NVIDIA GeForce GTX 560 vs NVIDIA GeForce GTX TITAN BLACK Comparison
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 560
GeForce GTX TITAN BLACK
PERFORMANCE BENCHMARKS
Analysis: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 560 vs NVIDIA GeForce GTX TITAN BLACK
FAQ
Q: Which GPU has the higher average benchmark score?
A: The NVIDIA GeForce GTX TITAN BLACK leads with an average benchmark score of 9474, compared to 9058 for the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 560. This puts the TITAN BLACK at the 46th percentile of all GPUs, while the GTX 560 sits at the 45th percentile.
Q: How much faster is the TITAN BLACK in the only shared benchmark?
A: In the Geekbench OpenCL test, the TITAN BLACK scores 27218 versus 9058 for the GTX 560, a 200.5% advantage. This is the sole head-to-head benchmark available between the two cards.
Q: What are the nearest rivals to each card based on average score?
A: The TITAN BLACK's closest competitor is the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 760 (avg score 9458, just 0.2% behind), while the GTX 560's nearest rival is the NVIDIA TITAN V CEO Edition (avg score 9037, 0.2% behind). Notably, the GTX 560's rival list includes the Radeon 890M with a score of 9210, which is 1.7% higher.
Q: Do both cards support the same DirectX version?
A: No. The TITAN BLACK supports DirectX 12 (11_1), while the GTX 560 supports DirectX 12 (11_0). Both cards support OpenGL 4.6, but only the TITAN BLACK lists Vulkan support (version 1.2.175); the GTX 560 has no Vulkan API entry.
Q: Which card has more memory and bandwidth?
A: The TITAN BLACK has 6 GB of GDDR5 on a 384-bit bus with 336.0 GB/s bandwidth. The GTX 560 has 1024 MB of GDDR5 on a 256-bit bus with 128.0 GB/s bandwidth. That is a 6x capacity difference and over 2.6x bandwidth advantage for the TITAN BLACK.
Q: What are the launch MSRP values?
A: The TITAN BLACK launched at 999 USD, while the GTX 560 launched at 199 USD. Both cards are now end-of-life products.
Architecture Differences
The two GPUs come from entirely different architectural generations. The TITAN BLACK uses the GK110B chip based on Kepler architecture, fabricated on a 28 nm process at TSMC. The GTX 560 uses the GF114 chip based on Fermi 2.0 architecture, also from TSMC but on a larger 40 nm node. This process difference directly contributes to the transistor counts: the TITAN BLACK packs 7,080 million transistors on a 561 mm² die, achieving a density of 12.6M transistors per mm². The GTX 560 has 1,950 million transistors on a 332 mm² die, with a density of 5.9M per mm². The TITAN BLACK thus has over 3.6x more transistors and a 69% larger die area.
The compute resources scale dramatically between the two. The TITAN BLACK features 2880 shading units, 240 texture mapping units (TMUs), and 48 raster operations pipelines (ROPs). The GTX 560 has 336 shading units, 56 TMUs, and 32 ROPs. That means the TITAN BLACK has roughly 8.6x the shading units, 4.3x the TMUs, and 1.5x the ROPs compared to the GTX 560. Pixel fill rate tells a similar story: 58.80 GPixel/s for the TITAN BLACK versus 11.34 GPixel/s for the GTX 560. Texture fill rate is 235.2 GTexel/s versus 45.36 GTexel/s, a 5.2x gap.
Memory architecture also diverges sharply. The TITAN BLACK uses a 384-bit memory bus with 6 GB GDDR5 running at 1750 MHz (7 Gbps effective), yielding 336.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The GTX 560 uses a 256-bit bus with 1024 MB GDDR5 at 1000 MHz (4 Gbps effective), for 128.0 GB/s. The TITAN BLACK's memory clock is 75% higher in effective transfer rate, and the bus is 50% wider.
Clock behavior differs too. The TITAN BLACK has defined base (889 MHz) and boost (980 MHz) clocks, while the GTX 560 lists no base or boost clock in the data — only its memory clock. The TITAN BLACK's FP32 compute throughput is 5.645 TFLOPS; the GTX 560 is rated at 1,088.6 GFLOPS (approximately 1.09 TFLOPS), meaning the TITAN BLACK delivers over 5x the single-precision floating-point performance.
Power and connectivity also differ. The TITAN BLACK has a 250 W TDP, requires 1x 6-pin + 1x 8-pin power connectors, and suggests a 600 W PSU. The GTX 560 has a 150 W TDP, uses 2x 6-pin connectors, and suggests a 450 W PSU. Both are dual-slot cards. The TITAN BLACK uses PCIe 3.0 x16, while the GTX 560 uses PCIe 2.0 x16. Display outputs differ as well: the TITAN BLACK offers 2x DVI, 1x HDMI 1.4a, and 1x DisplayPort 1.2; the GTX 560 offers 2x DVI and 1x mini-HDMI 1.3a.
Head-to-Head Benchmarks
The only direct benchmark comparison available is Geekbench OpenCL. In this test, the TITAN BLACK scores 27218 while the GTX 560 scores 9058. The delta is 200.5%, meaning the TITAN BLACK is roughly three times faster in absolute score terms. This is a decisive victory — the TITAN BLACK wins the single head-to-head test, giving it 1 win versus 0 for the GTX 560.
