AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT vs NVIDIA Tesla M60 Comparison

The AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT and NVIDIA Tesla M60 occupy opposite ends of the GPU lifecycle, yet their average benchmark scores in this database are separated by only 0.4%. That near-tie is misleading: the RX 7700 XT was tested across ten workloads, while the Tesla M60 has only two recorded results, and in the only direct head-to-head comparisons available—Geekbench OpenCL and Vulkan—the AMD card leads by 334%. This analysis examines the architecture, benchmark outcomes, and specification gaps to determine which GPU suits which role.

The Verdict

The data points to a clear split. The AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT is the superior choice for any workload that benefits from modern compute, display output, or raw throughput. It wins both head-to-head benchmarks by over 334%, offers 12 GB of GDDR6 memory versus 8 GB of GDDR5, and includes ray tracing cores—a feature the Tesla M60 lacks entirely. The Tesla M60, meanwhile, is an end-of-life server accelerator with no display outputs, a 28 nm process, and a 300 W TDP. Its only advantage in the specification sheet is a wider 256-bit memory bus, but that does not translate into a single benchmark win. For interactive use, gaming, or compute tasks that leverage current APIs, the RX 7700 XT is the only rational pick. The Tesla M60 could still be relevant in legacy server environments that require a specific Maxwell-era feature set, but the benchmark evidence shows it is dramatically slower in compute-oriented tests. The average score parity is an artifact of differing test sets, not real performance equivalence.

Architecture Differences

The two GPUs are built on completely different process nodes. The RX 7700 XT uses a 5 nm TSMC process, while the Tesla M60 uses 28 nm. That node gap is reflected in transistor density: the AMD chip packs 28,100 million transistors into a 346 mm² die (81.2 million per mm²), whereas the Tesla M60 has only 5,200 million transistors on a larger 398 mm² die (13.1 million per mm²). The RX 7700 XT's Navi 32 die is smaller but far denser, enabling more compute units in less space.

The shading resources differ massively. The RX 7700 XT has 3,456 shading units, 216 texture mapping units, and 96 ROPs, plus 54 ray tracing cores. The Tesla M60 has 2,048 shading units, 128 TMUs, and 64 ROPs, with no RT cores. Clock speeds also diverge: the RX 7700 XT runs at a base of 1435 MHz and boosts to 2544 MHz, while the Tesla M60 operates at a much lower 557 MHz base and 1178 MHz boost. Memory configuration favors the AMD card in capacity and bandwidth: 12 GB of GDDR6 on a 192-bit bus yields 432.0 GB/s, versus 8 GB of GDDR5 on a 256-bit bus at 160.4 GB/s. The Tesla M60's wider bus cannot compensate for the slower memory type and lower clock.

Feature support further separates them. The RX 7700 XT supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), while the Tesla M60 is limited to DirectX 12 (12_1). Both support OpenGL 4.6 and Vulkan 1.4, but the RX 7700 XT adds a USB Type-C output, two DisplayPort 2.1 connections, and an HDMI 2.1a port. The Tesla M60 has no display outputs at all, making it unsuitable for any direct-attached monitor use. The RX 7700 XT also uses PCIe 4.0 x16, whereas the Tesla M60 uses PCIe 3.0 x16.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

Only two benchmarks have been recorded for both GPUs, and the results are lopsided. In Geekbench OpenCL, the RX 7700 XT scores 127,549 against the Tesla M60's 29,377—a 334.2% advantage. In Geekbench Vulkan, the RX 7700 XT scores 132,758 versus 30,560, a 334.4% lead. These deltas are so large that they dwarf any other comparison in this database. The RX 7700 XT's FP32 compute throughput is 35.17 TFLOPS, while the Tesla M60 manages only 4.825 TFLOPS—a 7.3× difference that aligns with the benchmark results.

The average benchmark scores tell a different story. The RX 7700 XT has an average score of 30,097 across ten tests, while the Tesla M60 averages 29,969 across just two. The deltaPct values from the nearestRivals lists show the RX 7700 XT is 0.4% faster than the Tesla M60, and the Tesla M60 is 0.4% slower than the RX 7700 XT. That near-parity is an artifact of the test set: the RX 7700 XT's average includes many Passmark DirectX tests where it scores relatively low (e.g., 79 in DirectX 12, 119 in DirectX 10), pulling its average down. The Tesla M60's average comes solely from Geekbench, where it is also weak. The direct head-to-head results are the only fair comparison, and they are unambiguous.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has higher memory bandwidth?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT has 432.0 GB/s, more than double the Tesla M60's 160.4 GB/s, despite the Tesla's wider 256-bit bus.

