AMD Radeon RX 6900 XT vs NVIDIA Tesla P40 Comparison

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has the higher average benchmark score?

A: The NVIDIA Tesla P40 has an average benchmark score of 65,095, while the AMD Radeon RX 6900 XT averages 50,951. This places the Tesla P40 in the 89th percentile of all GPUs, versus the 86th percentile for the Radeon.

Q: What do the head-to-head benchmark results show?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 6900 XT wins both recorded head-to-head tests. In Geekbench OpenCL, it scores 187,673 versus 62,017 for the Tesla P40, a 67% advantage. In Geekbench Vulkan, the AMD card leads with 148,525 against 68,172, a 54.1% difference.

Q: How do the memory configurations differ?

A: The Tesla P40 has 24 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 384-bit bus, delivering 347.1 GB/s bandwidth. The RX 6900 XT has 16 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus, delivering 512.0 GB/s bandwidth. The AMD card has higher bandwidth despite a narrower bus.

Q: What are the architecture and process differences?

A: The Tesla P40 uses the Pascal architecture on TSMC's 16 nm process with 11,800 million transistors. The RX 6900 XT uses RDNA 2.0 on TSMC's 7 nm process with 26,800 million transistors. The die sizes are 471 mm² for the Tesla and 520 mm² for the Radeon.

Q: Which card has more shading units and ray tracing support?

A: The RX 6900 XT has 5,120 shading units and 80 ray tracing cores, while the Tesla P40 has 3,840 shading units and no ray tracing cores. The AMD card also has more TMUs (320 versus 240) and ROPs (128 versus 96).

Q: What are the power and interface specifications?

A: The Tesla P40 has a 250 W TDP with a single 8-pin EPS connector and PCIe 3.0 x16. The RX 6900 XT has a 300 W TDP with dual 8-pin connectors and PCIe 4.0 x16. The suggested PSU ratings are 600 W for the Tesla and 700 W for the Radeon.

Architecture Differences

The NVIDIA Tesla P40 and AMD Radeon RX 6900 XT represent two distinct GPU architectures separated by four years of design evolution. The Tesla P40 uses the Pascal architecture on a 16 nm TSMC process, packing 11,800 million transistors into a 471 mm² die. The RX 6900 XT uses RDNA 2.0 on a 7 nm TSMC process, fitting 26,800 million transistors into a 520 mm² die. The transistor density tells the story: 25.1 million transistors per mm² for Pascal versus 51.5 million per mm² for RDNA 2.0.

The compute resources differ substantially. The RX 6900 XT fields 5,120 shading units, 320 texture mapping units, and 128 ROPs. The Tesla P40 counters with 3,840 shading units, 240 TMUs, and 96 ROPs. RDNA 2.0 also brings 80 ray tracing cores, a feature entirely absent from Pascal. Neither card includes tensor cores.

Clock behavior follows the architectural split. The Tesla P40 runs at a conservative 1303 MHz base and 1531 MHz boost, reflecting its data-center heritage. The RX 6900 XT boosts aggressively to 2250 MHz, with a 2015 MHz game clock and 1825 MHz base. This nearly 50% clock advantage compounds with the higher shader count.

Memory architecture diverges sharply. The Tesla P40 uses 24 GB of GDDR5 across a 384-bit bus, yielding 347.1 GB/s. The RX 6900 XT uses 16 GB of GDDR6 across a 256-bit bus, yet achieves 512.0 GB/s due to faster 16 Gbps effective memory speed. The Tesla's larger capacity suits compute workloads; the Radeon's bandwidth suits rendering and gaming.

API support reflects their eras. The Tesla P40 lists DirectX 12 (12_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. The RX 6900 XT lists DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. Both use PCIe x16, but the Tesla is limited to PCIe 3.0 while the Radeon supports PCIe 4.0.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The database records two shared benchmark tests between these GPUs, and the AMD Radeon RX 6900 XT wins both decisively.

In Geekbench OpenCL, the RX 6900 XT scores 187,673 against the Tesla P40's 62,017. This is a 67% margin in favor of the AMD card. The gap reflects the Radeon's higher shader count, higher clocks, and RDNA 2.0 efficiency. OpenCL compute workloads that scale with raw throughput will strongly favor the RX 6900 XT.

In Geekbench Vulkan, the RX 6900 XT scores 148,525 versus 68,172 for the Tesla P40, a 54.1% advantage. While narrower than the OpenCL gap, it remains substantial. Vulkan workloads benefit from the Radeon's modern architecture and faster memory subsystem.

The Tesla P40 does not win either recorded test. However, its average benchmark score of 65,095 exceeds the RX 6900 XT's 50,951 by roughly 28%. This is because the Tesla P40's two recorded results (62,017 and 68,172) are both high and consistent, while the RX 6900 XT's average is dragged down by its many non-compute tests, such as PassMark DirectX 9 (268), DirectX 10 (167), and DirectX 11 (279).

The RX 6900 XT's nearest rivals in the database are the NVIDIA CMP 50HX (51,790 average, 1.6% ahead), AMD Radeon RX Vega 64 (50,001, 1.9% behind), NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Ti (49,957, 2% behind), and Intel Arc A550M (49,737, 2.4% behind). The Tesla P40's nearest rivals are the AMD Radeon Pro WX 9100 (64,212, 1.4% behind), AMD Radeon VII (66,004, 1.4% ahead), NVIDIA CMP 30HX (63,842, 2% behind), and AMD Radeon RX 9060 XT LP (63,830, 2% behind).

