AMD Radeon RX Vega 56 vs NVIDIA TITAN V Comparison

AMD Radeon RX Vega 56 and NVIDIA TITAN V are both end-of-life graphics cards from 2017, yet they represent fundamentally different design philosophies and performance tiers. The data shows a single head-to-head benchmark result, which heavily favors the NVIDIA TITAN V, but a deeper look at their underlying specifications reveals why these cards appeal to very different users.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The only direct comparison available in the data is the 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 test, and the result is decisive. The NVIDIA TITAN V scores 3565 points, while the AMD Radeon RX Vega 56 scores 1501 points. This translates to a 57.9% advantage for the TITAN V, a massive margin that underscores the performance gulf between these two products. The TITAN V does not merely edge out the RX Vega 56; it more than doubles its score in this specific workload.

Looking at the broader benchmark landscape, the average benchmark scores tell a similar, though slightly less dramatic, story. The RX Vega 56 achieves an average score of 37507, while the TITAN V sits at 34355. This is a counterintuitive result given the 3DMark outcome. The RX Vega 56’s higher average is likely influenced by its performance in the Geekbench Metal test, where it scores 73512. The TITAN V does not have a Metal score listed, but it posts strong numbers in other APIs: 157265 in Geekbench OpenCL and 152117 in Geekbench Vulkan. The RX Vega 56’s percentile ranking is also higher at 81 compared to the TITAN V’s 79, suggesting that across all GPUs in the database, the RX Vega 56 sits slightly better relative to its peers.

The nearest rivals for each card provide additional context. The RX Vega 56’s closest competitor is the NVIDIA Tesla P4, which scores 37628 (a 0.3% difference), and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070, scoring 37648 (0.4% difference). This places the RX Vega 56 in a surprisingly competitive position against much newer hardware. The TITAN V, by contrast, is flanked by the NVIDIA RTX A1000 at 34207 (0.4% difference) and the AMD Radeon HD 7970 at 34541 (0.5% difference). The presence of a decade-old card like the HD 7970 as a near rival suggests the TITAN V’s average score is dragged down by its poor performance in legacy DirectX tests, where it scores as low as 81 in DirectX 12 and 153 in DirectX 10.

Architecture Differences

The architectural chasm between these two cards is stark. The AMD Radeon RX Vega 56 is built on GCN 5.0 architecture using a 14 nm process at GlobalFoundries, featuring 12,500 million transistors on a 495 mm² die. The NVIDIA TITAN V employs Volta architecture on a more advanced 12 nm process at TSMC, packing 21,100 million transistors into a massive 815 mm² die. The transistor density is nearly identical — 25.3M / mm² for AMD and 25.9M / mm² for NVIDIA — but NVIDIA’s sheer die size gives it a significant raw resource advantage.

Core counts diverge substantially. The RX Vega 56 has 3584 shading units, 224 texture mapping units, and 64 ROPs. The TITAN V offers 5120 shading units, 320 TMUs, and 96 ROPs, representing increases of roughly 43%, 43%, and 50% respectively. The TITAN V also introduces 640 tensor cores, a feature entirely absent from the RX Vega 56, which has none. This makes the TITAN V a more versatile compute device, particularly for workloads that leverage tensor operations.

Memory configurations differ as well. The RX Vega 56 has 8 GB of HBM2 memory on a 2048-bit bus, delivering 409.6 GB/s of bandwidth. The TITAN V has 12 GB of HBM2 on a wider 3072-bit bus, achieving 651.3 GB/s. The TITAN V’s memory bandwidth advantage is substantial, which matters for high-resolution textures and compute tasks. Clock speeds favor the AMD card in boost terms: the RX Vega 56 runs at 1156 MHz base and 1471 MHz boost, while the TITAN V runs at 1200 MHz base and 1455 MHz boost. The AMD card’s higher boost clock does not compensate for its lower core count, as evidenced by the raw throughput figures: the RX Vega 56 delivers 10.54 TFLOPS FP32 and 21.09 TFLOPS FP16, while the TITAN V delivers 14.90 TFLOPS FP32 and 29.80 TFLOPS FP16.

Power requirements also differ. The RX Vega 56 has a 210 W TDP and requires 2x 8-pin power connectors, with a suggested 550 W PSU. The TITAN V draws more at 250 W, uses 1x 6-pin + 1x 8-pin connectors, and suggests a 600 W PSU. The TITAN V is also slightly shorter at 267 mm compared to 280 mm for the RX Vega 56, though both are dual-slot cards with a 40 mm width.

FAQ

Q: Which card wins the only direct benchmark comparison?

A: The NVIDIA TITAN V wins decisively in the 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 test, scoring 3565 against the RX Vega 56’s 1501, a 57.9% difference in favor of NVIDIA.

Q: Does the RX Vega 56 have any advantage over the TITAN V?

A: Yes, the RX Vega 56 has a higher average benchmark score of 37507 compared to 34355 for the TITAN V, and a better percentile ranking at 81 versus 79. It also has a higher boost clock at 1471 MHz versus 1455 MHz.

Q: Why does the TITAN V’s average score seem low relative to its 3DMark result?

