NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 vs NVIDIA Tesla K40c Comparison

The NVIDIA Tesla K40c and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 represent two very different eras of GPU design, yet they are both end-of-life products in the database. The Tesla K40c is a compute-oriented Kepler card from 2013, while the RTX 2060 is a consumer Turing card from 2019. Benchmark data shows a stark performance gap, but the choice between them is not merely about speed, it is about what each card was built to do.

Where Each One Wins

The recorded data shows a single head-to-head benchmark between the Tesla K40c and the RTX 2060: the Geekbench OpenCL test. The RTX 2060 wins that test outright, scoring 65,014 compared to the Tesla K40c's 17,468. The delta percentage of -73.1% indicates the RTX 2060 holds a massive lead in this specific workload. The Tesla K40c does not win any of the recorded head-to-head comparisons; it has zero wins. This means in every database test where they are directly compared, the RTX 2060 comes out ahead. For compute workloads using OpenCL, the RTX 2060 is clearly the more capable part.

Conversely, the Tesla K40c's own average benchmark score of 17,468 places it in the 61st percentile of all GPUs in the database. Its nearest rivals, such as the AMD Radeon 780M and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060, have average scores within 1% of its score. The RTX 2060's average score of 15,268 puts it in the 58th percentile, with rivals like the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 580 and the AMD Radeon RX 7600 scoring within a fraction of a percent. The K40c is geared toward parallel compute density, a trait that does not translate into wins against newer architectures in general-purpose benchmarks.

Architecture Differences

The two cards are built on completely different architectures from the same foundry. The Tesla K40c uses the GK180 chip, which uses the Kepler architecture, and belongs to the Tesla Kepler generation (Kxx) of products. The RTX 2060 uses the TU106 chip, which uses the Turing architecture, and is part of the GeForce 20 series from NVIDIA's consumer line. Both are fabricated by TSMC, but on different process nodes. The K40c uses a 28nm node, while the RTX 2060 uses a more refined 12nm node. The K40c is built on a massive 561 mm² die with 7,080 million transistors on that larger die. The RTX 2060 packs 10,800 million transistors into a smaller 445 mm² die, giving it a transistor density of 24.3 million per mm², far higher than the K40c's density of 12.6 million per mm².

Beyond the core count, the RTX 2060 has features the Tesla K40c lacks entirely. The RTX 2060 includes 30 RT cores and 240 tensor cores, which are absent from the K40c's specification sheet. Memory capacity favors the Tesla, which has 12 GB of GDDR5 memory compared to the RTX 2060's 6 GB of GDDR6. Memory speed also favors the RTX 2060, which has a memory clock running at 14 Gbps effective and a 192-bit bus width, giving it 336.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The Tesla K40c's memory runs at 6 Gbps effective across a 384-bit bus, resulting in 288.4 GB/s of bandwidth. The RTX 2060 is a far more feature-rich part, supporting modern APIs like DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2) and Vulkan 1.4, while the Tesla K40c is limited to DirectX 12 (11_0) and Vulkan 1.2.175. The RTX 2060 also has display outputs, while the Tesla K40c is a compute-only card with no outputs.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The singular head-to-head benchmark available is the Geekbench OpenCL test, which is a compute-oriented workload. The RTX 2060 dominates this test, scoring 65,014 versus the Tesla K40c's 17,468. The delta percentage of -73.1% quantifies this lead, showing the RTX 2060 is more than three times faster in this compute test. The RTX 2060's higher boost clock of 1680 MHz, compared to the Tesla K40c's 876 MHz boost, helps explain some of the difference.

The RTX 2060's 6.451 TFLOPS of FP32 performance is a significant step up from the K40c's 5.046 TFLOPS. The RTX 2060 also has a higher pixel rate of 80.64 GPixel/s versus the K40c's 52.56 GPixel/s. While the K40c has a higher texture rate of 210.2 GTexel/s compared to the RTX 2060's 201.6 GTexel/s, the overall compute score shows the newer architecture is drastically more efficient. The RTX 2060's FP16 performance of 12.90 TFLOPS (2:1) is a feature the K40c does not list, showcasing its ability to handle modern workloads with mixed-precision arithmetic.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU is faster in compute benchmarks?

A: The RTX 2060. In the Geekbench OpenCL test, the RTX 2060 scores 65,014 compared to the Tesla K40c's 17,468, a delta percentage of -73.1%.

Q: Does the Tesla K40c have more memory capacity?

A: Yes, the Tesla K40c has 12 GB of GDDR5 memory, while the RTX 2060 has 6 GB of GDDR6.

Q: What is the transistor density difference between the two cards?

A: The RTX 2060 has a transistor density of 24.3 million per mm², while the Tesla K40c has a density of 12.6 million per mm².