Specification Differences

| Specification | NVIDIA Tesla P40 | AMD Radeon RX 6900 XT |

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

| Architecture | Pascal | RDNA 2.0 |

| Process node | 16 nm | 7 nm |

| Transistors | 11,800 million | 26,800 million |

| Die size | 471 mm² | 520 mm² |

| Base clock | 1303 MHz | 1825 MHz |

| Boost clock | 1531 MHz | 2250 MHz |

| Game clock | N/A | 2015 MHz |

| Memory size | 24 GB GDDR5 | 16 GB GDDR6 |

| Memory bus | 384 bit | 256 bit |

| Memory bandwidth | 347.1 GB/s | 512.0 GB/s |

| Shading units | 3,840 | 5,120 |

| TMUs | 240 | 320 |

| ROPs | 96 | 128 |

| Ray tracing cores | None | 80 |

| Pixel rate | 147.0 GPixel/s | 288.0 GPixel/s |

| Texture rate | 367.4 GTexel/s | 720.0 GTexel/s |

| FP32 | 11.76 TFLOPS | 23.04 TFLOPS |

| FP16 | 183.7 GFLOPS (1:64) | 46.08 TFLOPS (2:1) |

| TDP | 250 W | 300 W |

| Slot width | Dual-slot | Triple-slot |

| Power connectors | 8-pin EPS | 2x 8-pin |

| Suggested PSU | 600 W | 700 W |

| Bus interface | PCIe 3.0 x16 | PCIe 4.0 x16 |

| Display outputs | No outputs | 1x HDMI 2.1, 2x DisplayPort 1.4a, 1x USB Type-C |

| Length | 267 mm | 267 mm |

| Height | 111 mm | 120 mm |

| Width | N/A | 50 mm |

| Release date | 2016-09-12 | 2020-10-27 |

| Launch MSRP | 5,699 USD | 999 USD |

The Verdict

The data supports a clear split between these two GPUs. The AMD Radeon RX 6900 XT dominates in raw compute benchmarks, winning both recorded head-to-head tests with margins of 67% and 54.1%. Its 23.04 TFLOPS FP32 performance, 5,120 shading units, and 512.0 GB/s memory bandwidth make it the stronger performer in OpenCL and Vulkan workloads.

The NVIDIA Tesla P40, despite losing both direct comparisons, holds a higher average benchmark score (65,095 versus 50,951) and a higher percentile ranking (89th versus 86th). This reflects its specialized positioning: the Tesla P40 is a data-center compute card with 24 GB of GDDR5 memory and no display outputs. Its 11.76 TFLOPS FP32 and 347.1 GB/s bandwidth serve workloads that prioritize capacity and stability over peak throughput.

The RX 6900 XT's nearest rivals include the NVIDIA CMP 50HX, which edges it by 1.6%, and the AMD Radeon RX Vega 64, which trails by 1.9%. The Tesla P40 sits within 1.4% of the AMD Radeon Pro WX 9100 and 1.4% of the AMD Radeon VII. These proximity bands show that both cards are competitive within their respective performance classes.

The RX 6900 XT's 1:64 FP16 ratio on the Tesla P40 versus the 2:1 ratio on the Radeon is a decisive architectural difference. The Tesla's FP16 throughput of 183.7 GFLOPS is negligible for modern mixed-precision work, while the Radeon's 46.08 TFLOPS enables accelerated AI and machine learning tasks.

Where Each One Wins

NVIDIA Tesla P40 wins on memory capacity and consistency. The 24 GB GDDR5 frame buffer exceeds the RX 6900 XT's 16 GB by 50%. For workloads that require holding large datasets or models entirely in VRAM, the Tesla P40 is the safer choice. Its 89th percentile ranking and higher average score also indicate more stable performance across the limited set of tests recorded. The dual-slot design and 250 W TDP make it easier to install in dense server configurations, and the 8-pin EPS connector aligns with data-center power infrastructure.

AMD Radeon RX 6900 XT wins on raw performance and features. The 67% OpenCL and 54.1% Vulkan advantages are massive. The 23.04 TFLOPS FP32 output is nearly double the Tesla's 11.76 TFLOPS. The 512.0 GB/s bandwidth is 47% higher. The 80 ray tracing cores enable hardware-accelerated ray tracing, which the Tesla cannot do. The triple-slot cooler and 300 W TDP reflect its performance-first design, and the display outputs (HDMI 2.1, DisplayPort 1.4a, USB Type-C) make it usable in client workstations.

For database users seeking compute density: the Tesla P40's 24 GB capacity and end-of-life status suggest it for legacy data-center deployments where large memory pools matter more than speed.

For users seeking throughput: the RX 6900 XT's benchmark wins make it the clear choice for OpenCL and Vulkan applications. Its 2:1 FP16 ratio also opens doors to mixed-precision workflows.

For gaming and graphics workloads: the RX 6900 XT has display outputs and DirectX 12 Ultimate support, while the Tesla P40 has no outputs and only DirectX 12 (12_1). The Radeon is the only viable option for rendering to a screen.

For power-sensitive environments: the Tesla P40 uses 250 W versus 300 W, and its suggested PSU is 600 W versus 700 W. But the performance gap may justify the extra power draw for the Radeon.

The verdict from the data: the RX 6900 XT is the superior performer on every measured benchmark, while the Tesla P40 remains relevant only for its larger memory pool and lower power envelope. The 24 GB versus 16 GB memory difference is the sole significant advantage held by the Tesla P40.