The magnitude of this gap reflects the architectural chasm between the two. The TITAN BLACK's score is 2.72x the GTX 560's score in raw numbers. Looking at the rival context, the GTX 560's OpenCL score of 9058 places it near the NVIDIA TITAN V CEO Edition (9037, just 0.2% lower) and the GTX 660 (9022, 0.4% lower). The TITAN BLACK's score of 27218 is not directly compared to any rival in the provided data, but its average benchmark score of 9474 sits between the Quadro K5000 (9637, 1.7% higher) and the GTX 760 (9458, 0.2% lower).
The TITAN BLACK's average benchmark score of 9474 is only 4.6% higher than the GTX 560's 9058, which highlights how the OpenCL test is unusually favorable to the TITAN BLACK. In the broader benchmark suite (which includes Passmark tests for the TITAN BLACK only), the TITAN BLACK shows a wide range: Passmark G3D score of 9184, G2D of 595, GPU Compute of 3726, and lower scores in DirectX tests (DirectX 9: 133, DirectX 11: 73, DirectX 10: 47, DirectX 12: 34). The GTX 560 has no Passmark scores in the data, so cross-card comparison beyond OpenCL is not possible from the FACT PACK.
Specification Differences
| Specification | TITAN BLACK | GTX 560 |
|---|---|---|
| Architecture | Kepler | Fermi 2.0 |
| Chip | GK110B | GF114 |
| Generation | GeForce 700 | GeForce 500 |
| Process Node | 28 nm | 40 nm |
| Transistors | 7,080 million | 1,950 million |
| Die Size | 561 mm² | 332 mm² |
| Transistor Density | 12.6M / mm² | 5.9M / mm² |
| Base Clock | 889 MHz | Not listed |
| Boost Clock | 980 MHz | Not listed |
| Memory Clock | 1750 MHz / 7 Gbps effective | 1000 MHz / 4 Gbps effective |
| Memory Size | 6 GB | 1024 MB |
| Memory Bus | 384 bit | 256 bit |
| Bandwidth | 336.0 GB/s | 128.0 GB/s |
| Shading Units | 2880 | 336 |
| TMUs | 240 | 56 |
| ROPs | 48 | 32 |
| Pixel Rate | 58.80 GPixel/s | 11.34 GPixel/s |
| Texture Rate | 235.2 GTexel/s | 45.36 GTexel/s |
| FP32 | 5.645 TFLOPS | 1,088.6 GFLOPS |
| TDP | 250 W | 150 W |
| Power Connectors | 1x 6-pin + 1x 8-pin | 2x 6-pin |
| Suggested PSU | 600 W | 450 W |
| Bus Interface | PCIe 3.0 x16 | PCIe 2.0 x16 |
| Display Outputs | 2x DVI, 1x HDMI 1.4a, 1x DisplayPort 1.2 | 2x DVI, 1x mini-HDMI 1.3a |
| DirectX | 12 (11_1) | 12 (11_0) |
| Vulkan | 1.2.175 | Not listed |
| Length | 267 mm (10.5 inches) | 210 mm (8.3 inches) |
| Height | 111 mm (4.4 inches) | Not listed |
| Width | 38 mm (1.5 inches) | Not listed |
| Release Date | 2014-02-17 | 2011-05-16 |
| Launch MSRP | 999 USD | 199 USD |
The Verdict
The data tells a clear story: the TITAN BLACK is an overwhelmingly more powerful GPU. Its 200.5% advantage in the Geekbench OpenCL test is categorical, and its architectural specs — 8.6x the shading units, 5.2x the texture rate, 5.2x the FP32 throughput, and 2.6x the memory bandwidth — all point to a card in a different performance class entirely. The 6 GB memory capacity versus 1024 MB is a decisive differentiator for modern workloads that exceed 1 GB of VRAM, which is nearly all current games and compute tasks.
However, the GTX 560 is not without its own context. Its average benchmark score of 9058 places it in the same percentile band (45th versus 46th) as the TITAN BLACK, and its nearest rivals include the GTX 660 (0.4% behind) and the TITAN V CEO Edition (0.2% behind) — meaning it performs comparably to much newer hardware in the aggregate. For legacy applications or lightweight workloads, the GTX 560's lower TDP (150 W versus 250 W) and smaller physical footprint (210 mm versus 267 mm length) make it an easier fit in older or smaller systems.
Who should pick the TITAN BLACK? Anyone who needs maximum compute throughput, high memory capacity, or modern API support (Vulkan, DirectX 11_1). Its 5.645 TFLOPS FP32 performance and 336 GB/s bandwidth make it suitable for compute-heavy tasks, and its 6 GB VRAM handles large datasets or high-resolution textures. The 999 USD launch MSRP reflects its positioning as a top-tier part at release.
Who should pick the GTX 560? Users with power or space constraints who only need modest graphics performance. Its 150 W TDP and 450 W suggested PSU make it far easier to power, and its 210 mm length fits in compact cases where the TITAN BLACK's 267 mm might not. The 199 USD launch MSRP shows it was always an entry-level offering. For older games or basic display output, the GTX 560 remains functional, but the data shows no scenario in which it outpaces the TITAN BLACK in raw performance. The verdict is unambiguous: the TITAN BLACK wins the only direct benchmark and dominates every architectural metric. The GTX 560's only advantages are lower power draw, smaller size, and lower launch price — none of which appear in performance benchmarks.