AMD Radeon RX 7600S vs NVIDIA Tesla K80 Comparison

The NVIDIA Tesla K80 and AMD Radeon RX 7600S represent two very different eras of GPU design, and the benchmark data reflects a clear generational shift. In the head-to-head results recorded in the database, the AMD Radeon RX 7600S wins both available tests by a substantial margin. The Tesla K80, a dual-GPU compute card from the Kepler generation, posts a Geekbench OpenCL score of 18,620, while the RX 7600S reaches 68,012, a difference of 72.6 percent in favor of the AMD part. The Vulkan results show an even larger gap: the Tesla K80 scores 19,111, and the RX 7600S scores 73,868, putting the AMD mobile GPU 74.1 percent ahead. These are not marginal wins; the RX 7600S delivers roughly 3.6 to 3.9 times the raw compute performance in these specific workloads.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The two recorded head-to-head tests, Geekbench OpenCL and Geekbench Vulkan, both favor the AMD Radeon RX 7600S decisively. In OpenCL, the AMD part scores 68,012 against the Tesla K80’s 18,620. The delta of 72.6 percent means the RX 7600S is more than three and a half times faster in this compute-oriented test. For Vulkan, the RX 7600S scores 73,868 versus 19,111 for the Tesla K80, a 74.1 percent advantage. This pattern holds across both APIs, indicating that the architectural advantages of the newer RDNA 3.0 design translate into consistent performance gains regardless of the compute framework.

The Tesla K80’s average benchmark score across all recorded tests is 18,866, while the RX 7600S averages 16,696. This is an interesting inversion: despite losing both head-to-head tests, the Tesla K80 has a higher average score because the RX 7600S’s average is pulled down by a broader set of tests, including several Passmark entries where it scores low (for example, 74 in DirectX 10, 65 in DirectX 12, and 211 in DirectX 9). These low sub-scores likely reflect the mobile nature of the RX 7600S or driver-specific behavior in legacy APIs, but they do not change the outcome of the two direct comparisons. The percentile rankings also differ: the Tesla K80 sits at the 63rd percentile of all GPUs, while the RX 7600S sits at the 60th. Both are mid-pack performers overall, but the RX 7600S’s head-to-head dominance is unambiguous.

Looking at the nearest rivals for each card provides additional context. The Tesla K80’s average score of 18,866 places it within a tight cluster: the GeForce RTX 2070 scores 18,789 (0.4 percent lower), the RTX 2000 Ada Generation scores 18,954 (0.5 percent higher), the Quadro K6000 scores 19,030 (0.9 percent higher), and the Radeon RX 6600 scores 19,036 (0.9 percent higher). This means the Tesla K80 performs almost identically to a mid-range desktop GPU from several generations later, which is remarkable for a 2014 compute card. The RX 7600S, with an average of 16,696, sits near the NVIDIA T400 4 GB (16,792, 0.6 percent higher), the T400 (16,508, 1.1 percent lower), the GeForce RTX 5090 D V2 (16,504, 1.2 percent lower), and the Tesla M4 (16,932, 1.4 percent higher). The RX 7600S’s average is lower than the Tesla K80’s, but this is due to the aforementioned Passmark legacy tests dragging down its mean, not due to a lack of raw compute power.

Architecture Differences

The architectural gap between these two GPUs is vast. The Tesla K80 uses the GK210 chip, built on the Kepler 2.0 architecture, while the RX 7600S uses Navi 33, based on RDNA 3.0. The manufacturing process tells the story: the Tesla K80 is on a 28 nm node from TSMC, while the RX 7600S is on a 6 nm node, also from TSMC. This process shrink allows the RX 7600S to pack 13,300 million transistors into a 204 mm² die, achieving a transistor density of 65.2 million per square millimeter. In contrast, the Tesla K80 has 7,100 million transistors on a much larger 561 mm² die, for a density of just 12.7 million per square millimeter. The RX 7600S fits nearly twice the transistors into less than half the silicon area.

