NVIDIA RTX 5880 Ada Generation vs NVIDIA Tesla M40 24 GB Comparison

The data presents a stark generational contrast between the NVIDIA RTX 5880 Ada Generation and the NVIDIA Tesla M40 24 GB. The RTX 5880 Ada Generation is a modern workstation GPU built on the Ada Lovelace architecture, while the Tesla M40 24 GB is an end-of-life compute accelerator from the Maxwell 2.0 era. Their benchmark results and architectural specifications reveal a clear performance hierarchy, though the Tesla M40 retains relevance in specific legacy compute roles. This analysis walks through the available data to quantify their differences and contextualize their respective positions.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The only directly comparable benchmark in the data is the Geekbench OpenCL test, and the result is decisive. The RTX 5880 Ada Generation scores 326,898 points, while the Tesla M40 24 GB scores 37,439 points. This represents a delta of 773.1% in favor of the RTX 5880 Ada Generation. This is not a marginal improvement but a generational leap, with the newer GPU delivering over eight times the raw compute throughput in this OpenCL workload.

The RTX 5880 Ada Generation’s dominance is further supported by its broader benchmark profile. It posts scores of 25,096 in Passmark G3D and 14,208 in Passmark GPU Compute, alongside a Geekbench OpenCL score of 326,898. Its average benchmark score across all tests is 45,972. In contrast, the Tesla M40 24 GB only has two recorded benchmarks: Geekbench OpenCL at 37,439 and Geekbench Vulkan at 45,975. Its average benchmark score is 41,707.

Looking at percentile rankings, the RTX 5880 Ada Generation sits at the 85th percentile of all GPUs, while the Tesla M40 24 GB sits at the 83rd percentile. Despite the massive OpenCL gap, their overall percentile positions are relatively close. This is because the RTX 5880 Ada Generation’s average score of 45,972 places it in the same performance tier as the Tesla M40’s average of 41,707. The RTX 5880’s nearest rivals include the NVIDIA RTX A2000 (average score 46,043, delta -0.2%) and the Intel Arc A730M (average score 45,592, delta 0.8%). The Tesla M40’s nearest rivals include the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 Ti (average score 41,187, delta 1.3%) and the AMD Radeon Pro 5300 (average score 40,870, delta 2%). This indicates that while the RTX 5880 Ada Generation is vastly superior in the OpenCL test, its overall average score is comparable to the Tesla M40’s average, largely because the RTX 5880 has additional lower-scoring Passmark tests that drag its average down.

Architecture Differences

The two GPUs are built on fundamentally different architectures and manufacturing processes. The RTX 5880 Ada Generation uses the AD102 chip on the Ada Lovelace architecture, fabricated on a 5 nm process at TSMC. It integrates 76,300 million transistors on a 609 mm² die, yielding a transistor density of 125.3M per mm². The Tesla M40 24 GB uses the GM200 chip on the Maxwell 2.0 architecture, also fabricated at TSMC but on a 28 nm process. It contains 8,000 million transistors on a 601 mm² die, resulting in a much lower transistor density of 13.3M per mm².

This process advantage translates into significant feature differences. The RTX 5880 Ada Generation includes 110 ray tracing cores and 440 tensor cores, which are absent entirely from the Tesla M40 24 GB (both fields are null). The RTX 5880 also supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), while the Tesla M40 supports only DirectX 12 (12_1). Both support OpenGL 4.6 and Vulkan 1.4.

The clock speeds also reflect the architectural gap. The RTX 5880 Ada Generation has a base clock of 975 MHz and a boost clock of 2460 MHz. The Tesla M40 24 GB has a base clock of 948 MHz and a boost clock of 1112 MHz. While the base clocks are similar, the boost clock difference is substantial, with the RTX 5880 able to sustain much higher frequencies under load.

Where Each One Wins

The RTX 5880 Ada Generation wins in every measurable compute category. Its FP32 performance is 69.27 TFLOPS, compared to the Tesla M40’s 6.832 TFLOPS. Its pixel rate is 433.0 GPixel/s versus 106.8 GPixel/s, and its texture rate is 1,082.4 GTexel/s versus 213.5 GTexel/s. The RTX 5880 also has significantly more shading units (14,080 vs 3,072), TMUs (440 vs 192), and ROPs (176 vs 96). For memory-bound workloads, the RTX 5880 offers 48 GB of GDDR6 memory with 864.0 GB/s bandwidth, while the Tesla M40 offers 24 GB of GDDR5 memory with 288.4 GB/s bandwidth.

The Tesla M40 24 GB does retain one niche advantage: its Geekbench Vulkan score of 45,975 is actually higher than its OpenCL score of 37,439. This suggests the Maxwell architecture handles Vulkan compute reasonably well for its era. However, this score is still lower than the RTX 5880’s average benchmark score of 45,972, meaning the Tesla M40’s best-case scenario barely matches the RTX 5880’s average across all tests. The Tesla M40 also has a lower TDP of 250 W compared to the RTX 5880’s 285 W, though both require a 600 W suggested PSU.

