NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 SE vs NVIDIA RTX 4000 Ada Generation Comparison

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The recorded data set contains no direct head-to-head benchmark runs between the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 SE and the NVIDIA RTX 4000 Ada Generation. The database lists no comparative tests, no win counts for either card, and no delta percentages between them. What exists instead is a partial benchmark profile for the RTX 4000 Ada Generation only, with two recorded Geekbench results: 146,593 in OpenCL and 123,842 in Vulkan. The RTX 5090 SE has no benchmark entries at all, so any direct numerical comparison of application performance is impossible from the current database.

The RTX 4000 Ada Generation carries an average benchmark score of 135,218 across its recorded tests. That figure places it at the 95th percentile among all GPUs in the database. Its nearest rivals, as recorded, are the NVIDIA A10M at 135,230, the AMD Radeon PRO W6800 at 135,396, the AMD Radeon Pro W6800X Duo at 135,774, and the AMD Radeon PRO V620 at 136,472. The RTX 4000 Ada Generation trails each of these by narrow margins: 0 percent against the A10M, 0.1 percent behind the PRO W6800, 0.4 percent behind the W6800X Duo, and 0.9 percent behind the PRO V620. These deltas are small enough to be considered negligible in practical terms, but the data does show the RTX 4000 Ada Generation sitting at the lower end of its immediate competitive cluster.

For the RTX 5090 SE, the database records a percentile rank of 50 among all GPUs, but with an average benchmark score of 0 and no nearest rivals listed. That percentile figure is not derived from measured performance; it reflects the absence of any benchmark entries. The RTX 5090 SE cannot be meaningfully compared to the RTX 4000 Ada Generation on the basis of recorded test scores, because one side of the comparison has no data. The specification sheet for the RTX 5090 SE, however, indicates substantially higher theoretical throughput figures: 66.94 TFLOPS FP32 versus 26.73 TFLOPS, 1,045.9 GTexel/s texture rate versus 417.6 GTexel/s, and 380.3 GPixel/s pixel rate versus 139.2 GPixel/s. Those are raw hardware capabilities, not measured results, and they point to a large gap in peak compute potential.

The RTX 4000 Ada Generation does have a recorded Vulkan score of 123,842, which is lower than its OpenCL score of 146,593. That gap of 22,751 points suggests the card performs differently across these two APIs in the database's testing methodology. No equivalent data exists for the RTX 5090 SE, so no cross-API comparison between the two cards can be drawn.

The Verdict

The database supports only one clear verdict: the RTX 4000 Ada Generation is the only one of the two cards with measured benchmark results, and those results place it at the 95th percentile of all GPUs, with an average score of 135,218. The RTX 5090 SE has no recorded benchmark scores, an average score of 0, and a 50th percentile rank that is an artifact of missing data rather than a performance measurement. Any claim that the RTX 5090 SE outperforms the RTX 4000 Ada Generation must rest on specification analysis, not on database test results, because the database contains no comparative runs.

From a specifications standpoint, the RTX 5090 SE shows higher numbers across every compute metric. It uses the GB202 chip, a 92,200 million transistor design on a 750 mm² die, versus the AD104 chip with 35,800 million transistors on a 294 mm² die. The RTX 5090 SE has 14,080 shading units, 440 TMUs, 160 ROPs, 110 RT cores, and 440 tensor cores. The RTX 4000 Ada Generation has 6,144 shading units, 192 TMUs, 64 ROPs, 48 RT cores, and 192 tensor cores. The RTX 5090 SE also has more memory: 24 GB of GDDR7 on a 384-bit bus delivering 1.34 TB/s, versus 20 GB of GDDR6 on a 160-bit bus delivering 360.0 GB/s. These are large gaps, but they are not benchmark results.

The verdict from the recorded data is that the RTX 4000 Ada Generation is a verified, measured performer in the database, while the RTX 5090 SE is a hardware entry with no measured performance profile. Users who rely on database benchmark scores for purchasing decisions will find support only for the RTX 4000 Ada Generation. Users who prioritize peak specification limits will see the RTX 5090 SE as the stronger card on paper, but the database cannot confirm that with test data.

Where Each One Wins

The RTX 4000 Ada Generation wins in every category where measured data exists. It has recorded benchmark scores in both Geekbench OpenCL and Geekbench Vulkan, and it holds a 95th percentile rank among all GPUs. Its average score of 135,218 puts it in a tight cluster with the NVIDIA A10M, AMD Radeon PRO W6800, AMD Radeon Pro W6800X Duo, and AMD Radeon PRO V620, all within 0.9 percent of each other. For any user looking at actual database results, the RTX 4000 Ada Generation is the only card with demonstrated performance.

The RTX 5090 SE wins on specification sheet metrics. It has a higher FP32 throughput of 66.94 TFLOPS versus 26.73 TFLOPS, a higher texture rate of 1,045.9 GTexel/s versus 417.6 GTexel/s, and a higher pixel rate of 380.3 GPixel/s versus 139.2 GPixel/s. It has more shading units, more RT cores, more tensor cores, more memory, wider memory bus, and higher memory bandwidth. It also uses a newer architecture, Blackwell 2.0 versus Ada Lovelace, and supports PCIe 5.0 x16 versus PCIe 4.0 x16. These are advantages in hardware capability, but they are unverified by any benchmark run in the database.

The RTX 4000 Ada Generation wins on power efficiency as recorded in specifications. It has a 130 W TDP versus 500 W for the RTX 5090 SE, and a suggested PSU of 300 W versus 900 W. It is also a single-slot card, while the RTX 5090 SE is dual-slot. The RTX 4000 Ada Generation has a shorter length at 245 mm versus 267 mm, and a lower height at 112 mm versus 111 mm, making it the more compact option overall despite the slightly taller dimension.

