Intel Arc B580 vs NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780 Comparison

The Verdict

The data clearly separates these two GPUs into different eras of performance. The Intel Arc B580 is the decisive winner in every recorded benchmark comparison, with a 306% lead in Geekbench OpenCL and a 347.4% lead in Geekbench Vulkan. The Arc B580 also holds a substantial advantage in average benchmark score, recording 23,021 points compared to the GTX 780's 19,164 points.

For anyone considering these cards, the choice is straightforward based on the numbers. The Arc B580 should be selected by users who need current-generation compute performance, modern API support, and sufficient video memory for contemporary workloads. The GTX 780, with its End-of-life production status and legacy architecture, is only relevant for historical collections or systems constrained to older software environments. The Arc B580's percentile ranking of 68 places it above the GTX 780's 64, indicating broader superiority across the entire GPU landscape. The GTX 780's nearest rivals include the NVIDIA TITAN Xp, Tesla K20m, RTX 4050 Mobile, and AMD Radeon RX 6600, all within 0.7% of its average score, which positions it as a mid-tier performer from its era. The Arc B580, by contrast, sits within 1% of the RTX 2080, RTX 3080, RX 580 2048SP, and P106-100, showing it competes with much more recent hardware.

Architecture Differences

The architectural gap between these two GPUs spans nearly a decade of development. The Arc B580 uses the BMG-G21 chip built on Xe2-HPG architecture, belonging to the Battlemage (Arc 5) generation. It is fabricated on a 5 nm process at TSMC, containing 19,600 million transistors on a 272 mm² die, yielding a transistor density of 72.1M per mm². The GTX 780 uses the GK110 chip on Kepler architecture from the GeForce 700 generation, fabricated on a 28 nm process also at TSMC, with 7,080 million transistors on a 561 mm² die, resulting in a density of just 12.6M per mm². The Arc B580 packs nearly three times the transistors into less than half the die area.

Clock speeds reflect the process node advantage. The Arc B580 operates at a fixed 2670 MHz for both base and boost clocks, while the GTX 780 runs at 863 MHz base and 902 MHz boost. Memory speeds differ similarly: the Arc B580 uses 2375 MHz GDDR6 with 19 Gbps effective throughput, while the GTX 780 uses 1502 MHz GDDR5 with 6 Gbps effective.

The memory subsystem shows a generational shift in design priorities. The Arc B580 provides 12 GB of GDDR6 on a 192-bit bus, delivering 456.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The GTX 780 offers 3 GB of GDDR5 on a wider 384-bit bus, achieving only 288.4 GB/s. Although the GTX 780 has double the bus width, the Arc B580's faster memory technology more than compensates.

Compute resources differ significantly. The Arc B580 has 2,560 shading units, 160 texture mapping units, 80 render output units, and 20 ray tracing cores. The GTX 780 has 2,304 shading units, 192 TMUs, and 48 ROPs, with no ray tracing cores. The Arc B580's pixel rate reaches 213.6 GPixel/s versus 43.30 GPixel/s for the GTX 780, and its texture rate hits 427.2 GTexel/s compared to 173.2 GTexel/s. Floating point performance shows the largest gap: the Arc B580 delivers 13.67 TFLOPS FP32 and 27.34 TFLOPS FP16 (2:1 ratio), while the GTX 780 manages 4.156 TFLOPS FP32 with no FP16 capability listed.

API support reflects the architectural evolution. The Arc B580 supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. The GTX 780 supports DirectX 12 (11_0), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.2.175. The Arc B580's higher DirectX feature level and newer Vulkan version enable modern rendering techniques that the GTX 780 cannot execute.

FAQ

Q: How much faster is the Intel Arc B580 in OpenCL compute workloads?

A: The Arc B580 scores 92,821 in Geekbench OpenCL compared to 22,863 for the GTX 780, representing a 306% advantage.

Q: What is the difference in Vulkan graphics performance?

A: The Arc B580 records 109,672 in Geekbench Vulkan versus 24,514 for the GTX 780, a 347.4% lead for the Intel card.

Q: How do the memory capacities compare?

A: The Arc B580 has 12 GB of GDDR6 memory, while the GTX 780 has 3 GB of GDDR5. The Arc B580 also delivers 456.0 GB/s bandwidth versus 288.4 GB/s.

Q: What are the power requirements for each card?

A: The Arc B580 has a TDP of 190 W with a suggested 450 W PSU and one 8-pin power connector. The GTX 780 has a 250 W TDP, requires a 600 W PSU, and uses one 6-pin plus one 8-pin connector.

Q: Which card supports ray tracing?

A: Only the Arc B580 includes 20 dedicated ray tracing cores. The GTX 780 has no ray tracing hardware.