Specification Differences

The following table highlights only the fields where the two GPUs differ:

| Specification | RTX 5880 Ada Generation | Tesla M40 24 GB |

|---|---|---|

| Architecture | Ada Lovelace | Maxwell 2.0 |

| Process Node | 5 nm | 28 nm |

| Transistors | 76,300 million | 8,000 million |

| Die Size | 609 mm² | 601 mm² |

| Transistor Density | 125.3M / mm² | 13.3M / mm² |

| Base Clock | 975 MHz | 948 MHz |

| Boost Clock | 2460 MHz | 1112 MHz |

| Memory Size | 48 GB | 24 GB |

| Memory Type | GDDR6 | GDDR5 |

| Memory Clock | 2250 MHz (18 Gbps effective) | 1502 MHz (6 Gbps effective) |

| Memory Bandwidth | 864.0 GB/s | 288.4 GB/s |

| Shading Units | 14,080 | 3,072 |

| TMUs | 440 | 192 |

| ROPs | 176 | 96 |

| RT Cores | 110 | null |

| Tensor Cores | 440 | null |

| Pixel Rate | 433.0 GPixel/s | 106.8 GPixel/s |

| Texture Rate | 1,082.4 GTexel/s | 213.5 GTexel/s |

| FP32 Performance | 69.27 TFLOPS | 6.832 TFLOPS |

| FP16 Performance | 69.27 TFLOPS (1:1) | null |

| TDP | 285 W | 250 W |

| Power Connectors | 1x 16-pin | 8-pin EPS |

| Bus Interface | PCIe 4.0 x16 | PCIe 3.0 x16 |

| Display Outputs | 4x DisplayPort 1.4a | No outputs |

| DirectX Support | 12 Ultimate (12_2) | 12 (12_1) |

| Production Status | Active | End-of-life |

| Release Date | 2024-01-04 | 2015-11-09 |

| Predecessor | Workstation Ampere | Tesla Kepler |

| Successor | Blackwell PRO W | Tesla Pascal |

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has more memory bandwidth?

A: The RTX 5880 Ada Generation has 864.0 GB/s of bandwidth, which is exactly three times the Tesla M40 24 GB’s 288.4 GB/s.

Q: Does the Tesla M40 24 GB support ray tracing?

A: No. The Tesla M40 24 GB has null values for both RT cores and tensor cores, while the RTX 5880 Ada Generation includes 110 RT cores and 440 tensor cores.

Q: What is the FP32 performance difference?

A: The RTX 5880 Ada Generation delivers 69.27 TFLOPS of FP32 performance, while the Tesla M40 24 GB delivers 6.832 TFLOPS. The RTX 5880 is over ten times faster in this metric.

Q: Can the Tesla M40 24 GB output video signals?

A: No. The Tesla M40 24 GB has no display outputs, while the RTX 5880 Ada Generation has 4x DisplayPort 1.4a outputs.

Q: How do their average benchmark scores compare?

A: The RTX 5880 Ada Generation has an average benchmark score of 45,972, while the Tesla M40 24 GB has an average of 41,707. The RTX 5880 is ahead by roughly 10%.

Q: Which GPU is more power-efficient per transistor?

A: The RTX 5880 Ada Generation packs 125.3M transistors per mm² on a 5 nm process, while the Tesla M40 24 GB has 13.3M per mm² on 28 nm. The RTX 5880 achieves this higher density with a TDP of 285 W versus 250 W.

The Verdict

The RTX 5880 Ada Generation is the clear choice for any modern workload. Its 773.1% lead in Geekbench OpenCL, combined with its 69.27 TFLOPS FP32 performance and 48 GB of GDDR6 memory, makes it suitable for contemporary compute, rendering, and AI tasks. The presence of RT and tensor cores, along with DirectX 12 Ultimate support, positions it for ray-traced workloads and machine learning inference. Its active production status and 4x DisplayPort 1.4a outputs also make it a versatile workstation card.

The Tesla M40 24 GB, while end-of-life, still has a role in legacy environments. Its 24 GB of GDDR5 memory and 6.832 TFLOPS of FP32 performance are sufficient for older compute kernels that do not require modern features. Its higher Geekbench Vulkan score relative to its OpenCL score suggests it may be better suited for Vulkan-based compute tasks. However, its lack of display outputs and absence of RT/tensor cores limit its utility to headless compute servers.

For a user choosing between these two, the decision hinges on workload compatibility. If the software requires modern APIs or benefits from tensor cores, the RTX 5880 Ada Generation is mandatory. If the workload is legacy, Vulkan-based, and does not need display output, the Tesla M40 24 GB can still be a functional, lower-TDP option. The data strongly favors the RTX 5880 for overall performance and future-proofing, but the Tesla M40 remains a viable niche product for specific, older use cases.