048SP has zero wins.

Q: How do the average benchmark scores compare?

A: The RX 580 2048SP has an average benchmark score of 23061, which is higher than the TITAN Xp's 19177. The AMD card also sits at the 68th percentile of all GPUs, while the TITAN Xp sits at the 64th percentile.

Q: What is the memory capacity difference?

A: The TITAN Xp has 12 GB of GDDR5X memory, while the RX 580 2048SP has 4 GB of GDDR5 memory. The TITAN Xp also has a 384-bit memory bus and 547.6 GB/s of bandwidth, compared to the AMD card's 256-bit bus and 224.0 GB/s.

Q: How do the compute capabilities differ?

A: The TITAN Xp delivers 12.15 TFLOPS of FP32 performance, while the RX 580 2048SP delivers 5.259 TFLOPS. The NVIDIA card also has 3840 shading units, 240 texture mapping units, and 96 ROPs, versus 2048 shading units, 128 TMUs, and 32 ROPs on the AMD card.

Q: What are the power requirements for each card?

A: The TITAN Xp has a TDP of 250 W and requires a 600 W power supply. The RX 580 2048SP has a TDP of 150 W and requires a 450 W power supply.

Architecture Differences

The two GPUs come from fundamentally different architectural families. The AMD Radeon RX 580 2048SP uses the GCN 4.0 architecture on the Polaris 20 chip, fabricated on a 14 nm process at GlobalFoundries. The NVIDIA TITAN Xp uses the Pascal architecture on the GP102 chip, fabricated on a 16 nm process at TSMC. The transistor counts reflect the scale difference: the Polaris 20 die contains 5,700 million transistors on a 232 mm² die, while GP102 packs 11,800 million transistors on a 471 mm² die. Transistor density is similar, at 24.6M per mm² for the AMD chip and 25.1M per mm² for the NVIDIA chip, but the raw transistor budget is more than double on the NVIDIA side.

The compute resources tell a similar story. The TITAN Xp has 3840 shading units, 240 TMUs, and 96 ROPs, while the RX 580 2048SP has 2048 shading units, 128 TMUs, and 32 ROPs. The NVIDIA card's pixel rate is 151.9 GPixel/s and texture rate is 379.7 GTexel/s, compared to 41.09 GPixel/s and 164.4 GTexel/s on the AMD card. FP32 throughput is 12.15 TFLOPS versus 5.259 TFLOPS. The FP16 comparison is particularly stark: the RX 580 2048SP runs FP16 at a 1:1 ratio with FP32, both at 5.259 TFLOPS, while the TITAN Xp runs FP16 at a 1:64 ratio, delivering only 189.8 GFLOPS. This means the AMD card is actually far stronger in FP16 compute relative to its own FP32, though the TITAN Xp's overall FP32 dominance still gives it the lead in most workloads.

Neither card has dedicated ray tracing cores or tensor cores, as both predate those features. The API support differs slightly: the RX 580 2048SP supports DirectX 12 at feature level 12_0, OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.3, while the TITAN Xp supports DirectX 12 at feature level 12_1, OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. The higher DirectX feature level on the NVIDIA card indicates support for additional DirectX 12 features, and the newer Vulkan version similarly reflects a more recent driver and hardware combination.

Specification Differences

The memory subsystems are dramatically different. The RX 580 2048SP has 4 GB of GDDR5 running at 1750 MHz with 7 Gbps effective speed, on a 256-bit bus, delivering 224.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The TITAN Xp has 12 GB of GDDR5X running at 1426 MHz with 11.4 Gbps effective speed, on a 384-bit bus, delivering 547.6 GB/s. That is more than double the memory capacity and more than double the bandwidth.

Clock speeds also favor the NVIDIA card. The TITAN Xp has a base clock of 1405 MHz and a boost clock of 1582 MHz, while the RX 580 2048SP has a base clock of 1168 MHz and a boost clock of 1284 MHz. The AMD card's memory clock is higher in raw MHz (1750 versus 1426), but the effective data rate and bus width give the NVIDIA card a massive bandwidth advantage.

