NVIDIA GeForce GTX 460 v2 vs NVIDIA Tesla M10 Comparison

The Verdict

The NVIDIA Tesla M10 and the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 460 v2 occupy completely different corners of the GPU landscape, separated by five years of architecture evolution and divergent design goals. The data in the database makes the Tesla M10 the clear winner in raw compute performance, posting an average benchmark score of 9,724 compared to the GTX 460 v2's 8,743, a gap of roughly 11%. In the sole head-to-head benchmark recorded, Geekbench OpenCL, the Tesla M10 scores 10,318 against the GTX 460 v2's 8,743, an 18% advantage.

However, the verdict is not simply "the newer card wins." The Tesla M10 is a server-oriented accelerator with no display outputs, designed for datacenter workloads like virtualization and compute offload. The GTX 460 v2 is a legacy consumer graphics card from 2011, built for gaming and desktop use, with 2x DVI and mini-HDMI outputs. Anyone needing a functional desktop GPU for legacy systems should choose the GTX 460 v2. Anyone building a compute node or upgrading a server environment where display output is irrelevant should choose the Tesla M10.

The percentile rankings reinforce this split. The Tesla M10 sits at the 47th percentile of all GPUs in the database, while the GTX 460 v2 sits at the 44th percentile. These are not dramatic differences, but the Tesla M10's position is supported by a broader benchmark profile including both OpenCL and Vulkan tests, whereas the GTX 460 v2 only has an OpenCL result recorded. The GTX 460 v2 lacks Vulkan support entirely, a key consideration for modern workloads.

For users who must have display connectivity, the GTX 460 v2 is the only choice between these two. For compute-focused buyers, the Tesla M10's higher throughput, larger memory pool, and newer architecture make it the superior option despite its higher power draw and longer physical footprint.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has higher raw compute performance?

A: The Tesla M10. Its FP32 throughput is 1.672 TFLOPS versus the GTX 460 v2's 1,046.3 GFLOPS, a 60% advantage. The Geekbench OpenCL scores reflect this: 10,318 for the Tesla M10 versus 8,743 for the GTX 460 v2, an 18% delta.

Q: Can the GTX 460 v2 run modern graphics APIs?

A: Both cards support DirectX 12 (11_0) and OpenGL 4.6. However, the Tesla M10 supports Vulkan 1.4, while the GTX 460 v2 has no Vulkan support recorded in the database.

Q: Which card has more memory?

A: The Tesla M10 has 8 GB of GDDR5, while the GTX 460 v2 has 1,024 MB (1 GB) of GDDR5. The Tesla M10 also uses a 128-bit bus with 83.20 GB/s bandwidth, whereas the GTX 460 v2 uses a 192-bit bus with 96.19 GB/s bandwidth. Interestingly, the GTX 460 v2 has higher memory bandwidth despite its smaller capacity.

Q: Which GPU has better transistor efficiency?

A: The Tesla M10. It packs 1,870 million transistors on a 148 mm² die using a 28 nm process, giving a density of 12.6M transistors per mm². The GTX 460 v2 uses 1,950 million transistors on a 332 mm² die at 40 nm, yielding only 5.9M transistors per mm².

Q: Does the GTX 460 v2 have any advantage in texture or pixel processing?

A: Yes. The GTX 460 v2 has 56 texture mapping units and 24 ROPs, compared to 40 TMUs and 16 ROPs on the Tesla M10. Its texture rate is 43.62 GTexel/s versus the Tesla M10's 52.24 GTexel/s, but the Tesla M10 still wins on raw texture throughput. The pixel rate favors the Tesla M10: 20.90 GPixel/s versus 10.91 GPixel/s.

Q: Which card is shorter and easier to fit in a chassis?

A: The GTX 460 v2 measures 210 mm (8.3 inches) in length, while the Tesla M10 measures 267 mm (10.5 inches). Both are dual-slot cards.

Architecture Differences

The Tesla M10 is built on NVIDIA's Maxwell architecture, specifically the GM107 chip, while the GTX 460 v2 uses the Fermi 2.0 architecture with the GF114 chip. These represent two distinct generations of NVIDIA GPU design. Maxwell was a major efficiency overhaul, focusing on higher performance per watt and improved compute throughput per shader. Fermi 2.0 was a refinement of the original Fermi design, which introduced features like concurrent kernel execution and improved ECC support for compute workloads.

The process nodes differ significantly. The Tesla M10 uses a 28 nm process at TSMC, while the GTX 460 v2 uses a 40 nm process, also at TSMC. The 28 nm node allows the Tesla M10 to fit 1,870 million transistors into just 148 mm², achieving a transistor density of 12.6M per mm². The GTX 460 v2 packs 1,950 million transistors into a much larger 332 mm² die, yielding only 5.9M per mm². This density advantage is a direct result of the newer manufacturing process.

Shader core counts reflect the architectural differences. The Tesla M10 has 640 shading units, while the GTX 460 v2 has 336. However, the GTX 460 v2 has more texture units (56 versus 40) and more ROPs (24 versus 16), which indicates a design optimized for rasterization and traditional graphics workloads, whereas the Tesla M10 is skewed toward compute parallelism.