Q: Which card supports modern APIs like ray tracing?

A: The RTX 2060 supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2) and Vulkan 1.4, and includes RT cores. The Tesla K40c does not have RT cores and is limited to DirectX 12 (11_0).

Q: What is the average benchmark score for these GPUs?

A: The RTX 2060 has an average benchmark score of 15,268, while the Tesla K40c has an average score of 17,468.

Q: Which card is heavier on the power draw requirement per the data?

A: The Tesla K40c has a TDP of 245 W, while the RTX 2060 has a TDP of 160 W.

Specification Differences

The specification differences between the two are extensive, covering nearly every field in the database. The process node differs, with the Tesla K40c at 28nm and the RTX 2-60 at 12nm. The transistor count differs, with the K40c at 7,080 million and the RTX 2-60 at 10,800 million. Die size differs, 561 mm² for the K40c and 445 mm² for the RTX 2060. The memory type differs, GDDR5 for the K40c and GDDR6 for the RTX 2060. Memory size differs, 12 GB for the K40c and 6 GB for the RTX 2060. Memory bus width differs, 384 bit for the K40c and 192 bit for the RTX 2060. Bandwidth differs, 288.4 GB/s for the 40c and 336.0 GB/s for the RTX 2060. Clock speeds differ across the board, with base clocks of 745 MHz for the K40c and 1365 MHz for the RTX 2060, boost clocks of 876 MHz and 876 MHz for the RTX 2060, and memory clocks of 1502 MHz for the RTX 2060 vs 1502 MHz for the K40c.

The RTX 2-60 has shader units of 1920, TMUs of 120, ROPs of 48, pixel rates of 80.60, and texture rates of 201.6 GTexel/s, versus the K40c's 2880 shading units, 240 TMUs, 48 ROPs, 52.56 GPixel/s, and 210.2 GTexel/s. FP32 is 6.451 TFLOPS for the RTX 2060 and 5.046 TFLOPS for the 40c, with FP16 listed for the RTX 2-60 as 12.90 TFLOPS (2:1 and absent for the 40c. Power also differs: 160 W TDP for the RTX 2060 and 245 W TDP for the 40c, power connectors of 1x 8-pin for the RTX 2060 and 1x 6-pin + 1x 8-pin for the 40c, suggested PSU of 450 W for the RTX 2060 and 550 W for the 40c, display outputs of 1x DVI1x HDMI 2.02x DisplayPort 1.4a1x USB Type-C for the RTX 2060 and no outputs for the 40c. API support differs, with DirectX 12 (11_0 and 12 (11_) for the 40c, and DirectX 12 (11_0) for the 40c and DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2 for the RTX 2060.

Dimensions differ, with a length of 229 mm (10.5 in for the RTX 2060 and 267 mm (10.5 in) for the 40c. The RTX 2-60 has a height of 113 mm (4.4 in and a width of 35 mm, 1.4 inches, while the 40c does not list height or width. Release dates differ too, with the RTX 2060 released on 2019-01-06 and the 40c released on 2013-10-07, with the RTX 2060's predecessor being GeForce 10 and its successor GeForce 30, and the 40c's predecessor being Tesla Fermi and successor Tesla Maxwell. The RTX 2060's generation is GeForce 2-60's, and the 40c's generation is Tesla Kepler (Kxx. The RTX 2060 series is GeForce 20.

The Verdict

The verdict from the data is clear. For anyone looking at the actual silicon, the RTX 2060 wins decisively. The RTX 2060 wins the only head-to-head compute test, has better compute performance in the database, and has more features in terms of RT cores and tensor cores. The RTX 2060 is also the more power-efficient card, with a TDP of 160 W versus the Tesla K40c's 245 W. The RTX 2060 is a modern card with display support.

The Tesla K40c is a niche part with a massive 12 GB of GDDR5 but is severely limited in the compute performance measured by the database. The RTX 2060 is better in almost every measurable way. The RTX 2060 scores 65,014 in the Geekbench OpenCL test. The Tesla K40c scores 17,468. The RTX 2060 has the higher FP32 at 6.451 TFLOPS. The RTX 2060 has the higher pixel rate at 80.64 GPixel/s. The RTX 2060 has the higher bandwidth at 336.0 GB/s.

The only real area where the Tesla K40c stands out is memory capacity and texture rate, with 12 GB and 210.2 GTexel/s, but that does not give it a win in any benchmark. The verdict is that the RTX 2060 is the better card for all users, based on the database measurements. The RTX 2060 has a higher average benchmark score of 15,268 and a higher percentile rank, although the Tesla K40c has a percentile rank of 61 compared to the RTX 2060's 58, meaning the K40c sits higher relative to all GPUs in the database. That is a ranking artifact, not a performance result. The performance data, the RTX 2060 is the clear winner.