NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 Ti vs NVIDIA Tesla M4 Comparison

The NVIDIA Tesla M4 and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 Ti represent two distinct ends of the GPU spectrum, separated by architecture, purpose, and raw capability. While both are end-of-life products from NVIDIA, the data provided shows a stark contrast in compute performance, memory configuration, and physical design. The GTX 1080 Ti, a consumer flagship, overwhelmingly outpaces the Tesla M4, a low-power compute card, in every measurable benchmark included in this comparison.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The dataset provides a single direct head-to-head benchmark result: Geekbench OpenCL. This test is a comprehensive compute workload that measures GPGPU performance across various tasks. In this comparison, the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 Ti achieves a score of 67929, while the NVIDIA Tesla M4 scores 16932. This results in a deltaPct of -75.1% for the Tesla M4, meaning the GTX 1080 Ti is roughly 301% faster in this specific test. The margin is substantial, placing the two cards in completely different performance tiers. The GTX 1080 Ti’s score is nearly four times that of the Tesla M4, highlighting the massive gulf in compute throughput between a high-end consumer gaming card and a low-profile, energy-efficient server accelerator.

Beyond the direct comparison, the GTX 1080 Ti has a suite of additional benchmark results that further contextualize its standing. Its Passmark G3D score of 18600 indicates strong DirectX gaming performance, while its Geekbench Vulkan score of 40511 and Geekbench Metal score of 30624 show broad API support. The Tesla M4, by contrast, has no such additional benchmark data provided, leaving the OpenCL result as its only data point. This lack of supplementary scores for the M4 is telling; it suggests that its primary use case is not in the consumer-facing workloads measured by these other tests. The GTX 1080 Ti’s Passmark GPU Compute score of 9632 further emphasizes its computational strength, but even this is dwarfed by its own OpenCL result. The data clearly shows that the GTX 1080 Ti is the dominant performer in every single metric where a comparison is possible.

Where Each One Wins

The benchmark results indicate that the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 Ti wins in the only head-to-head test available, and it also possesses a wide array of high scores in other benchmarks. Its wins are comprehensive across compute performance, as evidenced by its OpenCL, Vulkan, and Metal scores. In the field of traditional graphics, its Passmark DirectX 11 score of 151 and DirectX 9 score of 231 show proficiency in legacy APIs, while its Passmark DirectX 12 score of 66 is more modest. The GTX 1080 Ti’s 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 2231 further demonstrates its capability in modern gaming workloads. This card is a clear winner in any scenario that demands raw processing power, whether for gaming, rendering, or general-purpose compute.

The NVIDIA Tesla M4, on the other hand, has no benchmark wins in this dataset. Its single OpenCL score of 16932 is lower than the GTX 1080 Ti’s own score in the same test. However, its design parameters suggest a different kind of victory. The M4 is a single-slot, 50W card with no display outputs, indicating it is designed for server environments where power efficiency and physical space are at a premium. Its 4 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 128-bit bus provides 88.00 GB/s of bandwidth, which is modest but adequate for its intended role as a low-power inference or virtual desktop accelerator. The GTX 1080 Ti, with its dual-slot design and 250W TDP, requires a 600W power supply and is physically larger at 267 mm in length. Therefore, while the GTX 1080 Ti wins on pure performance, the M4 is the only option in this comparison for a constrained, low-power, headless compute environment.

Architecture Differences

The architectural gap between these two GPUs is generational and profound. The Tesla M4 is built on the Maxwell 2.0 architecture using the GM206 chip, fabricated on a 28 nm process at TSMC. In contrast, the GTX 1080 Ti utilizes the Pascal architecture with the GP102 chip, built on a more advanced 16 nm process, also at TSMC. This process shrink allows the GTX 1080 Ti to pack 11,800 million transistors into a 471 mm² die, resulting in a transistor density of 25.1M / mm². The Tesla M4, with its older process, contains only 2,940 million transistors on a 228 mm² die, for a density of 12.9M / mm². This difference in density is a key factor in the performance disparity.

