NVIDIA RTX 5880 Ada Generation vs NVIDIA Tesla M40 Comparison

The NVIDIA RTX 5880 Ada Generation and the NVIDIA Tesla M40 represent two very different eras of GPU design, separated by nearly a decade of architectural evolution. The data shows a complete dominance by the newer card, but the comparison reveals why each exists. The RTX 5880 Ada is an active, compute-focused workstation powerhouse, while the Tesla M40 is an end-of-life legacy accelerator. Benchmark results indicate that if you are choosing between these two for any modern workload, the RTX 5880 Ada is the only rational pick, delivering over 734% higher OpenCL performance. The Tesla M40’s sole advantage lies in its historical context, not its current capabilities.

The Verdict

The verdict is unambiguous based on the available data. The RTX 5880 Ada Generation is the definitive choice for any user requiring contemporary compute performance, modern API support, and active production status. Its Geekbench OpenCL score of 326,898 is a staggering 734.1% higher than the Tesla M40’s 39,192. This isn’t a close contest; it is a generational chasm. The data shows the RTX 5880 Ada sits in the 85th percentile of all GPUs, while the Tesla M40 is only slightly lower at the 83rd percentile, which is misleading given the massive performance gap in actual compute tests.

The Tesla M40 should only be considered by those maintaining legacy systems that specifically require its Maxwell architecture or its unique 8-pin EPS power connector. For any new build or upgrade, the RTX 5880 Ada is the only sensible option. Its 48 GB of GDDR6 memory and 864.0 GB/s bandwidth utterly eclipse the M40’s 12 GB GDDR5 and 288.4 GB/s. Furthermore, the RTX 5880 Ada supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), while the Tesla M40 is limited to DirectX 12 (12_1), meaning newer graphics features are simply unavailable on the older card. In short, the RTX 5880 Ada is for professionals who need maximum compute throughput today; the Tesla M40 is for archival systems only.

Architecture Differences

The architectural gap between these two GPUs is immense. The RTX 5880 Ada is built on the Ada Lovelace architecture using the AD102 chip, fabricated on a 5 nm process at TSMC. This is a stark contrast to the Tesla M40’s Maxwell 2.0 architecture, which uses the GM200 chip on a 28 nm process, also at TSMC. The transistor count tells the story of the complexity difference: the RTX 5880 Ada packs 76,300 million transistors on a 609 mm² die, achieving a density of 125.3M transistors per mm². The Tesla M40, in comparison, has only 8,000 million transistors on a slightly smaller 601 mm² die, resulting in a much lower density of 13.3M per mm².

This fundamental difference in manufacturing and design leads to massive disparities in core configuration. The RTX 5880 Ada features 14,080 shading units, 440 TMUs, and 176 ROPs. It also includes dedicated hardware for modern workloads: 110 RT cores for ray tracing and 440 tensor cores for AI acceleration. The Tesla M40, being a Maxwell-era card, has no RT cores and no tensor cores whatsoever. It is limited to 3,072 shading units, 192 TMUs, and 96 ROPs. Furthermore, the RTX 5880 Ada supports FP16 compute at a 1:1 ratio with FP32, reaching 69.27 TFLOPS for both. The Tesla M40 has no listed FP16 capability, with FP32 performance pegged at a comparatively minuscule 6.832 TFLOPS. The RTX 5880 Ada also features a PCIe 4.0 x16 interface and a 1x 16-pin power connector, while the Tesla M40 uses PCIe 3.0 x16 and an 8-pin EPS connector.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

There is only one direct benchmark comparison available in the data, but it is decisive. In the Geekbench OpenCL test, the RTX 5880 Ada Generation scores 326,898 points, while the Tesla M40 manages only 39,192 points. This results in a delta of 734.1%, meaning the RTX 5880 Ada is roughly eight times faster in this compute-heavy workload. This is not a marginal improvement; it is a reflection of the architectural leap from Maxwell to Ada Lovelace.

The RTX 5880 Ada also holds a clear advantage in its average benchmark score. Its average is 45,972, which places it in the 85th percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rivals, such as the NVIDIA RTX A2000 (avg 46,043, delta -0.2%) and the AMD Radeon Pro 5500 XT (avg 45,384, delta 1.3%), are essentially within a 1.3% performance margin. This indicates that the RTX 5880 Ada is competitive with other modern workstation cards. The Tesla M40, conversely, has an average score of 41,897, placing it in the 83rd percentile. Interestingly, its nearest rival is the NVIDIA Tesla M40 24 GB (avg 41,707, delta 0.5%), showing that the 12 GB version is nearly identical in performance to its higher-memory sibling. The M40 also trails the GeForce RTX 3080 Ti (avg 41,187, delta 1.7%) but is slightly ahead of the AMD Radeon RX 7650 GRE (avg 42,723, delta -1.9%).

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has higher raw compute performance in OpenCL?