Q: Does the Tesla M60 support ray tracing?

A: No. The Tesla M60 has no ray tracing cores, while the RX 7700 XT includes 54 RT cores.

Q: Can the Tesla M60 be used with a monitor?

A: No. The Tesla M60 has no display outputs, whereas the RX 7700 XT offers HDMI 2.1a, DisplayPort 2.1, and USB Type-C outputs.

Q: Which GPU is more power-hungry?

A: The Tesla M60 has a higher TDP of 300 W, compared to the RX 7700 XT's 245 W. The Tesla also requires a 700 W suggested PSU, while the RX 7700 XT suggests 550 W.

Q: What is the release date difference?

A: The RX 7700 XT was released on 2023-08-24, while the Tesla M60 dates to 2015-08-29. The RX 7700 XT is still in active production; the Tesla M60 is end-of-life.

Q: Which GPU has more shading units?

A: The RX 7700 XT has 3,456 shading units, compared to the Tesla M60's 2,048.

Where Each One Wins

The RX 7700 XT wins every measurable performance category. It dominates in pixel rate (244.2 GPixel/s vs 75.39 GPixel/s), texture rate (549.5 GTexel/s vs 150.8 GTexel/s), and FP32 compute (35.17 TFLOPS vs 4.825 TFLOPS). It also has double the memory capacity, nearly triple the bandwidth, and a more modern process node. The only specification where the Tesla M60 has a numerical advantage is memory bus width (256-bit vs 192-bit), but that does not yield any benchmark win. The Tesla M60's lower clock speeds and older architecture ensure it loses every direct comparison.

For use cases, the RX 7700 XT is the obvious choice for gaming, content creation, or any workload that requires display output or modern API features like DirectX 12 Ultimate. Its ray tracing cores and higher compute throughput make it suitable for real-time ray tracing and compute-heavy tasks. The Tesla M60, with no display outputs and a 28 nm process, is only relevant in a server rack where headless operation is acceptable and where legacy Maxwell driver support is mandatory. Even then, the RX 7700 XT's raw performance advantage in OpenCL and Vulkan suggests it would outperform the Tesla in most compute scenarios, provided the software stack supports RDNA 3.0.

Specification Differences

The following fields differ between the two GPUs:

• Process node: 5 nm (RX 7700 XT) vs 28 nm (Tesla M60)
• Transistors: 28,100 million vs 5,200 million
• Die size: 346 mm² vs 398 mm²
• Transistor density: 81.2M / mm² vs 13.1M / mm²
• Base clock: 1435 MHz vs 557 MHz
• Boost clock: 2544 MHz vs 1178 MHz
• Game clock: 2171 MHz (RX only)
• Memory size: 12 GB vs 8 GB
• Memory type: GDDR6 vs GDDR5
• Memory bus width: 192 bit vs 256 bit
• Memory bandwidth: 432.0 GB/s vs 160.4 GB/s
• Shading units: 3456 vs 2048
• TMUs: 216 vs 128
• ROPs: 96 vs 64
• RT cores: 54 vs none
• Pixel rate: 244.2 GPixel/s vs 75.39 GPixel/s
• Texture rate: 549.5 GTexel/s vs 150.8 GTexel/s
• FP32: 35.17 TFLOPS vs 4.825 TFLOPS
• FP16: 70.34 TFLOPS (2:1) vs not available
• TDP: 245 W vs 300 W
• Power connectors: 2x 8-pin vs 1x 8-pin
• Suggested PSU: 550 W vs 700 W
• Bus interface: PCIe 4.0 x16 vs PCIe 3.0 x16
• Display outputs: 1x HDMI 2.1a, 2x DisplayPort 2.1, 1x USB Type-C vs no outputs
• DirectX support: 12 Ultimate (12_2) vs 12 (12_1)
• Release date: 2023-08-24 vs 2015-08-29
• Production status: Active vs End-of-life
• Launch MSRP: 449 USD (RX 7700 XT only)
• Predecessor/Successor: Navi II / Navi IV vs Tesla Kepler / Tesla Pascal

The RX 7700 XT also has defined height and width dimensions (135 mm and 50 mm), while the Tesla M60's height and width are not listed. Both cards share the same length (267 mm) and are dual-slot.