AMD Radeon Vega 11 vs NVIDIA GeForce GTX 580 Comparison

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The only directly comparable benchmark between these two GPUs is Geekbench OpenCL, and the data shows a decisive victory for the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 580. The GTX 580 posts a score of 15,283, while the AMD Radeon Vega 11 manages 13,392. That translates to a 14.1% delta in favor of the NVIDIA card — a substantial margin for a single compute workload.

However, the benchmark picture is more nuanced when looking at the full test suites each card has run. The Vega 11 has been tested across three different APIs: Metal, OpenCL, and Vulkan. Its Metal score of 17,392 is notably higher than its OpenCL result of 13,392, and its Vulkan score of 12,273 sits below both. The GTX 580 has only a single OpenCL result in this data set, so cross-API comparisons are limited. Still, the OpenCL head-to-head is the only apples-to-apples comparison available, and it favors NVIDIA by a clear margin.

Context from the nearest rivals list helps interpret these scores. The GTX 580's 15,283 OpenCL score places it within 0.1% of the AMD Radeon 680M (15,270) and essentially tied with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 (15,290). The Vega 11's average benchmark score of 14,352 sits in a different class — it trails the NVIDIA GeForce GTX TITAN (14,373) by 0.1% and the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 965M (14,404) by 0.4%. The delta between the two cards' average scores is roughly 6%, but the OpenCL-specific gap is more than double that.

What does this imply? The GTX 580's OpenCL advantage is real and consistent, but the Vega 11's higher Metal score suggests its performance varies significantly by workload and API. The NVIDIA card appears more consistent in compute tasks, while AMD's integrated part shows strengths in specific environments. The percentile rankings tell a similar story: the GTX 580 sits at the 58th percentile of all GPUs, while the Vega 11 is at the 56th. These are close overall standings, yet the direct comparison reveals a wider gap in OpenCL specifically.

Architecture Differences

The architectural divide here is stark. The GTX 580 uses NVIDIA's Fermi 2.0 architecture on the GF110 chip, built on a 40 nm process at TSMC. The Vega 11 employs AMD's GCN 5.0 architecture on the Picasso chip, fabricated by GlobalFoundries at 12 nm. That process difference is significant — 40 nm versus 12 nm means the AMD part uses a much more advanced manufacturing node, which helps explain its dramatically lower power draw.

Transistor counts tell an interesting story. The GTX 580 packs 3,000 million transistors on a 520 mm² die, yielding a transistor density of 5.8 million per square millimeter. The Vega 11 integrates 4,940 million transistors on a 210 mm² die, achieving 23.5 million per square millimeter. AMD's chip is four times denser despite having more total transistors. This density advantage is a direct consequence of the newer process node.

The Vega 11 is an integrated graphics processor (IGP) with a 15 W TDP and no dedicated power connectors. The GTX 580 is a dual-slot discrete card with a 244 W TDP, requiring both a 6-pin and an 8-pin power connector, and a suggested 550 W power supply. These are fundamentally different product categories — one is a standalone expansion card, the other is built into a processor package.

Memory configurations differ completely. The GTX 580 has 1536 MB of dedicated GDDR5 memory on a 384-bit bus, delivering 192.4 GB/s of bandwidth. The Vega 11 uses system-shared memory, meaning its bandwidth is system-dependent and its memory bus width is also system-dependent. This is a critical architectural distinction: the discrete card has guaranteed memory bandwidth, while the integrated part must compete with the CPU for system memory access.

Compute resources also diverge. The GTX 580 has 512 shading units, 64 texture mapping units, and 48 render output units. The Vega 11 has 704 shading units, 44 TMUs, and only 8 ROPs. Despite having more shaders, the AMD part's pixel rate is 11.20 GPixel/s versus 24.70 GPixel/s for NVIDIA — the ROP count difference is punishing. Texture rate slightly favors AMD at 61.60 GTexel/s versus 49.41 GTexel/s, but that's a narrow win. FP32 compute favors AMD at 1.971 TFLOPS versus 1.581 TFLOPS, and the Vega 11 also supports FP16 at 3.942 TFLOPS, which the GTX 580 lacks entirely.

API support is another differentiator. The Vega 11 supports DirectX 12 (12_1), Vulkan 1.3, and OpenGL 4.6. The GTX 580 supports DirectX 12 (11_0), OpenGL 4.6, but no Vulkan support is listed. The GTX 580's PCIe 2.0 x16 interface contrasts with the Vega 11's IGP bus, meaning the NVIDIA card connects as a traditional expansion device while AMD's part communicates through the processor's integrated fabric.

The Verdict

The data points to a clear but context-dependent answer. If the task is OpenCL compute, the GTX 580 wins by 14.1% — that's a decisive margin. The NVIDIA card also has guaranteed dedicated memory bandwidth of 192.4 GB/s, while the Vega 11's memory performance is system-dependent and therefore variable. For workloads sensitive to memory bandwidth, the GTX 580's dedicated GDDR5 is structurally superior.

However, the Vega 11's higher FP32 throughput (1.971 TFLOPS versus 1.581 TFLOPS) and FP16 support suggest it may outperform in compute tasks that leverage those capabilities. Its 704 shading units versus 512 for NVIDIA also give it raw shader count advantage, even if ROP limitations cap its pixel throughput. The Vega 11's Metal score of 17,392 — higher than any GTX 580 result in this data — hints that in certain API environments, AMD's part can punch well above its average.

