NVIDIA Quadro K4000
NVIDIA graphics card specifications and benchmark scores
At a Glance
NVIDIANVIDIA Quadro K4000 Specifications
GPU Core
Shader units and compute resources
The NVIDIA Quadro K4000 GPU core specifications define its raw processing power for graphics and compute workloads. Shading units (also called CUDA cores, stream processors, or execution units depending on manufacturer) handle the parallel calculations required for rendering. TMUs (Texture Mapping Units) process texture data, while ROPs (Render Output Units) handle final pixel output. Higher shader counts generally translate to better GPU benchmark performance, especially in demanding games and 3D applications.
Quadro K4000 Clock Speeds
GPU and memory frequencies
Clock speeds directly impact the Quadro K4000's performance in GPU benchmarks and real-world gaming. The base clock represents the minimum guaranteed frequency, while the boost clock indicates peak performance under optimal thermal conditions. Memory clock speed affects texture loading and frame buffer operations. The Quadro K4000 by NVIDIA dynamically adjusts frequencies based on workload, temperature, and power limits to maximize performance while maintaining stability.
NVIDIA's Quadro K4000 Memory
VRAM capacity and bandwidth
VRAM (Video RAM) is dedicated memory for storing textures, frame buffers, and shader data. The Quadro K4000's memory capacity determines how well it handles high-resolution textures and multiple displays. Memory bandwidth, measured in GB/s, affects how quickly data moves between the GPU and VRAM. Higher bandwidth improves performance in memory-intensive scenarios like 4K gaming. The memory bus width and type (GDDR6, GDDR6X, HBM) significantly influence overall GPU benchmark scores.
Quadro K4000 by NVIDIA Cache
On-chip cache hierarchy
On-chip cache provides ultra-fast data access for the Quadro K4000, reducing the need to fetch data from slower VRAM. L1 and L2 caches store frequently accessed data close to the compute units. AMD's Infinity Cache (L3) dramatically increases effective bandwidth, improving GPU benchmark performance without requiring wider memory buses. Larger cache sizes help maintain high frame rates in memory-bound scenarios and reduce power consumption by minimizing VRAM accesses.
Quadro K4000 Theoretical Performance
Compute and fill rates
Theoretical performance metrics provide a baseline for comparing the NVIDIA Quadro K4000 against other graphics cards. FP32 (single-precision) performance, measured in TFLOPS, indicates compute capability for gaming and general GPU workloads. FP64 (double-precision) matters for scientific computing. Pixel and texture fill rates determine how quickly the GPU can render complex scenes. While real-world GPU benchmark results depend on many factors, these specifications help predict relative performance levels.
Kepler Architecture & Process
Manufacturing and design details
The NVIDIA Quadro K4000 is built on NVIDIA's Kepler architecture, which defines how the GPU processes graphics and compute workloads. The manufacturing process node affects power efficiency, thermal characteristics, and maximum clock speeds. Smaller process nodes pack more transistors into the same die area, enabling higher performance per watt. Understanding the architecture helps predict how the Quadro K4000 will perform in GPU benchmarks compared to previous generations.
Power & Thermal
TDP and power requirements
Power specifications for the NVIDIA Quadro K4000 determine PSU requirements and thermal management needs. TDP (Thermal Design Power) indicates the heat output under typical loads, guiding cooler selection. Power connector requirements ensure adequate power delivery for stable operation during demanding GPU benchmarks. The suggested PSU wattage accounts for the entire system, not just the graphics card. Efficient power delivery enables the Quadro K4000 to maintain boost clocks without throttling.
Quadro K4000 by NVIDIA Physical & Connectivity
Dimensions and outputs
Physical dimensions of the NVIDIA Quadro K4000 are critical for case compatibility. Card length, height, and slot width determine whether it fits in your chassis. The PCIe interface version affects bandwidth for communication with the CPU. Display outputs define monitor connectivity options, with modern cards supporting multiple high-resolution displays simultaneously. Verify these specifications against your case and motherboard before purchasing to ensure a proper fit.
NVIDIA API Support
Graphics and compute APIs
API support determines which games and applications can fully utilize the NVIDIA Quadro K4000. DirectX 12 Ultimate enables advanced features like ray tracing and variable rate shading. Vulkan provides cross-platform graphics capabilities with low-level hardware access. OpenGL remains important for professional applications and older games. CUDA (NVIDIA) and OpenCL enable GPU compute for video editing, 3D rendering, and scientific applications. Higher API versions unlock newer graphical features in GPU benchmarks and games.
Quadro K4000 Product Information
Release and pricing details
The NVIDIA Quadro K4000 is manufactured by NVIDIA as part of their graphics card lineup. Release date and launch pricing provide context for comparing GPU benchmark results with competing products from the same era. Understanding the product lifecycle helps evaluate whether the Quadro K4000 by NVIDIA represents good value at current market prices. Predecessor and successor information aids in tracking generational improvements and planning future upgrades.