The core configurations are equally divergent. The GTX 1080 Ti features 3584 shading units, 224 texture mapping units (TMUs), and 88 raster operations pipelines (ROPs). The Tesla M4, by comparison, has 1024 shading units, 64 TMUs, and 32 ROPs. This means the GTX 1080 Ti has over three times the shading units and nearly seven times the TMUs. Clock speeds also favor the GTX 1080 Ti, with a base clock of 1481 MHz and a boost clock of 1582 MHz, versus the Tesla M4’s base of 872 MHz and boost of 1072 MHz. The combination of more cores and higher clocks leads to a massive difference in fill rates and compute throughput. The GTX 1080 Ti’s pixel rate is 139.2 GPixel/s and texture rate is 354.4 GTexel/s, while the Tesla M4 manages only 34.30 GPixel/s and 68.61 GTexel/s, respectively.

Memory architecture further distinguishes the two. The GTX 1080 Ti uses 11 GB of GDDR5X memory on a 352-bit bus, delivering a bandwidth of 484.4 GB/s. The Tesla M4 has 4 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 128-bit bus, yielding only 88.00 GB/s of bandwidth. The memory clock is also higher on the GTX 1080 Ti, running at an effective 11 Gbps compared to the M4’s 5.5 Gbps. In terms of compute precision, the GTX 1080 Ti delivers 11.34 TFLOPS of FP32 performance and a negligible 177.2 GFLOPS of FP16 (at a 1:64 ratio). The Tesla M4 offers 2.195 TFLOPS of FP32 and no listed FP16 capability. Both cards support DirectX 12 (12_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4, but the GTX 1080 Ti also has display outputs (1x HDMI 2.0, 3x DisplayPort 1.4a), whereas the Tesla M4 has none.

FAQ

Q: What is the performance difference in the Geekbench OpenCL benchmark?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 Ti scores 67929, while the NVIDIA Tesla M4 scores 16932. The GTX 1080 Ti is 75.1% higher, making it approximately four times faster in this compute test.

Q: How do their memory specifications compare?

A: The GTX 1080 Ti has 11 GB of GDDR5X memory on a 352-bit bus with 484.4 GB/s bandwidth. The Tesla M4 has 4 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 128-bit bus with 88.00 GB/s bandwidth.

Q: Which card has a higher thermal design power (TDP)?

A: The GTX 1080 Ti has a TDP of 250 W and requires a 600 W power supply. The Tesla M4 has a TDP of only 50 W and requires a 250 W power supply.

Q: Are there differences in physical dimensions and slot requirements?

A: Yes. The GTX 1080 Ti is a dual-slot card measuring 267 mm in length, 112 mm in height, and 40 mm in width. The Tesla M4 is a single-slot card, though its exact dimensions are not listed.

Q: Do these cards support the same graphics APIs?

A: Yes, both support DirectX 12 (12_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4.

Q: Which GPU has a higher transistor count and density?

A: The GTX 1080 Ti has 11,800 million transistors on a 471 mm² die (25.1M / mm²). The Tesla M4 has 2,940 million transistors on a 228 mm² die (12.9M / mm²).

The Verdict

The benchmark data is unequivocal: the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 Ti is the superior performer in every measurable way. Its OpenCL score of 67929 dwarfs the Tesla M4’s 16932, and its additional benchmarks in Vulkan, Metal, and Passmark G3D confirm its dominance in compute and graphics tasks. With 3584 shading units, 11.34 TFLOPS of FP32 performance, and 484.4 GB/s of memory bandwidth, the GTX 1080 Ti is a high-end solution for gaming, rendering, and general compute. Its launch MSRP was 699 USD, reflecting its flagship status at the time.

The NVIDIA Tesla M4, however, serves a different purpose. Its 50W TDP, single-slot design, and lack of display outputs make it ideal for dense server deployments where power efficiency and physical footprint are critical. Its 2.195 TFLOPS of FP32 performance and 88.00 GB/s bandwidth are sufficient for low-power inference or virtual desktop workloads. For any user requiring raw performance, the GTX 1080 Ti is the clear choice based on the data. For a system builder constrained by power and space, the Tesla M4 is the only viable option presented, albeit with a significant performance trade-off. The choice hinges entirely on the application: maximum throughput versus minimal power draw.