NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780 vs NVIDIA RTX 2000 Ada Generation Comparison

The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780 and NVIDIA RTX 2000 Ada Generation are separated by over a decade of GPU architecture, yet their average benchmark scores land within 1.1% of each other (19164 vs 18954). This places both cards in the same performance tier, with the GTX 780 at the 64th percentile and the RTX 2000 Ada at the 63rd percentile of all GPUs. However, the data shows they reach this level of performance through entirely different means, with the RTX 2000 Ada winning both head-to-head benchmark comparisons by massive margins.

The Verdict

The RTX 2000 Ada Generation is the clear performance winner in every direct benchmark comparison available. In Geekbench OpenCL, it scores 78074 versus the GTX 780’s 22863, a 70.7% advantage. In Geekbench Vulkan, it scores 83360 versus 24514, a 70.6% lead. This is not a marginal victory; the RTX 2000 Ada delivers roughly 3.4 times the raw compute performance in both tested workloads. For any workload leveraging OpenCL or Vulkan, the RTX 2000 Ada is the only rational choice.

The GTX 780’s only saving grace is its legacy status. The data shows it matches the RTX 2000 Ada’s average benchmark score (19164 vs 18954) despite losing both head-to-head tests, which suggests its three included benchmarks (Geekbench Metal, OpenCL, Vulkan) skew its average upward relative to the RTX 2000 Ada’s ten benchmarks. The GTX 780 is end-of-life and lacks modern features like ray tracing and tensor cores, which are present on the RTX 2000 Ada. For anyone building a new system or upgrading from an older card, the RTX 2000 Ada is the superior product. The GTX 780 should only be considered for retro builds or as a collector’s piece, not for contemporary workloads.

Where Each One Wins

The RTX 2000 Ada Generation wins every head-to-head benchmark recorded in the data. In Geekbench OpenCL, its score of 78074 dwarfs the GTX 780’s 22863. In Geekbench Vulkan, its score of 83360 overwhelms the GTX 780’s 24514. The deltaPct values of -70.7% and -70.6% (negative because the GTX 780 is the reference point) confirm that the RTX 2000 Ada is roughly 3.4x faster in both APIs. There are no benchmark categories where the GTX 780 wins.

However, the GTX 780 does have a niche in its Geekbench Metal score of 10114, which is not directly compared against the RTX 2000 Ada (which lacks a Metal benchmark in the data). This score contributes to its average but does not change the overall picture. The RTX 2000 Ada also shows strength in Passmark tests, with a G3D score of 16927 and a GPU compute score of 7834, though these are not part of the head-to-head comparison. The RTX 2000 Ada is designed for workstation tasks, as indicated by its inclusion of 22 RT cores and 88 tensor cores, which the GTX 780 lacks entirely.

Architecture Differences

The architectural gap between these two GPUs is enormous. The GTX 780 uses the GK110 chip on a 28 nm TSMC process, featuring 7,080 million transistors on a 561 mm² die. The RTX 2000 Ada uses the AD107 chip on a 5 nm TSMC process, packing 18,900 million transistors into just 159 mm². This represents a massive density increase: the RTX 2000 Ada has 118.9M transistors per mm² versus the GTX 780’s 12.6M per mm², a roughly 9.4x improvement.

The shader configuration differs as well. The GTX 780 has 2304 shading units, 192 TMUs, and 48 ROPs. The RTX 2000 Ada has 2816 shading units, 88 TMUs, and 48 ROPs. While the RTX 2000 Ada has more shading units, it has fewer TMUs. Critically, the RTX 2000 Ada adds 22 RT cores and 88 tensor cores, enabling ray tracing and AI acceleration that the Kepler-based GTX 780 cannot perform. The memory subsystems also diverge: the GTX 780 uses 3 GB of GDDR5 on a 384-bit bus with 288.4 GB/s bandwidth, while the RTX 2000 Ada uses 16 GB of GDDR6 on a 128-bit bus with 256.0 GB/s bandwidth. The RTX 2000 Ada has more capacity but slightly lower bandwidth.

Clock speeds show the efficiency gains of newer silicon. The GTX 780 runs at 863 MHz base and 902 MHz boost, while the RTX 2000 Ada runs at 1620 MHz base and 2130 MHz boost. This nearly 2.4x clock advantage, combined with more shading units, produces the RTX 2000 Ada’s 12.00 TFLOPS FP32 performance versus the GTX 780’s 4.156 TFLOPS. The RTX 2000 Ada also offers FP16 at 12.00 TFLOPS (1:1), while the GTX 780 has no listed FP16 capability. Power consumption reflects the process advantage: the RTX 2000 Ada is rated at 70 W TDP versus the GTX 780’s 250 W, with the RTX 2000 Ada requiring no external power connectors and only a 250 W suggested PSU versus the GTX 780’s 600 W suggestion.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has the higher average benchmark score?