Core counts also differ significantly. The Tesla K80 has 2,496 shading units, 208 texture mapping units, and 48 raster output pipelines. The RX 7600S has 1,792 shading units, 112 TMUs, and 64 ROPs. Despite having fewer shading units, the RX 7600S achieves much higher throughput thanks to its higher clock speeds. The Tesla K80’s base clock is 562 MHz with a boost of 824 MHz, while the RX 7600S runs at a base of 1500 MHz, a game clock of 1865 MHz, and a boost of 2200 MHz. This clock advantage, combined with the newer architecture’s efficiency, results in the RX 7600S delivering 15.77 TFLOPS of FP32 compute versus the Tesla K80’s 4.113 TFLOPS. The RX 7600S also supports FP16 at 31.54 TFLOPS (2:1 ratio), while the Tesla K80 lists no FP16 capability.

Memory configurations diverge as well. The Tesla K80 has 12 GB of GDDR5 on a 384-bit bus, yielding 240.6 GB/s of bandwidth. The RX 7600S has 8 GB of GDDR6 on a 128-bit bus, but achieves slightly higher bandwidth at 256.0 GB/s due to faster memory clocks (2000 MHz base, 16 Gbps effective versus 1253 MHz, 5 Gbps effective for the Tesla K80). The RX 7600S also includes 28 ray tracing cores, a feature the Tesla K80 lacks entirely. The Tesla K80 supports DirectX 12 (11_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.2.175, while the RX 7600S supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. The RX 7600S’s newer API support gives it access to modern rendering features like mesh shaders and variable rate shading, which the Kepler architecture cannot handle.

Where Each One Wins

Based on the recorded data, the AMD Radeon RX 7600S wins every direct comparison. In Geekbench OpenCL, it is 72.6 percent faster than the Tesla K80, and in Geekbench Vulkan, it is 74.1 percent faster. These are the only two head-to-head tests available, and the AMD card wins both. The RX 7600S also offers significantly higher pixel and texture rates: 140.8 GPixel/s and 246.4 GTexel/s, respectively, versus the Tesla K80’s 42.85 GPixel/s and 171.4 GTexel/s. For any workload that relies on raw compute throughput, modern API features, or ray tracing, the RX 7600S is the clear choice.

However, the Tesla K80 has its own strengths in the data. Its 12 GB of memory, while on a slower GDDR5 interface, provides more capacity than the RX 7600S’s 8 GB. For workloads that need to hold large datasets in VRAM, the Tesla K80’s higher capacity could be an advantage, though its lower bandwidth (240.6 GB/s versus 256.0 GB/s) partially offsets this. The Tesla K80 also has a higher average benchmark score (18,866 versus 16,696) and a higher percentile ranking (63rd versus 60th). This is driven by the RX 7600S’s poor showing in Passmark legacy tests, where it scores 74 in DirectX 10, 65 in DirectX 12, and 211 in DirectX 9. In the Passmark G3D test, the RX 7600S scores 15,408, which is decent, but the older API tests drag down its overall average. The Tesla K80, by contrast, has no recorded low sub-scores, suggesting more consistent performance across a wider range of test conditions.

For use cases, the data suggests the RX 7600S is better suited for modern compute and graphics workloads that leverage Vulkan, OpenCL, or the latest DirectX 12 Ultimate features. Its FP32 throughput of 15.77 TFLOPS is nearly four times that of the Tesla K80, making it far more capable for general-purpose GPU compute. The RX 7600S also supports ray tracing, which is absent on the Tesla K80. On the other hand, the Tesla K80, with its 12 GB frame buffer and dual-slot design, appears oriented toward compute tasks that prioritize memory capacity over speed. Its lack of display outputs confirms it is a server or workstation accelerator, not a consumer graphics card.