A: The TITAN V’s average is pulled down by poor legacy DirectX performance, scoring only 153 in DirectX 10, 152 in DirectX 11, and 81 in DirectX 12, alongside a low 937 in Passmark G2D. These scores contrast sharply with its strong OpenCL and Vulkan results.

Q: What is the memory bandwidth difference between the two cards?

A: The TITAN V has 651.3 GB/s bandwidth from its 3072-bit bus, while the RX Vega 56 offers 409.6 GB/s from a 2048-bit bus, giving NVIDIA a 59% advantage in memory throughput.

Q: Do both cards support the same APIs?

A: No, they differ. Both support DirectX 12 (12_1) and OpenGL 4.6, but the RX Vega 56 supports Vulkan 1.3, while the TITAN V supports Vulkan 1.4, a newer revision.

Q: Which card has more shading units?

A: The TITAN V has 5120 shading units, which is 43% more than the RX Vega 56’s 3584 units, directly contributing to its higher raw FP32 throughput of 14.90 TFLOPS versus 10.54 TFLOPS.

The Verdict

The data paints a clear picture for raw performance: the NVIDIA TITAN V is the superior GPU in the only head-to-head test available. Its 57.9% lead in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 is enormous, and its higher core counts, memory bandwidth, and FP32 throughput leave little room for debate in modern, demanding workloads. However, the RX Vega 56 is not without merit. Its higher average benchmark score of 37507 versus 34355 suggests it maintains better consistency across a wider range of tests, likely due to its stronger legacy DirectX performance. The RX Vega 56 also has a better percentile ranking at 81 versus 79, meaning it sits higher relative to all GPUs in the database.

For users prioritizing raw compute power, particularly in OpenCL or Vulkan, the TITAN V is the obvious choice. Its 157265 OpenCL score and 152117 Vulkan score are exceptional. For users who need a card that performs reasonably across a broad spectrum of older and newer APIs, the RX Vega 56’s more balanced profile might be preferable. The TITAN V’s 640 tensor cores are a unique feature that the RX Vega 56 lacks entirely, making the NVIDIA card far more capable for AI-related tasks. Conversely, the RX Vega 56’s lower 210 W TDP and 399 USD launch MSRP (versus 2,999 USD for the TITAN V) indicate it was positioned for a completely different market segment, despite both being enthusiast-class products at launch.

Specification Differences

| Specification | AMD Radeon RX Vega 56 | NVIDIA TITAN V |

|---|---|---|

| Architecture | GCN 5.0 | Volta |

| Process Node | 14 nm | 12 nm |

| Foundry | GlobalFoundries | TSMC |

| Transistors | 12,500 million | 21,100 million |

| Die Size | 495 mm² | 815 mm² |

| Base Clock | 1156 MHz | 1200 MHz |

| Boost Clock | 1471 MHz | 1455 MHz |

| Memory Size | 8 GB | 12 GB |

| Memory Bus Width | 2048 bit | 3072 bit |

| Memory Bandwidth | 409.6 GB/s | 651.3 GB/s |

| Shading Units | 3584 | 5120 |

| TMUs | 224 | 320 |

| ROPs | 64 | 96 |

| Tensor Cores | None | 640 |

| FP32 Performance | 10.54 TFLOPS | 14.90 TFLOPS |

| FP16 Performance | 21.09 TFLOPS (2:1) | 29.80 TFLOPS (2:1) |

| Pixel Rate | 94.14 GPixel/s | 139.7 GPixel/s |

| Texture Rate | 329.5 GTexel/s | 465.6 GTexel/s |

| TDP | 210 W | 250 W |

| Power Connectors | 2x 8-pin | 1x 6-pin + 1x 8-pin |

| Suggested PSU | 550 W | 600 W |

| Vulkan Version | 1.3 | 1.4 |

| Length | 280 mm | 267 mm |

| Launch MSRP | 399 USD | 2,999 USD |

Where Each One Wins

The NVIDIA TITAN V wins in nearly every raw performance metric. It dominates in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 with a 57.9% lead, has 43% more shading units, 59% higher memory bandwidth, and 41% higher FP32 throughput. Its tensor cores enable workloads that the RX Vega 56 cannot handle at all. The TITAN V also wins in pixel rate (139.7 GPixel/s versus 94.14 GPixel/s) and texture rate (465.6 GTexel/s versus 329.5 GTexel/s), making it superior for high-resolution rendering and texture-heavy scenes.

The AMD Radeon RX Vega 56 wins in a few specific areas. It has a higher boost clock (1471 MHz versus 1455 MHz), a higher average benchmark score (37507 versus 34355), and a better percentile ranking (81 versus 79). It also has a lower TDP at 210 W versus 250 W, requiring less power and a smaller PSU. In terms of legacy API support, the RX Vega 56’s superior DirectX 10, 11, and 12 scores are not listed for direct comparison, but its higher average score implies better overall consistency. For users who prioritize a card that performs well across a diverse set of applications, including older games and compute tasks, the RX Vega 56 offers a more balanced profile. The TITAN V, meanwhile, is a specialist tool that excels in modern, heavy workloads but stumbles in legacy tests, as evidenced by its extremely low Passmark DirectX scores.