A: The GTX 780 has an average benchmark score of 19164, which is 1.1% higher than the RTX 2000 Ada’s 18954. However, this is based on different benchmark sets (3 tests for the GTX 780 versus 10 for the RTX 2000 Ada).

Q: Does the RTX 2000 Ada support ray tracing?

A: Yes. The RTX 2000 Ada includes 22 RT cores and 88 tensor cores, enabling hardware-accelerated ray tracing and AI features. The GTX 780 has no RT or tensor cores.

Q: What is the memory capacity difference?

A: The RTX 2000 Ada has 16 GB of GDDR6 memory, while the GTX 780 has 3 GB of GDDR5. The GTX 780 has a wider 384-bit bus and higher bandwidth (288.4 GB/s versus 256.0 GB/s).

Q: How do their power requirements compare?

A: The RTX 2000 Ada has a 70 W TDP and requires no external power connectors, with a suggested 250 W PSU. The GTX 780 has a 250 W TDP, requires 1x 6-pin and 1x 8-pin connectors, and suggests a 600 W PSU.

Q: Which GPU has better API support?

A: The RTX 2000 Ada supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2) and Vulkan 1.4, while the GTX 780 only supports DirectX 12 (11_0) and Vulkan 1.2.175. Both support OpenGL 4.6.

Q: What are the release dates?

A: The GTX 780 was released on May 22, 2013, and is end-of-life. The RTX 2000 Ada was released on February 11, 2024, and is currently active in production.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The head-to-head data contains only two benchmark comparisons, and the RTX 2000 Ada dominates both. In Geekbench OpenCL, the RTX 2000 Ada scores 78074 against the GTX 780’s 22863, a delta of -70.7% (from the GTX 780’s perspective, meaning the RTX 2000 Ada is 70.7% faster). This is a 3.41x performance advantage. In Geekbench Vulkan, the RTX 2000 Ada scores 83360 against 24514, a delta of -70.6%, representing a 3.40x advantage.

These two wins give the RTX 2000 Ada a perfect 2-0 record in head-to-head tests. The GTX 780 has zero wins. The magnitude of these victories is striking: a 70%+ deficit is not a marginal difference but a generational leap. Even accounting for the GTX 780’s higher average score due to its smaller benchmark set, the direct comparisons leave no ambiguity. The RTX 2000 Ada’s nearest rivals include the AMD Radeon RX 6600 (deltaPct -0.4%) and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4050 Mobile (deltaPct -0.5%), while the GTX 780’s nearest rivals include the NVIDIA TITAN Xp (deltaPct -0.1%) and the Tesla K20m (deltaPct 0.4%). This places both cards in similar company, but the RTX 2000 Ada achieves this with far more modern hardware and features.

Specification Differences

The specification sheets reveal stark contrasts. The GTX 780 uses a 28 nm process, while the RTX 2000 Ada uses 5 nm. The GTX 780’s GK110 chip has 7,080 million transistors on a 561 mm² die, while the RTX 2000 Ada’s AD107 has 18,900 million transistors on a 159 mm² die. Transistor density jumps from 12.6M/mm² to 118.9M/mm². Clock speeds rise from 863/902 MHz to 1620/2130 MHz (base/boost). Memory speeds go from 1502 MHz (6 Gbps effective) GDDR5 to 2000 MHz (16 Gbps effective) GDDR6.

Shading units increase from 2304 to 2816, while TMUs drop from 192 to 88. ROPs stay at 48 for both. The RTX 2000 Ada adds 22 RT cores and 88 tensor cores, which the GTX 780 lacks. Pixel rate rises from 43.30 GPixel/s to 102.2 GPixel/s, and texture rate goes from 173.2 GTexel/s to 187.4 GTexel/s. FP32 performance jumps from 4.156 TFLOPS to 12.00 TFLOPS, and the RTX 2000 Ada adds FP16 at 12.00 TFLOPS (1:1) while the GTX 780 has none listed.

Power consumption drops dramatically: TDP falls from 250 W to 70 W. The GTX 780 requires 1x 6-pin and 1x 8-pin power connectors and a 600 W suggested PSU; the RTX 2000 Ada needs no external connectors and only a 250 W suggested PSU. The bus interface advances from PCIe 3.0 x16 to PCIe 4.0 x8. Display outputs change from 2x DVI, 1x HDMI 1.4a, 1x DisplayPort 1.2 to 4x mini-DisplayPort 1.4a. DirectX support improves from 12 (11_0) to 12 Ultimate (12_2), and Vulkan from 1.2.175 to 1.4. Dimensions shrink from 267 mm length, 111 mm height, 38 mm width to 168 mm length, 69 mm height, with no width listed. Both cards are dual-slot, but the RTX 2000 Ada is dramatically smaller and more power-efficient.