NVIDIA Quadro M4000 vs NVIDIA RTX A400 Comparison

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The recorded data shows a split decision between the NVIDIA RTX A400 and the NVIDIA Quadro M4000, with the older card taking six of the nine shared tests. The RTX A400 wins three tests, but the margin of victory is not uniform across all workloads.

The largest win for the RTX A400 comes in the Passmark G2D test, where it scores 899 against 673 for the Quadro M4000. That is a 33.6% advantage, and it reflects a significant gap in 2D graphics throughput. The RTX A400 also wins the Geekbench OpenCL test with 22844 points versus 19118, a 19.5% lead. This suggests the newer architecture has a clear edge in general-purpose compute tasks that rely on OpenCL. The third win for the RTX A400 is in Passmark DirectX 12, but the margin is narrow: 27 versus 26, a 3.8% difference. The data shows this is a close result, and it does not indicate a decisive advantage in modern API workloads.

The Quadro M4000, despite being from an older generation, posts the largest wins in the older DirectX tests. In Passmark DirectX 11, it scores 49 against 37, a 24.5% lead. In Passmark DirectX 9, it scores 113 against 87, a 23% lead. These are substantial margins, and they show that the Maxwell architecture retains strong performance in legacy graphics APIs. The Quadro M4000 also wins Geekbench Vulkan with 24640 against 22237, a 9.8% lead, which is notable because Vulkan is a modern API. The remaining wins for the Quadro M4000 are smaller: Passmark DirectX 10 (33 versus 32, a 3% lead), Passmark G3D (6680 versus 5983, a 10.4% lead), and Passmark GPU Compute (2660 versus 2557, a 3.9% lead).

Looking at the overall averages, the RTX A400 holds a higher average benchmark score of 6078, compared to 5467 for the Quadro M4000. The percentile rankings confirm this: the RTX A400 sits at the 35th percentile among all GPUs, while the Quadro M4000 sits at the 32nd percentile. The nearest rivals for the RTX A400 include the NVIDIA Quadro P2000 with an average score of 6049 (0.5% lower) and the AMD Radeon 760M with 6019 (1% lower). The Quadro M4000's nearest rivals are all lower-performing parts, such as the AMD Radeon R7 M440 at 5483 (0.3% lower) and the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 765M at 5501 (0.6% lower). The data indicates that the RTX A400 competes in a slightly higher performance tier than the Quadro M4000, even though the older card wins more head-to-head tests.

The Verdict

The choice between these two cards depends entirely on the workload. The data shows the RTX A400 is the better pick for users who prioritize modern compute APIs and 2D desktop work. Its 19.5% lead in Geekbench OpenCL and 33.6% lead in Passmark G2D are the strongest arguments in its favor. It also wins the DirectX 12 test, which points to better readiness for newer software that uses the latest graphics API.

The Quadro M4000 is the better pick for users who work primarily with legacy DirectX applications. Its 24.5% lead in DirectX 11 and 23% lead in DirectX 9 are decisive. It also wins the Vulkan test by 9.8%, which is a modern API, so the older card is not entirely stuck in the past. The Quadro M4000 also holds a 10.4% lead in the overall Passmark G3D score, which is a general 3D graphics test, and it wins GPU compute by 3.9%.

For a workstation that runs a mix of old and new software, the Quadro M4000 wins more tests, but the RTX A400 has the higher average score. The RTX A400 also has the advantage of being an active product, while the Quadro M4000 is end-of-life. The data does not show a universal winner; it shows two cards with different strengths. Users who need the best performance in DirectX 9 through 11 should choose the Quadro M4000. Users who need the best performance in OpenCL, DirectX 12, and 2D tasks should choose the RTX A400.

FAQ

Q: Which card has the higher average benchmark score?

A: The NVIDIA RTX A400 has an average benchmark score of 6078, while the NVIDIA Quadro M4000 has an average score of 5467.

Q: How much faster is the RTX A400 in OpenCL?

A: The RTX A400 scores 22844 in Geekbench OpenCL, which is 19.5% higher than the Quadro M4000's score of 19118.

Q: By what margin does the Quadro M4000 win the DirectX 11 test?

A: The Quadro M4000 scores 49 in Passmark DirectX 11, which is 24.5% higher than the RTX A400's score of 37.

Q: Which card has better 2D performance?

A: The RTX A400 scores 899 in Passmark G2D, which is 33.6% higher than the Quadro M4000's score of 673.

Q: Does the Quadro M4000 win any modern API tests?

A: Yes, the Quadro M4000 wins Geekbench Vulkan with a score of 24640, which is 9.8% higher than the RTX A400's score of 22237.

Q: What is the percentile ranking for each card?

A: The RTX A400 is at the 35th percentile among all GPUs, and the Quadro M4000 is at the 32nd percentile.

Specification Differences

The two cards differ in nearly every major specification. The RTX A400 uses 4 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 64-bit bus, yielding 96.00 GB/s of bandwidth. The Quadro M4000 uses 8 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 256-bit bus, yielding 192.3 GB/s of bandwidth. The Quadro M4000 has double the memory capacity and more than double the memory bandwidth.

