NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti vs NVIDIA GeForce GTX 460 SE Comparison

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The recorded database contains a single shared benchmark between these two cards: Geekbench OpenCL. The results are decisively lopsided. The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti scores 51,029 points, while the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 460 SE manages only 6,389 points. That translates to a 698.7% advantage for the newer card. To put that in perspective, the GTX 1660 Ti is not merely faster; it delivers roughly eight times the raw compute throughput in this specific test.

Looking at the broader database context, the GTX 1660 Ti holds an average benchmark score of 7,723 across all recorded tests. Its nearest rivals in the database include the AMD Radeon 540 at 7,673 (0.7% behind), the AMD Radeon Pro WX 3100 at 7,580 (1.9% behind), and the AMD Radeon R7 250 at 7,557 (2.2% behind). The Intel Arc A310 trails at 7,550, a 2.3% gap. These are tight margins, suggesting that the GTX 1660 Ti sits in a competitive cluster where small score differences separate cards.

The GTX 460 SE, by contrast, has only one benchmark entry in the database, its Geekbench OpenCL score of 6,389, which also serves as its average. Its nearest rivals are strikingly odd bedfellows: the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 580M matches it exactly at 6,389 (0% delta), while the NVIDIA RTX PRO 5000 72 GB Blackwell sits just 0.3% higher at 6,407. The AMD Radeon Pro WX 4100 (6,330, 0.9% behind) and AMD Radeon R7 M350 (6,327, 1% behind) round out the comparison group. The data indicates the GTX 460 SE is clustered around a much lower performance tier than the GTX 1660 Ti.

The percentile rankings reinforce this gap. The GTX 1660 Ti sits at the 41st percentile among all GPUs in the database, whereas the GTX 460 SE sits at the 37th percentile. While both are below the median, the percentile difference understates the actual performance chasm because the distribution of GPU scores is not linear. The raw OpenCL delta of 698.7% tells the real story: these cards occupy entirely different performance strata.

Where Each One Wins

Given the single head-to-head benchmark, the GTX 1660 Ti wins the only directly comparable test. The Geekbench OpenCL result is a compute-oriented workload, measuring general-purpose GPU performance rather than gaming-specific rasterization. A 698.7% lead in this test suggests the GTX 1660 Ti is overwhelmingly superior in any compute-heavy task, such as OpenCL-accelerated applications, physics simulations, or data processing workloads that leverage the GPU as a co-processor.

The GTX 460 SE does not win any recorded benchmark in the head-to-head comparison. Its wins column is zero. However, the database does not include gaming-specific tests for either card in the shared set, so the analysis cannot claim victory for either in DirectX workloads. The GTX 1660 Ti does have additional benchmark entries of its own: Passmark DirectX 9 (190 points), DirectX 10 (66 points), DirectX 11 (103 points), and DirectX 12 (51 points), plus a Passmark G2D score of 804, G3D score of 12,871, and GPU compute score of 5,226. The GTX 460 SE has no such entries, so any use-case conclusions must be drawn from the OpenCL result and architectural data alone.

For users prioritizing compute performance, the choice is unambiguous. For legacy DirectX 9 or DirectX 10 applications, the GTX 1660 Ti's Passmark scores indicate functional capability, but without a comparable GTX 460 SE score, a direct delta cannot be stated. The GTX 460 SE's absence from those test lists means the database cannot confirm its behavior in those workloads.

Architecture Differences

The two cards come from entirely different architectural eras. The GTX 1660 Ti uses the TU116 chip based on the Turing architecture, fabricated on a 12 nm process at TSMC. It packs 6,600 million transistors into a 284 mm² die, yielding a transistor density of 23.2 million per square millimeter. The GTX 460 SE uses the GF104 chip based on the Fermi architecture, also from TSMC but on a 40 nm process. It holds 1,950 million transistors across a larger 332 mm² die, resulting in a much lower density of 5.9 million per square millimeter. The die-size inversion is notable: the older card physically occupies more silicon area while containing far fewer transistors, a direct consequence of the older fabrication node.

The memory subsystems are equally divergent. The GTX 1660 Ti ships with 6 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus, delivering 288.0 GB/s of bandwidth and running at 1500 MHz (12 Gbps effective). The GTX 460 SE offers only 1024 MB of GDDR5 memory on a wider 256-bit bus, but its bandwidth is just 108.8 GB/s due to a much lower memory clock of 850 MHz (3.4 Gbps effective). So despite the wider bus, the older card is dramatically slower in memory throughput.

Compute resources follow the same pattern. The GTX 1660 Ti has 1,536 shading units, 96 texture mapping units, and 48 ROPs. The GTX 460 SE has 288 shading units, 48 TMUs, and 32 ROPs. Pixel rate for the GTX 1660 Ti is 84.96 GPixel/s versus 7.800 GPixel/s for the GTX 460 SE. Texture rate is 169.9 GTexel/s versus 31.20 GTexel/s. Floating-point performance: the GTX 1660 Ti delivers 5.437 TFLOPS in FP32 and 10.87 TFLOPS in FP16 (2:1 ratio). The GTX 460 SE manages 748.8 GFLOPS in FP32 and has no recorded FP16 capability. The GTX 1660 Ti also supports newer API features including DirectX 12_1 and Vulkan 1.4, while the GTX 460 SE is limited to DirectX 12 (11_0) and has no Vulkan entry.