Q: What is the production status of each GPU?

A: The Arc B580 is listed as Active production, released on 2024-12-12. The GTX 780 is End-of-life, released on 2013-05-22.

Specification Differences

The two cards differ across nearly every specification category. The Arc B580 uses a 5 nm process node, while the GTX 780 uses 28 nm. Transistor counts are 19,600 million versus 7,080 million, die sizes are 272 mm² versus 561 mm², and transistor densities are 72.1M per mm² versus 12.6M per mm².

Clock speeds show the Arc B580 at 2670 MHz for both base and boost, while the GTX 780 runs at 863 MHz base and 902 MHz boost. Memory clocks are 2375 MHz (19 Gbps effective) for the Arc B580 and 1502 MHz (6 Gbps effective) for the GTX 780.

Memory configuration differs fundamentally: 12 GB GDDR6 on 192-bit bus versus 3 GB GDDR5 on 384-bit bus, with bandwidth of 456.0 GB/s versus 288.4 GB/s.

Compute units vary: 2,560 shading units, 160 TMUs, 80 ROPs, and 20 RT cores for the Arc B580; 2,304 shading units, 192 TMUs, and 48 ROPs for the GTX 780. Pixel rates are 213.6 GPixel/s versus 43.30 GPixel/s, texture rates are 427.2 GTexel/s versus 173.2 GTexel/s, and FP32 performance is 13.67 TFLOPS versus 4.156 TFLOPS. The Arc B580 also lists FP16 at 27.34 TFLOPS, while the GTX 780 has no FP16 figure.

Power and connectivity differ: TDP is 190 W versus 250 W, power connectors are 1x 8-pin versus 1x 6-pin + 1x 8-pin, suggested PSU is 450 W versus 600 W, and bus interface is PCIe 4.0 x8 versus PCIe 3.0 x16.

Display outputs vary: the Arc B580 offers 1x HDMI 2.1a and 3x DisplayPort 2.1, while the GTX 780 has 2x DVI, 1x HDMI 1.4a, and 1x DisplayPort 1.2.

Physical dimensions differ slightly: the Arc B580 is 272 mm long, 115 mm tall, and 45 mm wide; the GTX 780 is 267 mm long, 111 mm tall, and 38 mm wide. Both are dual-slot cards.

API levels differ: DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2) versus 12 (11_0), both OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4 versus 1.2.175.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The recorded head-to-head data contains two benchmark comparisons, both won decisively by the Intel Arc B580. The Geekbench OpenCL test shows the Arc B580 scoring 92,821 against the GTX 780's 22,863, a delta of 306%. This result indicates that the Arc B580's compute architecture, with its higher shading unit count, faster clocks, and modern 5 nm process, delivers over four times the raw compute throughput of the Kepler-based GTX 780. The GTX 780's 4.156 TFLOPS FP32 capability is simply outclassed by the Arc B580's 13.67 TFLOPS.

The Geekbench Vulkan test shows an even larger margin. The Arc B580 scores 109,672, while the GTX 780 manages 24,514, producing a 347.4% delta. This result reflects not only the compute advantage but also the API support difference. Vulkan 1.4 on the Arc B580 provides more efficient draw call handling and better multi-threading compared to Vulkan 1.2.175 on the GTX 780. The Arc B580's ray tracing cores also contribute to workloads that can leverage hardware-accelerated ray tracing, which the GTX 780 cannot perform at all.

Beyond the head-to-head metrics, the average benchmark scores corroborate the trend. The Arc B580's average of 23,021 across all recorded tests places it 20.1% above the GTX 780's 19,164. The Arc B580's nearest rivals include the RTX 2080 at 22,895 and the RTX 3080 at 23,172, showing it performs within 0.7% of those much more recent NVIDIA cards. The GTX 780's nearest rivals include the TITAN Xp at 19,177 and the RX 6600 at 19,036, placing it within 0.7% of those cards. This comparison makes clear that the Arc B580 competes with a completely different performance tier than the GTX 780.

The percentile rankings reinforce the performance gap. The Arc B580 sits at the 68th percentile of all GPUs, while the GTX 780 ranks at the 64th percentile. While both are above the median, the Arc B580's position reflects its ability to handle modern workloads, whereas the GTX 780's ranking is propped up by legacy benchmarks that do not stress modern API features. The GTX 780's only recorded benchmarks are Geekbench Metal, OpenCL, and Vulkan, with no DirectX results in the database. The Arc B580 has a full suite including 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12, Passmark DirectX 9, 10, 11, 12, G2D, G3D, and GPU Compute scores. This benchmark coverage difference itself indicates the GTX 780's inability to run current test suites effectively, as its DirectX 12 (11_0) feature level is insufficient for modern 12_2 requirements.