GPU Comparison

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 D and NVIDIA RTX A5500 represent two distinct generations of NVIDIA GPU design, separated by a fundamental shift in architecture, process technology, and intended workload. The data shows a decisive performance advantage for the RTX 4090 D, built on the Ada Lovelace architecture with a 5 nm process, against the Ampere-based RTX A5500 fabricated on Samsung's 8 nm node. While both cards offer 24 GB of memory, the comparison reveals stark differences in compute throughput, power requirements, and physical design, making the choice between them clear for most users.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The benchmark data presents a lopsided contest. In the Geekbench OpenCL test, the RTX 4090 D scores 278,621, while the RTX A5500 manages 174,637. That is a 59.5% delta in favor of the Ada card, a massive gap that underscores the generational leap in raw compute performance. The RTX 4090 D's FP32 throughput of 73.54 TFLOPS versus the RTX A5500's 34.10 TFLOPS directly explains this result; the newer card processes more than double the floating-point operations per second.

The Vulkan benchmark tells a similar story. The RTX 4090 D posts 246,941, against the RTX A5500's 155,797, a 58.5% advantage. This consistency across different API workloads indicates that the performance lead is not an artifact of a single test but a systemic superiority in the RTX 4090 D's execution resources. The RTX 4090 D's shading units number 14,592, compared to 10,240 on the RTX A5500, and its 456 texture mapping units vastly outpace the older card's 320. These hardware resources translate directly into the benchmark scores observed.

The RTX 4090 D wins both head-to-head matchups, with a 2-0 record. Its average benchmark score across all tests is 178,050, placing it in the 98th percentile of all GPUs. The RTX A5500's average score is 165,217, which still lands in the 97th percentile, but the gap between them is substantial. When placed against its nearest rivals, the RTX 4090 D trails the NVIDIA RTX PRO 5000 Blackwell by just 2.2% and the NVIDIA A100 SXM4 80 GB by 3.1%, showing it competes at the very top tier of professional compute. The RTX A5500, meanwhile, sits much closer to lower-tier workstation cards like the AMD Radeon PRO W7800 (0.2% ahead) and the NVIDIA RTX 4500 Ada Generation (0.5% behind), indicating its performance class is fundamentally different from the RTX 4090 D.

FAQ

Q: How much faster is the RTX 4090 D than the RTX A5500 in compute benchmarks?

A: The RTX 4090 D is 59.5% faster in Geekbench OpenCL and 58.5% faster in Geekbench Vulkan, according to the head-to-head data.

Q: Do both cards have the same memory capacity?

A: Yes, both the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 D and the NVIDIA RTX A5500 feature 24 GB of memory, though the former uses GDDR6X while the latter uses GDDR6.

Q: What are the power consumption requirements for each card?

A: The RTX 4090 D has a TDP of 425 W and requires an 800 W power supply, while the RTX A5500 has a TDP of 230 W and needs a 550 W power supply.

Q: Which card offers better ray tracing performance based on the data?

A: The RTX 4090 D has 114 RT cores compared to 80 on the RTX A5500, along with higher clock speeds and more shading units, indicating superior ray tracing capability.

Q: Are both cards still in production?

A: No, both the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 D and the NVIDIA RTX A5500 are listed as end-of-life products.

Q: What is the process node difference between the two GPUs?

A: The RTX 4090 D is built on TSMC's 5 nm process, while the RTX A5500 uses Samsung's 8 nm process, contributing to a significant difference in transistor density.

Architecture Differences

The architectural divide between these two cards is stark. The RTX 4090 D uses the AD102 chip built on the Ada Lovelace architecture, manufactured by TSMC on a 5 nm process. It packs 76,300 million transistors into a die size of 609 mm², yielding a transistor density of 125.3 million per square millimeter. The RTX A5500, by contrast, uses the GA102 chip with the older Ampere architecture, fabricated by Samsung on an 8 nm process. That chip contains 28,300 million transistors across a slightly larger die of 628 mm², with a density of just 45.1 million per square millimeter.