Power and physical specifications differ as well. The TITAN Xp has a TDP of 250 W, requires a 600 W power supply, and needs both a 6-pin and an 8-pin power connector. The RX 580 2048SP has a TDP of 150 W, requires a 450 W power supply, and uses a single 8-pin connector. Both cards are dual-slot designs and use PCIe 3.0 x16. The TITAN Xp is longer at 267 mm (10.5 inches) with a height of 112 mm (4.4 inches) and width of 40 mm (1.6 inches), while the RX 580 2048SP is 241 mm (9.5 inches) long with no recorded height or width. Display outputs differ: the AMD card offers 1x DVI, 1x HDMI 2.0b, and 3x DisplayPort 1.4a, while the NVIDIA card offers 1x HDMI 2.0 and 3x DisplayPort 1.4a, with no DVI.

The release dates are also different. The TITAN Xp launched on April 5, 2017, with a launch MSRP of 1,199 USD. The RX 580 2048SP launched on October 14, 2018. Both are end-of-life products. The TITAN Xp's predecessor is the GeForce 900 series and its successor is the GeForce 20 series, while the RX 580 2048SP's predecessor is Arctic Islands and its successor is Vega.

Where Each One Wins

The NVIDIA TITAN Xp wins in every head-to-head benchmark recorded. Its 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 2372 is -64.2% ahead of the AMD card, and its Geekbench OpenCL and Vulkan scores are -59.1% and -55.6% ahead respectively. The TITAN Xp also holds commanding leads in raw specifications: FP32 compute (12.15 versus 5.259 TFLOPS), memory bandwidth (547.6 versus 224.0 GB/s), memory capacity (12 GB versus 4 GB), texture rate (379.7 versus 164.4 GTexel/s), and pixel rate (151.9 versus 41.09 GPixel/s). For users running DirectX 12 games, OpenCL compute workloads, or Vulkan applications, the data points squarely at the TITAN Xp.

The AMD Radeon RX 580 2048SP, however, has its own advantages in the recorded data. Its average benchmark score of 23061 is higher than the TITAN Xp's 19177, and it sits at the 68th percentile of all GPUs versus the TITAN Xp's 64th. The RX 580 2048SP also has the FP16 advantage in relative terms, matching its FP32 throughput at 5.259 TFLOPS, whereas the TITAN Xp's FP16 is just 189.8 GFLOPS. The AMD card is also more power-efficient on paper, with a 150 W TDP and 450 W suggested PSU versus 250 W and 600 W for the NVIDIA card. For systems with smaller power supplies or tighter thermal constraints, the RX 580 2048SP is the more accommodating choice. The AMD card also offers a DVI output, which the TITAN Xp lacks, and its 241 mm length makes it easier to fit in compact cases.

The Verdict

The data supports a straightforward split. Users who prioritize maximum performance in DirectX 12, OpenCL, and Vulkan workloads should choose the NVIDIA TITAN Xp. It wins every shared benchmark by margins of -55.6% to -64.2%, and its specification sheet shows why: more than double the shading units, more than double the memory bandwidth, three times the memory capacity, and more than double the FP32 throughput. The TITAN Xp is the clear choice for demanding gaming and compute scenarios where raw throughput is the primary concern.

Users who care about aggregate benchmark standing, lower power draw, or FP16 compute should consider the AMD Radeon RX 580 2048SP. Its average benchmark score of 23061 exceeds the TITAN Xp's 19177, and its 68th percentile ranking beats the TITAN Xp's 64th. Its 150 W TDP and 450 W suggested PSU make it far less demanding on the rest of the system, and its 1:1 FP16 ratio is notable for workloads that use half-precision arithmetic. The RX 580 2048SP also includes a DVI port, which may matter for users with legacy displays.

The choice ultimately depends on which benchmark set reflects the user's actual workload. For the three tests both cards share, the TITAN Xp is dominant. For the broader database average, the RX 580 2048SP comes out ahead. Neither card is in production, so availability is limited to the used market, and the TITAN Xp's launch MSRP of 1,199 USD reflects its original high-end positioning. The RX 580 2048SP, by contrast, has no recorded launch MSRP, which suggests it was positioned as a more accessible part. The recorded data favors the TITAN Xp for raw performance and the RX 580 2048SP for efficiency and aggregate score, and the right pick is simply the one that matches the user's priorities.