About NVIDIA Quadro K4000
The NVIDIA Quadro K4000 is a Kepler-generation workstation card built around the GK106 chip, manufactured on TSMC's 28 nm process with 2,540 million transistors on a 221 mm² die. It carries 3 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 192-bit bus, delivers 1,244.2 GFLOPS of FP32 compute, and draws 80 W under load. Its launch MSRP was 1,269 USD. Released in February 2013, this single-slot card is now end-of-life, but its benchmark profile still offers a useful reference point for legacy Quadro purchases.
Benchmark Performance
The K4000's average benchmark score across Geekbench Metal, OpenCL, and Vulkan tests is 5,723. That places it in the 32nd percentile of all GPUs — meaning roughly two-thirds of the GPUs in the database score higher. Breaking down the individual results: the card scores 3,614 in Geekbench Metal, 6,666 in OpenCL, and 6,888 in Vulkan. The Vulkan result is notably stronger than the Metal result, suggesting the card's compute performance is more accessible through Vulkan's lower-level API than through Apple's Metal framework.
Against its nearest rivals, the K4000 is effectively a statistical tie. It trails the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 550 Ti by just 0.1% (5,723 vs. 5,731), and it is 0.2% ahead of the Intel Iris Pro Graphics P6300 (5,712). The gap to the GeForce GTX 670MX is a hair larger at 0.3% (5,742), and the Intel UHD Graphics P630 sits 0.6% ahead (5,760). In practical terms, these deltas are within noise — no rival in this group is meaningfully faster or slower. The K4000's 1,244.2 GFLOPS FP32 throughput and 51.84 GTexel/s texture fill rate are the underlying numbers that explain this clustering: it is a mid-2010s part with compute and texture rates that modern integrated graphics can match.
The pixel rate of 12.96 GPixel/s, combined with 24 ROPs, keeps the card competitive for basic 2D and light 3D workloads, but it is not a high-resolution performer. For a workstation card, the OpenCL score of 6,666 is the most relevant metric — it reflects general compute tasks like rendering or simulation. The Vulkan score of 6,888 shows that the card can handle modern API compute workloads, but the lack of dedicated tensor or ray tracing cores means it will not accelerate AI inference or ray-traced scenes.
How It Compares
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 550 Ti — The K4000 is 0.1% slower than this older GeForce part. Both share a similar compute profile, but the Quadro's driver certification and display outputs (1x DVI, 2x DisplayPort 1.2) give it an edge in professional environments. The GTX 550 Ti lacks the Quadro's 3 GB GDDR5 frame buffer, though that is not a spec listed in the rival data.
Intel Iris Pro Graphics P6300 — The K4000 is 0.2% faster than this integrated solution. The Iris Pro's advantage is power efficiency and size, but the K4000 offers dedicated VRAM and a higher texture rate (51.84 GTexel/s vs. an unspecified figure). For workstation tasks that need consistent memory bandwidth, the K4000's 134.8 GB/s is the clear differentiator.
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 670MX — The K4000 is 0.3% slower than this mobile GPU. The 670MX was designed for laptops, so its performance per watt is better, but the Quadro's single-slot desktop form factor and 80 W TDP make it easier to cool in a workstation chassis. The K4000 also supports OpenGL 4.6 and Vulkan 1.2.175, which are newer than what the 670MX likely offers.
Intel UHD Graphics P630 — The K4000 is 0.6% slower than this integrated GPU. The UHD P630 benefits from modern architecture and faster memory (though not listed), but it shares system RAM with the CPU. The K4000's dedicated 3 GB GDDR5 and 192-bit bus provide lower latency for large datasets, which is why the Quadro remains a viable entry-level workstation card despite its age.
Ray Tracing and Feature Set
The K4000 has no dedicated ray tracing cores and no tensor cores. It relies entirely on its 768 shading units and 64 texture mapping units for all rendering and compute work. This means any ray-traced workload will be handled through compute shaders, which is inefficient compared to hardware-accelerated RT on modern cards. The card's DirectX support is listed as "12 (11_0)" — meaning it can run DirectX 12 titles but only at feature level 11_0, which excludes many modern rendering features like variable-rate shading or mesh shaders. OpenGL 4.6 and Vulkan 1.2.175 are supported, giving it decent compatibility with Linux and CAD applications that rely on those APIs.
Display output is limited to one DVI port and two DisplayPort 1.2 connectors. That is sufficient for a three-monitor setup, but there is no HDMI or USB-C output. The card's PCIe 2.0 x16 interface is older than PCIe 3.0/4.0, but for a 80 W card with 134.8 GB/s bandwidth, the interface is not a bottleneck in most workloads.