This process advantage translates into dramatic differences in execution resources. The RTX 4090 D operates with a base clock of 2280 MHz and a boost clock of 2520 MHz, while the RTX A5500 runs at a modest 1080 MHz base and 1665 MHz boost. The Ada card's 14,592 shading units, 456 TMUs, and 176 ROPs dwarf the Ampere card's 10,240 shading units, 320 TMUs, and 96 ROPs. Ray tracing and tensor performance follow suit: 114 RT cores and 456 tensor cores on the RTX 4090 D, versus 80 RT cores and 320 tensor cores on the RTX A5500.

Memory technology also differs. The RTX 4090 D uses GDDR6X with an effective speed of 21 Gbps, delivering 1.01 TB/s of bandwidth across a 384-bit bus. The RTX A5500 uses standard GDDR6 at 16 Gbps effective, providing 768.0 GB/s on the same 384-bit bus width. The newer card's memory subsystem offers a 31.5% bandwidth advantage, which matters for data-intensive workloads. Pixel and texture rates reinforce the gap: 443.5 GPixel/s and 1,149.1 GTexel/s for the RTX 4090 D, versus 159.8 GPixel/s and 532.8 GTexel/s for the RTX A5500.

The Verdict

The data makes the decision straightforward. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 D is the superior performer by every measurable metric in the FACT PACK. It wins both head-to-head benchmarks by nearly 60%, offers more than double the FP32 compute throughput, and delivers higher memory bandwidth with faster GDDR6X memory. Its 98th percentile ranking among all GPUs, combined with an average benchmark score of 178,050, places it firmly in the upper echelon of available hardware. The RTX A5500, while still a capable 97th-percentile card with an average score of 165,217, simply cannot match the Ada Lovelace architecture's execution efficiency.

However, the RTX 4090 D demands significantly more from the system. Its 425 W TDP and 800 W suggested PSU requirement are substantial increases over the RTX A5500's 230 W TDP and 550 W PSU. The physical footprint also differs: the RTX 4090 D is a triple-slot card measuring 304 mm in length and 137 mm in height, while the RTX A5500 is a dual-slot card at 267 mm by 112 mm. The RTX 4090 D requires a 16-pin power connector, whereas the RTX A5500 uses a standard 8-pin. Users with constrained chassis or power budgets must account for these differences.

For workloads that prioritize raw compute performance, the RTX 4090 D is the clear choice. Its 59.5% and 58.5% leads in OpenCL and Vulkan, respectively, represent enormous real-world speedups for rendering, simulation, or machine learning tasks. The RTX A5500, with its lower power draw and smaller size, suits environments where power efficiency and physical compatibility take precedence over peak performance. The data shows no scenario where the RTX A5500 outperforms the RTX 4090 D, making the latter the default recommendation for anyone who can accommodate its power and space requirements.

Specification Differences

The two cards differ across nearly every specification field. The RTX 4090 D uses the AD102 chip on a 5 nm TSMC process, while the RTX A5500 uses GA102 on 8 nm Samsung. Transistor counts are 76,300 million versus 28,300 million, with die sizes of 609 mm² and 628 mm² respectively. Base clocks are 2280 MHz against 1080 MHz, and boost clocks are 2520 MHz versus 1665 MHz. Memory type differs between GDDR6X and GDDR6, with effective speeds of 21 Gbps and 16 Gbps. Bandwidth is 1.01 TB/s for the RTX 4090 D and 768.0 GB/s for the RTX A5500.

Compute resources diverge sharply: shading units are 14,592 versus 10,240, TMUs are 456 versus 320, ROPs are 176 versus 96, RT cores are 114 versus 80, and tensor cores are 456 versus 320. Pixel rates are 443.5 GPixel/s and 159.8 GPixel/s, while texture rates are 1,149.1 GTexel/s and 532.8 GTexel/s. FP32 and FP16 performance are each 73.54 TFLOPS on the RTX 4090 D and 34.10 TFLOPS on the RTX A5500. TDP is 425 W versus 230 W, with slot widths of triple-slot and dual-slot. Power connectors are 1x 16-pin and 1x 8-pin, with suggested PSUs of 800 W and 550 W. Display outputs include 1x HDMI 2.1 plus 3x DisplayPort 1.4a on the RTX 4090 D, versus 4x DisplayPort 1.4a on the RTX A5500. Dimensions are 304 mm by 137 mm by 61 mm for the RTX 4090 D, and 267 mm by 112 mm for the RTX A5500. Release dates are 2023-12-27 for the RTX 4090 D and 2022-03-21 for the RTX A5500.