FAQ

Q: Does the RTX 5090 SE have any recorded benchmark scores in the database?

A: No. The RTX 5090 SE has an empty benchmark list, an average benchmark score of 0, and no nearest rivals recorded.

Q: What is the RTX 4000 Ada Generation's average benchmark score?

A: The average benchmark score is 135,218, based on two recorded tests: Geekbench OpenCL at 146,593 and Geekbench Vulkan at 123,842.

Q: How does the RTX 4000 Ada Generation compare to its nearest rivals?

A: It sits within 0.9 percent of all four recorded nearest rivals. It matches the NVIDIA A10M at a 0 percent delta, trails the AMD Radeon PRO W6800 by 0.1 percent, trails the AMD Radeon Pro W6800X Duo by 0.4 percent, and trails the AMD Radeon PRO V620 by 0.9 percent.

Q: Which card has more memory bandwidth?

A: The RTX 5090 SE has 1.34 TB/s of memory bandwidth, while the RTX 4000 Ada Generation has 360.0 GB/s. The RTX 5090 SE also has a larger memory bus at 384 bit versus 160 bit.

Q: What are the power requirements for each card?

A: The RTX 5090 SE has a 500 W TDP and a suggested PSU of 900 W. The RTX 4000 Ada Generation has a 130 W TDP and a suggested PSU of 300 W.

Q: Which architecture does each card use?

A: The RTX 5090 SE uses the Blackwell 2.0 architecture on the GB202 chip. The RTX 4000 Ada Generation uses the Ada Lovelace architecture on the AD104 chip.

Architecture Differences

The two cards come from different NVIDIA generations and use different chip designs. The RTX 5090 SE is based on the GB202 chip with the Blackwell 2.0 architecture, manufactured on a 5 nm process at TSMC. It integrates 92,200 million transistors on a 750 mm² die, giving a transistor density of 122.9M per mm². The RTX 4000 Ada Generation uses the AD104 chip with the Ada Lovelace architecture, also on a 5 nm TSMC process, but with 35,800 million transistors on a 294 mm² die and a density of 121.8M per mm². Both chips come from the same foundry and process node, but the GB202 is roughly 2.6 times larger in die area and carries about 2.6 times more transistors.

Core counts differ substantially. The RTX 5090 SE has 14,080 shading units, 440 TMUs, 160 ROPs, 110 RT cores, and 440 tensor cores. The RTX 4000 Ada Generation has 6,144 shading units, 192 TMUs, 64 ROPs, 48 RT cores, and 192 tensor cores. The ratio for shading units is about 2.3 to 1 in favor of the RTX 5090 SE, and the same ratio holds for RT cores and tensor cores at roughly 2.3 to 1 as well. The ROP count ratio is 2.5 to 1, and the TMU ratio is about 2.3 to 1. These differences drive the large gaps in pixel rate, texture rate, and FP32 throughput.

Memory architecture also diverges. The RTX 5090 SE uses 24 GB of GDDR7 on a 384-bit bus with 1.34 TB/s bandwidth. The RTX 4000 Ada Generation uses 20 GB of GDDR6 on a 160-bit bus with 360.0 GB/s bandwidth. The RTX 5090 SE has nearly four times the memory bandwidth, a wider bus by 224 bits, and a newer memory type. The effective memory clock for the RTX 5090 SE is 28 Gbps, while the RTX 4000 Ada Generation runs at 18 Gbps effective.

Both cards support identical API feature sets: DirectX 12 Ultimate with feature level 12_2, OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. The RTX 5090 SE uses a PCIe 5.0 x16 interface, while the RTX 4000 Ada Generation uses PCIe 4.0 x16. The RTX 5090 SE also has a different display output configuration: one HDMI 2.1b port and three DisplayPort 2.1b ports, versus four DisplayPort 1.4a ports on the RTX 4000 Ada Generation.

Specification Differences

The two cards differ across nearly every recorded specification field. The RTX 5090 SE has a base clock of 1740 MHz and a boost clock of 2377 MHz, while the RTX 4000 Ada Generation has a base clock of 1500 MHz and a boost clock of 2175 MHz. The RTX 5090 SE has a higher memory clock at 1750 MHz with 28 Gbps effective, versus 2250 MHz with 18 Gbps effective for the RTX 4000 Ada Generation. Power draw differs sharply: the RTX 5090 SE has a 500 W TDP and requires a 900 W suggested PSU, while the RTX 4000 Ada Generation has a 130 W TDP and a 300 W suggested PSU. Both use a single 16-pin power connector.

Physical dimensions differ as well. The RTX 5090 SE is 267 mm long, 111 mm tall, and 40 mm wide, occupying a dual-slot form factor. The RTX 4000 Ada Generation is 245 mm long and 112 mm tall, with no recorded width, and it uses a single-slot form factor. The RTX 5090 SE is slightly longer by 22 mm and slightly shorter by 1 mm in height.

The production status for both cards is listed as Active. The RTX 5090 SE has a release date of 2025-12-31 in the database, with a predecessor in the GeForce 40 series and a successor in the GeForce 60 series. The RTX 4000 Ada Generation has a release date of 2023-08-08, with a predecessor in Workstation Ampere and a successor in Blackwell PRO W. The RTX 5090 SE has a recorded launch MSRP of 1,499 USD, while the RTX 4000 Ada Generation has no launch MSRP recorded. The RTX 5090 SE belongs to the GeForce 50-series, and the RTX 4000 Ada Generation belongs to the GeForce 40-series under the workstation Ada generation label.