NVIDIA RTX 5880 Ada Generation vs NVIDIA RTX A2000 Comparison

The NVIDIA RTX A2000 and NVIDIA RTX 5880 Ada Generation occupy the same overall performance bracket according to aggregate data, yet their individual benchmark profiles could not be more different. The RTX A2000, an Ampere-generation workstation card, shows a single OpenCL result of 67,695, while the RTX 5880 Ada Generation, based on Ada Lovelace, posts an OpenCL score of 326,898. Despite this massive gap in that specific test, their average benchmark scores are nearly identical: 46,043 for the A2000 and 45,972 for the 5880 Ada. Both cards sit at the 85th percentile among all GPUs. The data suggests a tale of two specialized tools rather than a straightforward generational upgrade.

Where Each One Wins

The RTX 5880 Ada Generation wins the only directly comparable head-to-head benchmark in the dataset. In Geekbench OpenCL, the 5880 Ada scores 326,898 against the A2000’s 67,695, a delta of -79.3% from the perspective of the A2000. This is not a marginal victory; it is a near-fivefold difference in raw compute throughput as measured by that workload. The 5880 Ada also carries additional benchmark entries that the A2000 lacks entirely: Passmark DirectX 10 (167), DirectX 11 (228), DirectX 12 (70), DirectX 9 (335), G2D (777), G3D (25,096), and GPU Compute (14,208). These scores indicate where the 5880 Ada can flex its muscle, particularly in G3D and GPU Compute, which are common indicators of rendering and general compute performance.

The RTX A2000’s wins are not in raw performance but in efficiency and physical footprint. Its thermal design power is 70 W versus 285 W for the 5880 Ada, and its suggested power supply is 250 W compared to 600 W. The A2000 is 167 mm long and 69 mm tall, while the 5880 Ada stretches to 267 mm by 112 mm. The A2000 requires no power connectors, whereas the 5880 Ada needs a single 16-pin connector. For environments where space, power delivery, or cooling are constrained, the A2000 is the clear choice based on these physical and electrical specifications. The A2000 also holds a slight edge in average benchmark score, 46,043 versus 45,972, a difference of 0.2% that falls within noise but technically favors the older card.

The Verdict

Choose the NVIDIA RTX 5880 Ada Generation if your work prioritizes raw compute throughput, larger memory capacity, or modern architecture features. Its OpenCL score of 326,898 dwarfs the A2000’s 67,695, and its 48 GB of GDDR6 memory with 864.0 GB/s bandwidth provides a massive buffer for large datasets. The 5880 Ada’s 14,080 shading units, 440 texture mapping units, 176 raster output pipelines, 110 ray tracing cores, and 440 tensor cores all point to a card built for heavy parallel workloads. Its 69.27 TFLOPS FP32 performance and 433.0 GPixel/s pixel rate are orders of magnitude beyond the A2000’s 7.987 TFLOPS and 57.60 GPixel/s. If your applications can utilize these resources, the 5880 Ada is the data-driven choice.

Choose the NVIDIA RTX A2000 if your priority is physical integration, low power draw, or legacy compatibility. The A2000 fits in a 167 mm chassis, draws 70 W, and needs no auxiliary power connectors. Its 6 GB memory and 288.0 GB/s bandwidth are modest, but its 3,328 shading units and 26 ray tracing cores still deliver functional workstation performance. The A2000’s average benchmark score of 46,043 is actually 0.2% higher than the 5880 Ada’s 45,972, meaning that for mixed or unknown workloads, the A2000 may perform just as well in aggregate. Its 8 nm Samsung process and GA106 chip are older, but the card remains a viable entry-level option, especially given its end-of-life status suggests it may be available at lower cost in the secondary market.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The only direct comparison available is Geekbench OpenCL, where the RTX 5880 Ada Generation scores 326,898 against the RTX A2000’s 67,695. The delta of -79.3% for the A2000 means the 5880 Ada outperforms it by roughly 383% in this test. This is the single largest performance gap in the dataset and reflects the fundamental architectural difference between the two cards. The 5880 Ada’s 69.27 TFLOPS FP32 throughput is 8.67 times the A2000’s 7.987 TFLOPS, and its texture rate of 1,082.4 GTexel/s is 8.67 times the A2000’s 124.8 GTexel/s. The pixel rate gap is similar: 433.0 GPixel/s versus 57.60 GPixel/s, a factor of 7.5.