Power characteristics also differ meaningfully. The GTX 1660 Ti has a TDP of 120 W and requires a single 8-pin power connector with a suggested 300 W PSU. The GTX 460 SE draws 150 W, needs two 6-pin connectors, and suggests a 450 W PSU. The newer card delivers vastly more performance while consuming less power, proof of the efficiency gains from the 12 nm process versus 40 nm. The GTX 1660 Ti is also longer at 229 mm (9 inches) versus 210 mm (8.3 inches) for the GTX 460 SE, and it has a specified height of 111 mm (4.4 inches) and width of 35 mm (1.4 inches), while the GTX 460 SE lacks recorded height and width values. Display outputs differ as well: the GTX 1660 Ti offers 1x DVI, 1x HDMI 2.0, and 1x DisplayPort 1.4a, whereas the GTX 460 SE offers 2x DVI and 1x mini-HDMI 1.3a.

The Verdict

The database is clear: the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti outperforms the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 460 SE by an enormous margin in the only shared benchmark. The 698.7% OpenCL delta is not a marginal improvement; it is a generational leap. The GTX 460 SE sits at the 37th percentile among all GPUs, while the GTX 1660 Ti sits at the 41st percentile, but the average benchmark scores (7,723 versus 6,389) and the head-to-head result both point to the same conclusion.

For anyone choosing between these two cards today, the GTX 1660 Ti is the only rational pick from a performance standpoint. It offers roughly seven times the shading units, nearly triple the texture units, more than double the ROPs, and 2.6 times the memory capacity with nearly three times the bandwidth. It does all of this at a lower TDP of 120 W versus 150 W, requiring only a single 8-pin connector and a 300 W PSU instead of two 6-pin connectors and a 450 W PSU. The architecture is newer, the process node is more advanced, and the API support is broader.

The GTX 460 SE does have one advantage in the data: its launch MSRP was 160 USD, compared to 279 USD for the GTX 1660 Ti. But the performance delta dwarfs the price delta. The GTX 460 SE is end-of-life with no recorded DirectX benchmark results in the database, making it a poor choice for any modern workload. The GTX 1660 Ti is also end-of-life, but it retains a much richer benchmark profile and significantly higher absolute scores.

The verdict is straightforward: the GTX 1660 Ti wins on every measurable axis. The GTX 460 SE, despite its wider memory bus and lower launch price, cannot compete with the newer card's architectural advantages.

FAQ

Q: How much faster is the GTX 1660 Ti than the GTX 460 SE in OpenCL?

A: The GTX 1660 Ti scores 51,029 in Geekbench OpenCL versus 6,389 for the GTX 460 SE, a 698.7% advantage.

Q: Which card has more memory?

A: The GTX 1660 Ti has 6 GB of GDDR6 memory, while the GTX 460 SE has 1024 MB of GDDR5 memory.

Q: What is the TDP difference between the two cards?

A: The GTX 1660 Ti has a TDP of 120 W, while the GTX 460 SE has a TDP of 150 W.

Q: Do both cards support DirectX 12?

A: Yes, but at different feature levels. The GTX 1660 Ti supports DirectX 12 (12_1), while the GTX 460 SE supports DirectX 12 (11_0).

Q: What are the nearest rivals to each card in the database?

A: The GTX 1660 Ti's nearest rival is the AMD Radeon 540 (0.7% behind). The GTX 460 SE's nearest rival is the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 580M (0% delta).

Q: Which card has a higher average benchmark score?

A: The GTX 1660 Ti has an average benchmark score of 7,723, while the GTX 460 SE has an average of 6,389.

Specification Differences

| Specification | NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti | NVIDIA GeForce GTX 460 SE |

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

| Architecture | Turing | Fermi |

| Process Node | 12 nm | 40 nm |

| Transistors | 6,600 million | 1,950 million |

| Die Size | 284 mm² | 332 mm² |

| Transistor Density | 23.2M / mm² | 5.9M / mm² |

| Base Clock | 1500 MHz | Not specified |

| Boost Clock | 1770 MHz | Not specified |

| Memory Clock | 1500 MHz (12 Gbps effective) | 850 MHz (3.4 Gbps effective) |

| Memory Size | 6 GB | 1024 MB |

| Memory Type | GDDR6 | GDDR5 |

| Memory Bus Width | 192 bit | 256 bit |

| Memory Bandwidth | 288.0 GB/s | 108.8 GB/s |

| Shading Units | 1536 | 288 |

| TMUs | 96 | 48 |

| ROPs | 48 | 32 |

| Pixel Rate | 84.96 GPixel/s | 7.800 GPixel/s |

| Texture Rate | 169.9 GTexel/s | 31.20 GTexel/s |

| FP32 Performance | 5.437 TFLOPS | 748.8 GFLOPS |

| FP16 Performance | 10.87 TFLOPS (2:1) | Not specified |

| TDP | 120 W | 150 W |

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

| Suggested PSU | 300 W | 450 W |

| Bus Interface | PCIe 3.0 x16 | PCIe 2.0 x16 |

| Display Outputs | 1x DVI, 1x HDMI 2.0, 1x DisplayPort 1.4a | 2x DVI, 1x mini-HDMI 1.3a |

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

| Vulkan Support | 1.4 | Not specified |

| Length | 229 mm (9 inches) | 210 mm (8.3 inches) |

| Height | 111 mm (4.4 inches) | Not specified |

| Width | 35 mm (1.4 inches) | Not specified |

| Generation | GeForce 16 | GeForce 400 |

| Predecessor | GeForce 10 | GeForce 200 |

| Successor | GeForce 20 | GeForce 500 |

| Release Date | 2019-02-21 | 2010-11-14 |

| Launch MSRP | 279 USD | 160 USD |