The RTX A400 has 768 shading units, 24 texture mapping units, and 16 raster output pipelines. The Quadro M4000 has 1664 shading units, 104 texture mapping units, and 64 raster output pipelines. The Quadro M4000 has more than twice the shading units and more than four times the texture mapping units and raster output pipelines.

The clock speeds also differ. The RTX A400 has a base clock of 1417 MHz and a boost clock of 1762 MHz. The Quadro M4000 does not have recorded base or boost clock values in the database. The memory clock for the RTX A400 is 1500 MHz (12 Gbps effective), while the Quadro M4000 runs at 1502 MHz (6 Gbps effective).

The RTX A400 has a pixel rate of 28.19 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 42.29 GTexel/s. The Quadro M4000 has a pixel rate of 49.47 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 80.39 GTexel/s. The RTX A400 has a FP32 performance of 2.706 TFLOPS, and the Quadro M4000 has a FP32 performance of 2.573 TFLOPS. The RTX A400 also has FP16 performance of 2.706 TFLOPS (1:1), while the Quadro M4000 has no recorded FP16 performance.

The power requirements differ substantially. The RTX A400 has a TDP of 50 W and requires no power connectors, with a suggested PSU of 250 W. The Quadro M4000 has a TDP of 120 W and requires one 6-pin power connector, with a suggested PSU of 300 W. The RTX A400 uses a PCIe 4.0 x8 interface, while the Quadro M4000 uses PCIe 3.0 x16.

The physical dimensions also differ. The RTX A400 is 163 mm long and 69 mm high. The Quadro M4000 is 241 mm long and 111 mm high. Both are single-slot cards. The RTX A400 has four mini-DisplayPort 1.4a outputs, while the Quadro M4000 has four DisplayPort 1.2 outputs.

Architecture Differences

The architectural gap between these two cards is wide. The RTX A400 is built on the Ampere architecture using the GA107 chip, fabricated on an 8 nm process at Samsung. The Quadro M4000 is built on the Maxwell 2.0 architecture using the GM204 chip, fabricated on a 28 nm process at TSMC. The process node difference is significant: 8 nm versus 28 nm.

The transistor counts reflect the different process nodes. The RTX A400 has 8,700 million transistors on a 200 mm² die, giving a transistor density of 43.5M per mm². The Quadro M4000 has 5,200 million transistors on a 398 mm² die, giving a transistor density of 13.1M per mm². The RTX A400 packs far more transistors into a much smaller die.

The RTX A400 includes 6 ray tracing cores and 24 tensor cores, which are features that do not exist on the Quadro M4000. The Quadro M4000 has no ray tracing cores and no tensor cores. This is a fundamental architectural difference, as the RTX A400 is designed to accelerate ray-traced workloads and AI-based tasks, while the Quadro M4000 lacks these dedicated hardware units.

The API support also differs. The RTX A400 supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), while the Quadro M4000 supports DirectX 12 (12_1). Both support OpenGL 4.6 and Vulkan 1.4. The RTX A400 is from the Workstation Ampere generation, while the Quadro M4000 is from the Quadro Maxwell generation. The RTX A400's predecessor is Quadro Turing, and its successor is Workstation Ada. The Quadro M4000's predecessor is Quadro Kepler, and its successor is Quadro Pascal.

The production status differs as well. The RTX A400 is listed as active, while the Quadro M4000 is end-of-life. The release dates are far apart: the RTX A400 was released in 2024, and the Quadro M4000 was released in 2015.

Where Each One Wins

The RTX A400 wins in compute-heavy workloads that use OpenCL. Its 19.5% lead in Geekbench OpenCL is the clearest example. It also wins in 2D desktop tasks, with a 33.6% lead in Passmark G2D. These are the areas where the newer architecture and higher FP32 throughput (2.706 TFLOPS versus 2.573 TFLOPS) show up in the data.

The RTX A400 also wins the DirectX 12 test, though the margin is only 3.8%. This makes it the better choice for software that uses the latest DirectX 12 features, as the card supports DirectX 12 Ultimate. The presence of ray tracing cores and tensor cores also means it is better suited for future workloads that use those features, even though no specific benchmark in the data tests them directly.

The Quadro M4000 wins in legacy DirectX workloads. Its 24.5% lead in DirectX 11 and 23% lead in DirectX 9 are the largest margins in the entire comparison. This makes it the better choice for users running older professional applications that rely on these APIs. The Quadro M4000 also wins the Vulkan test by 9.8%, which is a modern API, so it is not limited to old software.

The Quadro M4000 also wins the general 3D graphics test, Passmark G3D, by 10.4%. This is likely due to its much higher texture rate (80.39 GTexel/s versus 42.29 GTexel/s) and pixel rate (49.47 GPixel/s versus 28.19 GPixel/s). The Quadro M4000 also wins the GPU compute test by 3.9%, which is a smaller margin but still a win.

In summary, the RTX A400 is the better choice for OpenCL compute, 2D work, and DirectX 12 applications. The Quadro M4000 is the better choice for DirectX 9, DirectX 10, DirectX 11, Vulkan, and general 3D rendering. The data shows that the Quadro M4000 wins more tests, but the RTX A400 has the higher average score and is the only one of the two that remains an active product.