Power consumption is not a contest. The Vega 11's 15 W TDP versus the GTX 580's 244 W is a 16-fold difference. For any system where power efficiency matters, the AMD part is the only rational choice. The GTX 580 requires a 550 W power supply and dual-slot space; the Vega 11 requires neither. The GTX 580 also has a 267 mm length and 111 mm height, making physical installation a consideration.

The release timeline matters too. The GTX 580 launched on November 8, 2010, with a launch MSRP of 499 USD. The Vega 11 arrived on September 29, 2019. Nearly nine years separate them, yet the older discrete card wins the only direct benchmark. That says something about the performance ceiling of integrated graphics versus dedicated hardware — even a nine-year-old flagship GPU can outperform a modern IGP in compute workloads.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU wins the direct benchmark comparison?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 580 wins the Geekbench OpenCL test with a score of 15,283 against the AMD Radeon Vega 11's 13,392, a 14.1% advantage.

Q: Does the Vega 11 have any performance advantages?

A: Yes — it has higher FP32 compute at 1.971 TFLOPS versus 1.581 TFLOPS, higher texture rate at 61.60 GTexel/s versus 49.41 GTexel/s, and supports FP16 at 3.942 TFLOPS, which the GTX 580 lacks.

Q: How do the power requirements compare?

A: The GTX 580 has a 244 W TDP and requires a 550 W power supply with 1x 6-pin and 1x 8-pin connectors. The Vega 11 has a 15 W TDP, no power connectors, and no suggested PSU.

Q: What memory do each card use?

A: The GTX 580 uses 1536 MB of dedicated GDDR5 on a 384-bit bus with 192.4 GB/s bandwidth. The Vega 11 uses system-shared memory with system-dependent bandwidth.

Q: Which card has better API support?

A: The Vega 11 supports DirectX 12 (12_1), Vulkan 1.3, and OpenGL 4.6. The GTX 580 supports DirectX 12 (11_0) and OpenGL 4.6, but has no listed Vulkan support.

Q: What are the form factor differences?

A: The GTX 580 is a dual-slot card measuring 267 mm by 111 mm. The Vega 11 is an IGP with no physical dimensions listed and motherboard-dependent display outputs.

Where Each One Wins

The GTX 580 wins in OpenCL compute workloads — the 14.1% benchmark delta is unambiguous. It also wins in pixel throughput with 24.70 GPixel/s versus 11.20 GPixel/s, making it better suited for rasterization-heavy tasks. Dedicated 192.4 GB/s memory bandwidth is another category where NVIDIA dominates, as the Vega 11's bandwidth is system-dependent and cannot guarantee consistent performance. For gaming at higher resolutions where fill rate matters, the GTX 580's 48 ROPs versus 8 ROPs is a structural advantage.

The Vega 11 wins in power efficiency by a massive margin — 15 W versus 244 W TDP. It also wins in raw shader count (704 versus 512), FP32 throughput, texture fill rate, and FP16 capability. For compute workloads that leverage half-precision math, the Vega 11's 3.942 TFLOPS FP16 is a capability the GTX 580 simply does not have. The integrated form factor is a win for space-constrained systems, as it requires no expansion slot, no power connectors, and no additional cooling beyond the host processor's solution.

The Vega 11's Metal score of 17,392 versus its OpenCL score of 13,392 suggests it may win in Metal-based applications, though no direct GTX 580 Metal result exists for comparison. The GTX 580's placement near the RTX 2060 (15,290) and Radeon 680M (15,270) in the rivals list indicates it holds its own against much newer hardware, while the Vega 11's rivals cluster around the GTX TITAN (14,373) and GTX 965M (14,404).

Specification Differences

| Specification | NVIDIA GeForce GTX 580 | AMD Radeon Vega 11 |

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

| Architecture | Fermi 2.0 | GCN 5.0 |

| Chip | GF110 | Picasso |

| Process Node | 40 nm | 12 nm |

| Foundry | TSMC | GlobalFoundries |

| Transistors | 3,000 million | 4,940 million |

| Die Size | 520 mm² | 210 mm² |

| Transistor Density | 5.8M / mm² | 23.5M / mm² |

| Memory Size | 1536 MB | System Shared |

| Memory Type | GDDR5 | System Shared |

| Memory Bus Width | 384 bit | System Shared |

| Memory Bandwidth | 192.4 GB/s | System Dependent |

| Shading Units | 512 | 704 |

| TMUs | 64 | 44 |

| ROPs | 48 | 8 |

| Pixel Rate | 24.70 GPixel/s | 11.20 GPixel/s |

| Texture Rate | 49.41 GTexel/s | 61.60 GTexel/s |

| FP32 | 1.581 TFLOPS | 1.971 TFLOPS |

| FP16 | N/A | 3.942 TFLOPS (2:1) |

| TDP | 244 W | 15 W |

| Slot Width | Dual-slot | IGP |

| Power Connectors | 1x 6-pin + 1x 8-pin | None |

| Suggested PSU | 550 W | N/A |

| Bus Interface | PCIe 2.0 x16 | IGP |

| Display Outputs | 2x DVI, 1x mini-HDMI 1.3a | Motherboard Dependent |

| DirectX | 12 (11_0) | 12 (12_1) |

| Vulkan | N/A | 1.3 |

| Release Date | 2010-11-08 | 2019-09-29 |

| Predecessor | GeForce 400 | GCN 3.0 IGP |

| Successor | GeForce 600 | Vega II IGP |