NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 vs NVIDIA GeForce GTX 465 Comparison

NVIDIA’s GeForce GTX 1070 and GeForce GTX 465 represent two vastly different eras of GPU design, separated by six years of architectural evolution. The GTX 1070, built on the Pascal architecture, is a modern mainstream powerhouse, while the GTX 465, based on the Fermi architecture, was a high-end part of its time. The benchmark data shows a decisive generational leap, with the GTX 1070 delivering a 381% higher score in the only shared test, but the comparison reveals deeper differences in process technology, feature support, and raw specifications that define their respective positions in the hardware landscape.

FAQ

Q: How much faster is the GeForce GTX 1070 than the GTX 465 in the shared benchmark?

A: In the Geekbench OpenCL test, the GTX 1070 scores 44,700 points against the GTX 465’s 9,294 points. That represents a 381% performance advantage for the newer card, making the GTX 1070 roughly 4.8 times faster in this compute workload.

Q: What are the average benchmark scores for both cards?

A: The GTX 1070 has an average benchmark score of 9,780 across all its tested workloads, placing it in the 47th percentile of all GPUs. The GTX 465 has an average score of 9,294, sitting in the 46th percentile, which shows they are surprisingly close in overall standing despite the massive gap in raw compute power.

Q: Which card has a higher transistor density?

A: The GTX 1070, built on a 16 nm process, packs 22.9 million transistors per square millimeter. The GTX 465, using a 40 nm process, has only 5.9 million transistors per square millimeter. This density difference is a direct result of the much smaller manufacturing node.

Q: Do both cards support the same level of DirectX?

A: No. The GTX 1070 supports DirectX 12 with feature level 12_1, while the GTX 465 only supports DirectX 12 with feature level 11_0. This means the newer card is compliant with more advanced rendering features and effects.

Q: How do their memory configurations compare?

A: The GTX 1070 comes with 8 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 256-bit bus, delivering 256.3 GB/s of bandwidth. The GTX 465 has just 1024 MB (1 GB) of GDDR5 memory on the same 256-bit bus, but its bandwidth is only 102.7 GB/s due to slower memory clocks.

Q: What is the power connector requirement for each card?

A: The GTX 1070 requires a single 8-pin power connector, while the GTX 465 needs two 6-pin connectors. The newer card also has a lower total board power of 150 W compared to the GTX 465’s 200 W.

Architecture Differences

The architectural divide between these two cards is stark. The GTX 1070 is built on the Pascal architecture using the GP104 chip, manufactured on a 16 nm process at TSMC. It houses 7,200 million transistors on a die size of 314 mm², achieving a transistor density of 22.9 million per square millimeter. In contrast, the GTX 465 uses the Fermi architecture with the GF100 chip, fabricated on a much older 40 nm process. It contains 3,100 million transistors spread across a larger 529 mm² die, yielding a density of just 5.9 million transistors per square millimeter. The process shrink allows the GTX 1070 to pack more than twice the transistors into a smaller physical area.

Core configurations differ massively. The GTX 1070 features 1,920 shading units, 120 texture mapping units (TMUs), and 64 render output units (ROPs). The GTX 465 is far more modest, with only 352 shading units, 44 TMUs, and 32 ROPs. This translates to a pixel rate of 107.7 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 202.0 GTexel/s for the GTX 1070, versus just 13.38 GPixel/s and 26.75 GTexel/s for the GTX 465. Floating-point performance tells a similar story: the GTX 1070 delivers 6.463 TFLOPS of FP32 compute, while the GTX 465 manages only 855.4 GFLOPS—a roughly 7.5-fold difference.

Memory architecture also evolved. Both cards use GDDR5 on a 256-bit bus, but the GTX 1070 runs its memory at 2002 MHz (8 Gbps effective) to achieve 256.3 GB/s of bandwidth. The GTX 465’s memory runs at 802 MHz (3.2 Gbps effective), capping bandwidth at 102.7 GB/s. The GTX 1070 also supports PCIe 3.0 x16, while the GTX 465 is limited to PCIe 2.0 x16. Feature support diverges as well: the GTX 1070 supports Vulkan 1.4 and offers three DisplayPort 1.4a outputs plus HDMI 2.0, whereas the GTX 465 has no Vulkan support and relies on older DVI and mini-HDMI 1.3a outputs.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The only direct benchmark comparison available is the Geekbench OpenCL test, and the results are lopsided. The GTX 1070 scores 44,700 points, while the GTX 465 scores 9,294 points, giving the newer card a 381% advantage. This is not a marginal win; it is a complete generational sweep. The GTX 1070’s score is more than four times higher, reflecting the combined benefits of more shading units, higher clocks, and vastly superior memory bandwidth.

