NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti vs NVIDIA Quadro K6000 Comparison

Where Each One Wins

The benchmark data splits these two NVIDIA workstation and consumer cards into distinct performance tiers. The NVIDIA Quadro K6000, a Kepler-generation professional card from 2013, does not win a single head-to-head test recorded in the database. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti, an Ampere-generation consumer card from 2020, wins both available comparisons outright.

Looking at the broader benchmark suite, the RTX 3060 Ti demonstrates its strength in compute-heavy and API-modern workloads. In Geekbench OpenCL, the RTX 3060 Ti scores 78,927 against the Quadro K6000’s 23,749, a 69.9% advantage. This is not a marginal lead; it is a generational leap in raw floating-point throughput. The RTX 3060 Ti’s FP32 rating of 16.20 TFLOPS versus the Quadro K6000’s 5.196 TFLOPS explains the scale of this gap. The Ampere card also carries 4,864 shading units, 152 texture mapping units, and 80 raster output pipelines, versus 2,880, 240, and 48 respectively on the Kepler card.

In Geekbench Vulkan, the RTX 3060 Ti scores 47,784 while the Quadro K6000 reaches 25,409, a 46.8% deficit for the older card. Vulkan support tells part of the story: the RTX 3060 Ti runs Vulkan 1.4, while the Quadro K6000 is limited to Vulkan 1.2.175. The newer architecture also provides dedicated ray tracing cores (38) and tensor cores (152), which the Quadro K6000 lacks entirely. These hardware blocks do not directly appear in the two Geekbench tests, but they indicate a fundamentally different feature set that favors the RTX 3060 Ti in any modern graphics API workload.

The Quadro K6000 does hold a few specification advantages that could matter in specific professional contexts, even if the benchmark scores do not reflect them. Its 12 GB of GDDR5 memory exceeds the RTX 3060 Ti’s 8 GB of GDDR6. The memory bus is wider at 384-bit versus 256-bit, though the bandwidth is lower at 288.4 GB/s versus 448.0 GB/s. The Quadro also supports dual-slot cooling with 2x 6-pin power connectors, and its display outputs are 2x DVI and 2x DisplayPort 1.2. For legacy workstation setups with DVI monitors, the Quadro K6000 remains physically compatible in a way the RTX 3060 Ti, with its 1x HDMI 2.1 and 3x DisplayPort 1.4a outputs, is not.

However, when the database calculates an average benchmark score across all recorded tests, the RTX 3060 Ti lands at 16,129, which places it in the 59th percentile of all GPUs. The Quadro K6000 averages 19,030, putting it in the 63rd percentile. This is a curious inversion: the older card shows a higher average because its benchmark set is limited to three Geekbench entries, all of which score relatively high, while the RTX 3060 Ti’s average is dragged down by several low Passmark scores, including 78 in DirectX 12 and 132 in DirectX 10. The head-to-head tests, which use identical workloads, are the more reliable indicator of relative performance.

The Verdict

The data points to a clear conclusion: the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti is the superior processor for any workload represented in the head-to-head benchmarks. It wins both Geekbench OpenCL and Geekbench Vulkan by substantial margins. For users prioritizing compute performance, modern API compatibility, or ray tracing capability, the RTX 3060 Ti is the only rational choice based on the recorded measurements.

The NVIDIA Quadro K6000, despite its higher average benchmark score and higher percentile ranking, loses every direct comparison. Its strengths are confined to memory capacity (12 GB versus 8 GB) and legacy connectivity (DVI outputs). If the workload requires more than 8 GB of VRAM and does not depend on Vulkan or OpenCL performance, the Quadro K6000 could still serve a niche role. But the benchmark evidence shows a 69.9% deficit in OpenCL and a 46.8% deficit in Vulkan, which are not recoverable through driver optimizations or workstation certifications.

The RTX 3060 Ti also delivers this performance at a lower power draw: 200 W versus 225 W for the Quadro K6000. Both cards suggest a 550 W power supply, but the Ampere card is more efficient per watt. Its 8 nm Samsung process node, with 17,400 million transistors on a 392 mm² die, achieves a transistor density of 44.4M per mm², compared to the 28 nm TSMC node on the Quadro K6000 with 7,080 million transistors on a 561 mm² die and a density of 12.6M per mm². This is not just a generational difference; it is a manufacturing and design philosophy shift that favors the newer card.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The database records two direct comparisons between these cards. The first is Geekbench OpenCL, where the RTX 3060 Ti scores 78,927 and the Quadro K6000 scores 23,749. The delta is 69.9% in favor of the RTX 3060 Ti. This test exercises general-purpose compute on the GPU, and the results align with the raw FP32 throughput difference: 16.20 TFLOPS versus 5.196 TFLOPS, a 3.1x advantage. The RTX 3060 Ti’s 4,864 shading units and 152 tensor cores provide substantially more parallel execution resources. The Quadro K6000’s 2,880 shading units, while numerous for its era, cannot compensate for the clock speed difference: 902 MHz boost versus 1,665 MHz boost on the RTX 3060 Ti.

The second head-to-head test is Geekbench Vulkan, where the RTX 3060 Ti scores 47,784 and the Quadro K6000 scores 25,409. The delta is 46.8% in favor of the RTX 3060 Ti. Vulkan is a low-level graphics API that benefits from modern hardware scheduling and explicit command buffers. The RTX 3060 Ti supports Vulkan 1.4, while the Quadro K6000 is limited to 1.2.175, which likely contributes to the gap. Additionally, the RTX 3060 Ti’s 38 ray tracing cores and 152 tensor cores can offload certain Vulkan workloads, even if the test does not specifically target ray tracing.