The A2000 counters with its superior aggregate score. Its average benchmark score of 46,043 beats the 5880 Ada’s 45,972 by 0.2%. This is a narrow margin, but it appears in the nearestRivals data for both cards: the A2000 lists the 5880 Ada as its closest rival with a delta of 0.2%, and the 5880 Ada lists the A2000 with a delta of -0.2%. This suggests that when averaging across all benchmark types, including those where the A2000 has no direct comparison, the two cards land in the same performance class. The A2000 also holds a 1% edge over the Intel Arc A730M and a 1.2% edge over the AMD Radeon RX 5600M, while the 5880 Ada sits 0.8% ahead of the Arc A730M and 1.3% ahead of the AMD Radeon Pro 5500 XT.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has a higher average benchmark score?

A: The NVIDIA RTX A2000 has an average benchmark score of 46,043, which is 0.2% higher than the RTX 5880 Ada Generation’s 45,972.

Q: How large is the OpenCL performance gap?

A: In Geekbench OpenCL, the RTX 5880 Ada Generation scores 326,898 while the RTX A2000 scores 67,695, a difference of -79.3% for the A2000.

Q: What is the memory capacity difference?

A: The RTX 5880 Ada Generation has 48 GB of GDDR6 memory, while the RTX A2000 has 6 GB of GDDR6 memory.

Q: Which card requires more power?

A: The RTX 5880 Ada Generation has a thermal design power of 285 W and a suggested power supply of 600 W, while the RTX A2000 has a TDP of 70 W and a suggested PSU of 250 W.

Q: Are both cards in the same performance percentile?

A: Yes, both the RTX A2000 and the RTX 5880 Ada Generation are at the 85th percentile among all GPUs.

Q: What is the release date difference?

A: The RTX A2000 was released on 2021-08-09, while the RTX 5880 Ada Generation was released on 2024-01-04.

Architecture Differences

The RTX A2000 is built on the GA106 chip using Samsung’s 8 nm process, featuring 12,000 million transistors on a 276 mm² die. This yields a transistor density of 43.5 million per square millimeter. The RTX 5880 Ada Generation uses the AD102 chip on TSMC’s 5 nm process, with 76,300 million transistors on a 609 mm² die, achieving a density of 125.3 million per square millimeter. The architectural generation differs fundamentally: the A2000 uses Ampere, while the 5880 Ada uses Ada Lovelace. The A2000’s predecessor is Quadro Turing, and its successor is Workstation Ada, which directly leads to the 5880 Ada’s generation. The 5880 Ada’s successor is Blackwell PRO W, indicating a continued lineage.

Core counts reflect this generational leap. The A2000 has 3,328 shading units, 104 TMUs, 48 ROPs, 26 RT cores, and 104 tensor cores. The 5880 Ada has 14,080 shading units, 440 TMUs, 176 ROPs, 110 RT cores, and 440 tensor cores. The 5880 Ada’s FP32 and FP16 performance are both 69.27 TFLOPS, while the A2000 offers 7.987 TFLOPS for both. The 5880 Ada’s pixel rate is 433.0 GPixel/s versus 57.60 GPixel/s for the A2000, and its texture rate is 1,082.4 GTexel/s versus 124.8 GTexel/s. Both cards support DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4, but the 5880 Ada’s Ada Lovelace architecture provides newer hardware features that are not enumerated in the data.

Specification Differences

The RTX A2000 has a base clock of 562 MHz and a boost clock of 1200 MHz, while the RTX 5880 Ada Generation has a base clock of 975 MHz and a boost of 2460 MHz. Memory clocks differ: the A2000 runs at 1500 MHz with 12 Gbps effective speed, while the 5880 Ada runs at 2250 MHz with 18 Gbps effective. Memory bandwidth is 288.0 GB/s for the A2000 versus 864.0 GB/s for the 5880 Ada. The A2000 offers 6 GB of GDDR6 on a 192-bit bus, while the 5880 Ada offers 48 GB on a 384-bit bus.

Physical dimensions vary significantly. The A2000 is 167 mm (6.6 inches) long and 69 mm (2.7 inches) tall, while the 5880 Ada is 267 mm (10.5 inches) long and 112 mm (4.4 inches) tall. Both are dual-slot cards. Power delivery differs: the A2000 has no power connectors and a 70 W TDP, while the 5880 Ada requires a 16-pin connector and has a 285 W TDP. Display outputs are 4x mini-DisplayPort 1.4a for the A2000 versus 4x DisplayPort 1.4a for the 5880 Ada. The A2000 is end-of-life with a launch MSRP of 449 USD and a release date of 2021-08-09; the 5880 Ada is active with no launch MSRP listed and a release date of 2024-01-04. Both use PCIe 4.0 x16 interfaces.