The Tesla M10 has no display outputs, confirming its role as a compute or virtualization accelerator. The GTX 460 v2 includes 2x DVI and 1x mini-HDMI 1.3a outputs, making it a functional desktop graphics card. The Tesla M10 also uses a PCIe 3.0 x16 interface, while the GTX 460 v2 is limited to PCIe 2.0 x16.

Both cards are end-of-life products. The Tesla M10's generation is "Tesla Maxwell (Mxx)" and its predecessor is Tesla Kepler, with Tesla Pascal as its successor. The GTX 460 v2 belongs to the GeForce 400 generation, succeeding the GeForce 200 series and preceding the GeForce 500 series.

Specification Differences

The two cards diverge on nearly every measurable specification. The Tesla M10 has a base clock of 1033 MHz and a boost clock of 1306 MHz, while the GTX 460 v2 has no recorded base or boost clocks, only a memory clock of 1002 MHz (4 Gbps effective). The Tesla M10's memory runs at 1300 MHz (5.2 Gbps effective).

Memory capacity is starkly different: 8 GB on the Tesla M10 versus 1,024 MB on the GTX 460 v2. Bus widths also differ: 128-bit on the Tesla M10 versus 192-bit on the GTX 460 v2. Despite the wider bus on the older card, the Tesla M10's higher memory clock results in a bandwidth of 83.20 GB/s, while the GTX 460 v2 achieves 96.19 GB/s.

Compute resources: the Tesla M10 has 640 shading units, 40 TMUs, and 16 ROPs. The GTX 460 v2 has 336 shading units, 56 TMUs, and 24 ROPs. The Tesla M10's pixel rate is 20.90 GPixel/s, and its texture rate is 52.24 GTexel/s. The GTX 460 v2 produces 10.91 GPixel/s and 43.62 GTexel/s. FP32 throughput is 1.672 TFLOPS for the Tesla M10 versus 1,046.3 GFLOPS for the GTX 460 v2.

Power and physical requirements differ. The Tesla M10 has a TDP of 225 W and requires a 550 W suggested PSU, with one 8-pin power connector. The GTX 460 v2 has a 160 W TDP, a 450 W suggested PSU, and requires two 6-pin connectors. The Tesla M10 is 267 mm long, while the GTX 460 v2 is 210 mm. Both are dual-slot cards.

API support is a significant differentiator. Both support DirectX 12 (11_0) and OpenGL 4.6. Only the Tesla M10 supports Vulkan 1.4; the GTX 460 v2 has no Vulkan support. The Tesla M10 also benefits from a PCIe 3.0 x16 interface versus PCIe 2.0 x16 on the GTX 460 v2.

Release dates are separated by over five years: the Tesla M10 launched in May 2016, while the GTX 460 v2 launched in September 2011. The GTX 460 v2 has a launch MSRP of 199 USD, which appears once in the record. The Tesla M10 has no recorded launch MSRP.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The database records a single head-to-head benchmark between these two GPUs: Geekbench OpenCL. In this test, the Tesla M10 scores 10,318, while the GTX 460 v2 scores 8,743. The delta is 18% in favor of the Tesla M10. This is the only direct comparison available, and it demonstrates a clear performance advantage for the newer Maxwell-based card in compute workloads.

Beyond the single head-to-head, the average benchmark scores tell a similar story. The Tesla M10 averages 9,724 across its recorded tests, while the GTX 460 v2 averages 8,743. The Tesla M10's nearest rivals in the database include the NVIDIA Tesla C2070 (average 9,716, delta 0.1%), the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 (average 9,780, delta -0.6%), the NVIDIA Quadro P4000 (average 9,665, delta 0.6%), and the AMD Radeon Pro WX 2100 (average 9,653, delta 0.7%). These deltas show the Tesla M10 sits in a tight cluster of mid-range compute GPUs, within a percentage point of each.

The GTX 460 v2's nearest rivals include the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 A Mobile (average 8,746, delta 0%), the NVIDIA Quadro P2200 (average 8,686, delta 0.7%), the AMD Radeon R9 M265X (average 8,851, delta -1.2%), and the AMD Radeon Pro WX 5100 (average 8,863, delta -1.4%). The matching score with the RTX 3050 A Mobile is notable, showing the GTX 460 v2 remains competitive with much newer low-end mobile parts.

The Tesla M10 also has a recorded Geekbench Vulkan score of 9,130, which places it in a stronger position for modern compute applications that leverage Vulkan. The GTX 460 v2 has no Vulkan score, as it lacks Vulkan support entirely. This is a functional gap, not just a performance one.

In texture and pixel throughput, the Tesla M10 leads: 52.24 GTexel/s versus 43.62 GTexel/s, and 20.90 GPixel/s versus 10.91 GPixel/s. The GTX 460 v2's higher memory bandwidth (96.19 GB/s versus 83.20 GB/s) is its only throughput advantage, which may help in bandwidth-bound legacy workloads but does not offset the Tesla M10's compute lead.

The recorded wins tally is 1 for the Tesla M10 and 0 for the GTX 460 v2 across the head-to-head benchmarks. The data consistently points to the Tesla M10 as the stronger performer, with the GTX 460 v2 retaining relevance only in scenarios requiring display output or lower power consumption.