The Quadro K6000’s best showing in these tests is its Vulkan score, which reaches 53% of the RTX 3060 Ti’s performance. In OpenCL, it drops to 30% of the newer card’s score. The database shows the Quadro K6000 with 2 wins for the RTX 3060 Ti and 0 for the Quadro K6000. There is no benchmark in the head-to-head set where the older card comes out ahead.

FAQ

Q: Which card has more memory?

A: The NVIDIA Quadro K6000 has 12 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 384-bit bus, while the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti has 8 GB of GDDR6 on a 256-bit bus.

Q: Is the RTX 3060 Ti faster in compute workloads?

A: Yes. In Geekbench OpenCL, the RTX 3060 Ti scores 78,927 versus the Quadro K6000’s 23,749, a 69.9% advantage. The RTX 3060 Ti also has higher FP32 throughput at 16.20 TFLOPS versus 5.196 TFLOPS.

Q: Does the Quadro K6000 support Vulkan?

A: It supports Vulkan 1.2.175, but the RTX 3060 Ti supports Vulkan 1.4. In the Geekbench Vulkan test, the RTX 3060 Ti scores 47,784 versus the Quadro K6000’s 25,409.

Q: Which card has a higher average benchmark score?

A: The Quadro K6000 averages 19,030 across its recorded tests, placing it in the 63rd percentile. The RTX 3060 Ti averages 16,129, placing it in the 59th percentile. However, the head-to-head comparisons favor the RTX 3060 Ti.

Q: What are the power requirements for each card?

A: The Quadro K6000 has a TDP of 225 W and uses 2x 6-pin power connectors. The RTX 3060 Ti has a TDP of 200 W and uses a 1x 12-pin connector. Both recommend a 550 W power supply.

Q: Does the RTX 3060 Ti have ray tracing hardware?

A: Yes, the RTX 3060 Ti includes 38 ray tracing cores and 152 tensor cores. The Quadro K6000 has no dedicated ray tracing or tensor cores.

Architecture Differences

The two cards represent opposite ends of NVIDIA’s architectural timeline. The Quadro K6000 uses the GK110B chip, built on Kepler architecture at TSMC’s 28 nm process. The die measures 561 mm² and contains 7,080 million transistors, yielding a transistor density of 12.6M per mm². The RTX 3060 Ti uses the GA104 chip, built on Ampere architecture at Samsung’s 8 nm process. The die is smaller at 392 mm² but packs 17,400 million transistors, achieving a density of 44.4M per mm². This density difference, a 3.5x improvement, is the fundamental architectural divide.

Clock behavior also differs sharply. The Quadro K6000 runs at a 797 MHz base and 902 MHz boost, while the RTX 3060 Ti runs at 1,410 MHz base and 1,665 MHz boost. Memory clocks follow the same pattern: 1,502 MHz (6 Gbps effective) on GDDR5 for the Quadro, versus 1,750 MHz (14 Gbps effective) on GDDR6 for the RTX 3060 Ti. The RTX 3060 Ti’s memory bandwidth of 448.0 GB/s exceeds the Quadro K6000’s 288.4 GB/s, despite the latter having a wider 384-bit bus. The newer memory technology compensates for the narrower bus.

Compute resources are heavily skewed toward the RTX 3060 Ti. It has 4,864 shading units, 152 TMUs, and 80 ROPs, producing pixel rate of 133.2 GPixel/s and texture rate of 253.1 GTexel/s. The Quadro K6000 has 2,880 shading units, 240 TMUs, and 48 ROPs, with pixel rate of 54.12 GPixel/s and texture rate of 216.5 GTexel/s. The RTX 3060 Ti also supports FP16 at a 1:1 ratio with FP32, delivering 16.20 TFLOPS for both, while the Quadro K6000 has no recorded FP16 capability.

Feature support diverges on API levels. The RTX 3060 Ti supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), while the Quadro K6000 is limited to DirectX 12 (11_1). OpenGL is identical at 4.6, but Vulkan differs: 1.4 on the RTX 3060 Ti versus 1.2.175 on the Quadro K6000. The bus interface also advances from PCIe 3.0 x16 on the Quadro to PCIe 4.0 x16 on the RTX 3060 Ti, doubling the theoretical host bandwidth.

Physical dimensions are close: the Quadro K6000 measures 267 mm in length and 111 mm in height, while the RTX 3060 Ti measures 242 mm by 112 mm. Both are dual-slot cards. Display outputs differ for legacy compatibility: the Quadro K6000 offers 2x DVI and 2x DisplayPort 1.2, while the RTX 3060 Ti offers 1x HDMI 2.1 and 3x DisplayPort 1.4a. The Quadro K6000’s DVI ports are the only connectivity advantage it holds, and they matter only for older monitors or specialized equipment.

The production status for both is end-of-life, with the Quadro K6000 released on 2013-07-22 and the RTX 3060 Ti on 2020-11-30. The Quadro K6000’s predecessor is Quadro Fermi and its successor is Quadro Maxwell. The RTX 3060 Ti’s predecessor is GeForce 20 and its successor is GeForce 40. These lineage markers confirm that the RTX 3060 Ti is the more modern design, and the benchmark data consistently validates that positioning.