Specification Differences

The two cards differ in nearly every specification category. The Tesla K80 is built on a 28 nm process, while the RX 7600S uses 6 nm. The Tesla K80 has 7,100 million transistors on a 561 mm² die, while the RX 7600S has 13,300 million on a 204 mm² die. Transistor density is 12.7M per mm² for the Tesla K80 and 65.2M per mm² for the RX 7600S. Clock speeds: the Tesla K80 runs at 562 MHz base and 824 MHz boost, while the RX 7600S runs at 1500 MHz base, 1865 MHz game, and 2200 MHz boost. Memory: the Tesla K80 has 12 GB GDDR5 on a 384-bit bus at 240.6 GB/s, while the RX 7600S has 8 GB GDDR6 on a 128-bit bus at 256.0 GB/s. Shading units: 2,496 versus 1,792. TMUs: 208 versus 112. ROPs: 48 versus 64. The RX 7600S has 28 ray tracing cores; the Tesla K80 has none. Pixel rate: 42.85 GPixel/s versus 140.8 GPixel/s. Texture rate: 171.4 GTexel/s versus 246.4 GTexel/s. FP32: 4.113 TFLOPS versus 15.77 TFLOPS. The RX 7600S lists FP16 at 31.54 TFLOPS (2:1), while the Tesla K80 has no FP16 listing. TDP: 300 W versus 75 W. The Tesla K80 is dual-slot with a single 8-pin power connector and requires a 700 W PSU, while the RX 7600S is an IGP with no power connectors and no suggested PSU. The Tesla K80 uses PCIe 3.0 x16; the RX 7600S uses PCIe 4.0 x16. The Tesla K80 has no display outputs; the RX 7600S’s outputs are portable device dependent. API support: the Tesla K80 supports DirectX 12 (11_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.2.175; the RX 7600S supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. The Tesla K80 is end-of-life, released in November 2014; the RX 7600S is active, released in January 2023. The Tesla K80’s predecessor is Tesla Fermi and its successor is Tesla Maxwell; the RX 7600S’s predecessor is Polaris Mobile and it has no listed successor.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU wins in Geekbench OpenCL?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 7600S wins with a score of 68,012 versus the NVIDIA Tesla K80’s 18,620, a 72.6 percent advantage.

Q: How do the two cards compare in Vulkan performance?

A: The RX 7600S scores 73,868, while the Tesla K80 scores 19,111, giving the AMD card a 74.1 percent lead.

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

A: The Tesla K80 has an average score of 18,866, and the RX 7600S has an average of 16,696. The Tesla K80’s higher average is due to the RX 7600S’s low scores in Passmark legacy tests.

Q: How much memory does each GPU have?

A: The Tesla K80 has 12 GB of GDDR5 memory, while the RX 7600S has 8 GB of GDDR6. The RX 7600S has higher bandwidth at 256.0 GB/s versus 240.6 GB/s.

Q: What are the power requirements for each card?

A: The Tesla K80 has a TDP of 300 W and requires a 700 W PSU, while the RX 7600S has a TDP of 75 W and needs no external power connectors.

Q: Does either GPU support ray tracing?

A: Only the RX 7600S supports ray tracing, with 28 ray tracing cores. The Tesla K80 has no ray tracing cores listed.

The Verdict

The data is unambiguous for anyone comparing these two GPUs for modern workloads. The AMD Radeon RX 7600S wins both head-to-head tests by over 72 percent, offers nearly four times the FP32 throughput (15.77 TFLOPS versus 4.113 TFLOPS), supports ray tracing, and consumes only 75 W versus the Tesla K80’s 300 W. It is also built on a far more advanced 6 nm process with a much higher transistor density. For any application that uses OpenCL, Vulkan, DirectX 12 Ultimate, or FP16 compute, the RX 7600S is the superior choice.

The NVIDIA Tesla K80, however, still holds a niche. Its 12 GB of VRAM is 4 GB more than the RX 7600S, which could matter for workloads that require large memory footprints. It also has a higher average benchmark score (18,866 versus 16,696) and a higher percentile ranking (63rd versus 60th), driven by more consistent performance across all recorded tests, including legacy Passmark APIs where the RX 7600S scores poorly. The Tesla K80’s Kepler architecture, while old, still holds its own against mid-range GPUs from several generations later, as its nearest rivals (RTX 2070, RTX 2000 Ada, Quadro K6000, RX 6600) all fall within 0.9 percent of its average score.

For a buyer in 2024 or later, the choice depends on workload. If the task involves modern APIs, ray tracing, high FP32 throughput, or energy efficiency, the RX 7600S is the clear pick. If the task requires maximum VRAM capacity and can tolerate lower performance and higher power draw, the Tesla K80 may still be relevant, but only for narrowly defined compute scenarios. The RX 7600S is the better all-round performer, and the recorded benchmarks confirm it without qualification.