A: The NVIDIA RTX 5880 Ada Generation is vastly superior. It scores 326,898 in Geekbench OpenCL, which is 734.1% higher than the Tesla M40's score of 39,192.

Q: Does the Tesla M40 support modern ray tracing or AI workloads?

A: No. The Tesla M40 has no RT cores and no tensor cores. The RTX 5880 Ada Generation includes 110 RT cores and 440 tensor cores, making it suitable for ray-traced rendering and AI-accelerated tasks.

Q: What are the memory configurations of these two cards?

A: The RTX 5880 Ada Generation has 48 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 384-bit bus with 864.0 GB/s bandwidth. The Tesla M40 has 12 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 384-bit bus with 288.4 GB/s bandwidth.

Q: Which card is more power-efficient based on the data?

A: The RTX 5880 Ada Generation is far more efficient. It has a TDP of 285 W and delivers 69.27 TFLOPS of FP32 performance. The Tesla M40 has a slightly lower TDP of 250 W but only achieves 6.832 TFLOPS of FP32 performance, meaning it uses nearly the same power for a fraction of the compute output.

Q: Are there any connectivity or output differences?

A: Yes. The RTX 5880 Ada Generation has 4x DisplayPort 1.4a outputs, while the Tesla M40 has no display outputs at all. The RTX 5880 Ada also uses a PCIe 4.0 x16 interface, whereas the Tesla M40 uses PCIe 3.0 x16.

Q: What is the production status of each card?

A: The RTX 5880 Ada Generation is listed as "Active" and was released in 2024, succeeding the Workstation Ampere line. The Tesla M40 is "End-of-life" and was released in 2015, succeeding Tesla Kepler and preceding Tesla Pascal.

Where Each One Wins

Based strictly on the benchmark data, the RTX 5880 Ada Generation wins in every measurable category. It is the clear victor in the sole head-to-head benchmark, Geekbench OpenCL, with a 734.1% advantage. This makes it the definitive choice for any application that relies on OpenCL compute, such as scientific simulation, GPU-accelerated rendering, and data processing. Its superior memory size (48 GB vs 12 GB) and bandwidth (864.0 GB/s vs 288.4 GB/s) mean it can handle far larger datasets without hitting memory bottlenecks. The presence of RT and tensor cores also gives it a significant edge in modern workloads like ray-traced visualization and machine learning inference, which the Tesla M40 cannot accelerate at all.

The Tesla M40’s only "win" is a negative one: it has a lower TDP of 250 W compared to the 285 W of the RTX 5880 Ada. However, this is a hollow victory, as it produces only about 10% of the FP32 compute performance (6.832 TFLOPS vs 69.27 TFLOPS) while consuming nearly as much power. The Tesla M40 also holds a slight edge in its average benchmark score percentile relative to its closest rival, but this is irrelevant in a direct comparison. In practical terms, the Tesla M40 wins in scenarios where a system is physically constrained to use an 8-pin EPS power connector or requires compatibility with legacy Maxwell-era drivers. For any performance-oriented task, the RTX 5880 Ada is the only card that wins.

Specification Differences

The specification sheets for these two GPUs highlight their divergent purposes and eras. The RTX 5880 Ada Generation is a modern workstation card with a 5 nm process node, 76,300 million transistors, and a die size of 609 mm². It features a base clock of 975 MHz and a boost clock of 2460 MHz, with memory running at 2250 MHz (18 Gbps effective). Its memory subsystem is 48 GB of GDDR6 on a 384-bit bus, yielding 864.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The Tesla M40, by contrast, uses a 28 nm process with 8,000 million transistors on a 601 mm² die. Its base clock is 948 MHz and its boost clock is 1112 MHz, with memory at 1502 MHz (6 Gbps effective). It has 12 GB of GDDR5 on a 384-bit bus, providing 288.4 GB/s of bandwidth.

Core counts differ dramatically: the RTX 5880 Ada has 14,080 shading units, 440 TMUs, 176 ROPs, 110 RT cores, and 440 tensor cores. The Tesla M40 has 3,072 shading units, 192 TMUs, and 96 ROPs, with no RT or tensor cores. Pixel and texture rates also reflect this gap, with the RTX 5880 Ada hitting 433.0 GPixel/s and 1,082.4 GTexel/s, versus the Tesla M40's 106.8 GPixel/s and 213.5 GTexel/s. Power requirements are comparable in TDP (285 W vs 250 W), but the RTX 5880 Ada uses a 1x 16-pin connector while the Tesla M40 uses an 8-pin EPS. The RTX 5880 Ada supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), while the Tesla M40 is limited to DirectX 12 (12_1). Both support OpenGL 4.6 and Vulkan 1.4. Finally, the RTX 5880 Ada offers 4x DisplayPort 1.4a outputs, whereas the Tesla M40 has no display outputs, cementing its status as a pure compute accelerator.