In terms of average performance across all benchmarks, the GTX 1070 holds an average score of 9,780. Its closest rival is the AMD FirePro W5000, which scores 9,803 (a 0.2% difference), and the NVIDIA Quadro M2000M at 9,832 (0.5% higher). The GTX 1070 also edges out the NVIDIA Tesla M10 and Tesla C2070, which score 9,724 and 9,716, respectively. The GTX 465, with its average score of 9,294, sits closest to the GeForce GTX 850M at 9,302 (0.1% higher) and the AMD Radeon R7 M380 at 9,313 (0.2% higher). Interestingly, the GTX 465 slightly outperforms the GeForce GTX 960 (9,273) and the AMD Radeon Vega 8 (9,221), showing that despite its age, it can still hold its own against some entry-level modern parts.

The head-to-head result is a clear win for the GTX 1070, which claims 1 win out of 1 shared test. The GTX 465 records 0 wins. This single-data-point comparison does not capture the full picture of gaming or professional workloads, but the magnitude of the OpenCL delta strongly suggests that the GTX 1070 will dominate in any compute-heavy or graphics-intensive application.

Specification Differences

The two cards differ in nearly every measurable specification. The GTX 1070 uses a 16 nm process, while the GTX 465 uses 40 nm. Transistor counts are 7,200 million versus 3,100 million, and die sizes are 314 mm² versus 529 mm². Transistor density is 22.9M per mm² versus 5.9M per mm². Clock speeds are not directly comparable since the GTX 465 has no base or boost clock listed, but the GTX 1070 runs at 1506 MHz base and 1683 MHz boost. Memory clocks are 2002 MHz (8 Gbps effective) versus 802 MHz (3.2 Gbps effective).

Memory capacity is 8 GB versus 1024 MB, though both use GDDR5 on a 256-bit bus. Bandwidth is 256.3 GB/s versus 102.7 GB/s. Shading units are 1,920 versus 352, TMUs are 120 versus 44, and ROPs are 64 versus 32. Pixel rates are 107.7 GPixel/s versus 13.38 GPixel/s, and texture rates are 202.0 GTexel/s versus 26.75 GTexel/s. FP32 performance is 6.463 TFLOPS versus 855.4 GFLOPS, with the GTX 1070 also offering FP16 at 101.0 GFLOPS (1:64) while the GTX 465 has no FP16 data.

Power requirements differ: the GTX 1070 has a TDP of 150 W with a single 8-pin connector and a suggested 450 W PSU, while the GTX 465 has a TDP of 200 W, two 6-pin connectors, and a suggested 550 W PSU. Bus interfaces are PCIe 3.0 x16 versus PCIe 2.0 x16. Display outputs are 1x DVI, 1x HDMI 2.0, and 3x DisplayPort 1.4a versus 2x DVI and 1x mini-HDMI 1.3a. API support shows the GTX 1070 with DirectX 12 (12_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4, while the GTX 465 has DirectX 12 (11_0) and OpenGL 4.6 but no Vulkan. Dimensions are 267 mm (10.5 inches) in length for the GTX 1070 versus 241 mm (9.5 inches) for the GTX 465, with the latter lacking published height and width data.

Where Each One Wins

The GeForce GTX 1070 wins in essentially every scenario that matters for modern computing. Its 381% advantage in OpenCL compute makes it the clear choice for any GPU-accelerated workload, from video encoding to scientific simulations. The 8 GB memory capacity and 256.3 GB/s bandwidth allow it to handle high-resolution textures and large datasets that would immediately exhaust the GTX 465’s 1 GB frame buffer. The newer architecture’s support for DirectX 12 (12_1) and Vulkan 1.4 ensures compatibility with contemporary game engines and APIs, while the GTX 465’s feature level 11_0 support limits it to older or less demanding titles. The lower 150 W TDP and single 8-pin connector also make the GTX 1070 easier to integrate into a modern system with a modest 450 W power supply.

The GeForce GTX 465, despite its age, is not entirely without merit. Its 46th percentile standing and average score of 9,294 place it just above the GeForce GTX 960 and AMD Radeon Vega 8 in the database, indicating it can still deliver playable performance in older games or lighter workloads. Its 40 nm Fermi architecture, while power-hungry at 200 W, was a flagship design in its day, and the dual 6-pin connectors suggest it was built for higher-end systems of the early 2010s. For users with legacy software that relies on older driver paths or specific Fermi-era optimizations, the GTX 465 could still serve as a functional secondary card. However, in any head-to-head comparison of raw performance, features, or efficiency, the GTX 1070 is the definitive winner, and the data shows no single test where the GTX 465 comes out ahead.