FAQ
Q: Does the Quadro K4000 support hardware ray tracing?
A: No. The FACT PACK lists no RT cores, so ray tracing must be done via compute shaders, which is slow compared to dedicated hardware.
Q: What is the maximum resolution supported?
A: The FACT PACK does not specify a maximum resolution. The card has 1x DVI and 2x DisplayPort 1.2 outputs, which typically support up to 4K at 60 Hz over DisplayPort, but that is not explicitly stated in the data.
Q: Is the K4000 good for modern gaming?
A: No. Its DirectX 12 support is limited to feature level 11_0, and its 32nd percentile performance means it is slower than most integrated GPUs. It is designed for professional 2D/3D CAD and light compute, not gaming.
Q: How much VRAM does the card have?
A: 3 GB of GDDR5 on a 192-bit bus, providing 134.8 GB/s of bandwidth. This is adequate for moderate texture loads at 1080p, but not for high-resolution textures or large scenes.
Q: What power supply is recommended?
A: The FACT PACK suggests a 250 W PSU. The card itself draws 80 W and requires a single 6-pin power connector.
Q: Does the card support Vulkan?
A: Yes, Vulkan 1.2.175 is supported, as is OpenGL 4.6. These are relatively recent API versions, which helps with compatibility in modern Linux and CAD software.
Power and Cooling
The K4000 has a TDP of 80 W, which is modest by modern standards. It is a single-slot card with a length of 241 mm (9.5 inches) and a height of 111 mm (4.4 inches). The cooling solution is not specified in the data, but a single-slot design at 80 W typically uses a blower-style cooler. The card requires one 6-pin PCIe power connector, and NVIDIA recommends a 250 W power supply. That figure is conservative — a system with a typical CPU and a few drives will easily stay within that budget. The 80 W TDP also means the card produces relatively little heat, making it suitable for compact workstations or rack-mounted systems where airflow is limited. The PCIe 2.0 x16 interface draws up to 75 W from the slot, so the 6-pin connector provides the remaining power headroom. There is no mention of a boost clock, so the card likely runs at a fixed clock, though the memory clock is listed at 1404 MHz (5.6 Gbps effective).
Memory Subsystem
The K4000 is equipped with 3 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 192-bit bus, yielding a bandwidth of 134.8 GB/s. This is a modest amount by today's standards, but it was adequate for professional workloads in 2013. The 192-bit bus is narrower than the 256-bit buses found on higher-end Quadro cards, which limits memory bandwidth. For 1080p and 1440p rendering, 3 GB is enough for most CAD models and moderate texture sets. However, at 4K or with large data sets, the memory capacity and bandwidth will become a bottleneck. The effective memory speed of 5.6 Gbps is typical for GDDR5 of that era, and the 134.8 GB/s bandwidth aligns with the card's compute throughput. In practice, this means the K4000 can handle multi-monitor 2D output and light 3D scenes without stuttering, but it will struggle with high-resolution texture streaming or large simulation grids. The lack of any tensor cores or RT cores further limits its use in modern AI or ray-traced workflows, but for legacy OpenGL-based CAD applications, the memory subsystem is sufficient. The 3 GB frame buffer also allows the card to drive two DisplayPort 1.2 monitors at high refresh rates, though the pixel rate of 12.96 GPixel/s caps the fill rate for multi-display setups. Overall, the memory configuration is the weakest link in the K4000's architecture, but it is consistent with its position in the Quadro lineup at the time of release.
Detailed benchmark scores and charts for the NVIDIA Quadro K4000 are below.
Benchmark Scores
geekbench_metalSource
Geekbench Metal tests GPU compute using Apple's Metal API. This shows how NVIDIA Quadro K4000 performs in macOS and iOS applications that leverage GPU acceleration. Metal provides low-overhead access to Apple silicon GPUs. Creative applications on Mac heavily utilize Metal for rendering and video processing.
Top 5 Performers
Top 5 PerformersNearby Performers
Nearby Performersgeekbench_openclSource
Geekbench OpenCL tests GPU compute performance using the cross-platform OpenCL API. This shows how NVIDIA Quadro K4000 handles parallel computing tasks like video encoding and scientific simulations. OpenCL is widely supported across different GPU vendors and platforms.
Top 5 Performers
Nearby Performers
geekbench_vulkanSource
Geekbench Vulkan tests GPU compute using the modern low-overhead Vulkan API. This shows how NVIDIA Quadro K4000 performs with next-generation graphics and compute workloads. Vulkan offers better CPU efficiency than older APIs like OpenGL. Modern games and applications increasingly use Vulkan for cross-platform GPU acceleration.
Top 5 Performers
Nearby Performers
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