AMD Radeon RX Vega 56 vs NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970

VS
Performance
Radeon RX Vega 5681% better
29,08628% of 104,737
GeForce GTX 970
16,03315% of 104,737

The Radeon RX Vega 56 has 81% better performance than the GeForce GTX 970 for the 3DMark 11 Performance GPU benchmark.

Performance per dollar
Radeon RX Vega 5650% better
72.945% of 161.45
GeForce GTX 970
48.7330% of 161.45

The Radeon RX Vega 56 has 50% better value for the money than the GeForce GTX 970 for the 3DMark 11 Performance GPU benchmark.

Shop Radeon RX Vega 56
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Summary

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About the AMD Radeon RX Vega 56 GPU

The AMD Radeon RX Vega 56 is a desktop graphics card that launched in Q3 2017 with a MSRP of $399. It is built on the GCN 5.0 GPU microarchitecture (codename Vega 10) and is manufactured on a 14 nm process.

Memory

The RX Vega 56 has 8 GB of HBM2 memory, with a 800 MHz memory clock and a 2,048 bit interface. This gives it a memory bandwidth of 409.6 Gb/s, which affects how fast it can transfer data to and from memory. GPU memory stores temporary data that helps the GPU with complex math and graphics operations. More memory is generally better, as not having enough can cause performance bottlenecks.

Cores and Clock Speeds

The RX Vega 56 includes 3,584 stream processors (SPs), the processing units for handling parallel computing tasks. The GPU operates at a core clock speed of 1,156 MHz and can dynamically boost its clock speed up to 1,471 MHz. Complementing the processing units are 224 texture mapping units (TMUs) for efficient texture filtering and 64 render output units (ROPs) for pixel processing.

Compatibility & Power Consumption

The RX Vega 56 occupies 2 PCIe expansion slots. It supports HDMI 2.0b, DisplayPort 1.4a display connections. AMD recommends a power supply of at least 550 W to handle the GPU's thermal design power (TDP) of 210 W.

Benchmark Performance & Value

The RX Vega 56 has the 81st best 3DMark 11 Performance GPU score among the 543 benchmarked GPUs in our database. It achieves 27.77% of the performance of the best benchmarked GPU, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090. Its 29,086 score and $399 launch price (MSRP) gives it a performance per dollar of 72.9. This is the 42nd best in value for the 3DMark 11 Performance GPU benchmark.

About the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970 GPU

The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970 is an end-of-life desktop graphics card that released in Q3 2014 with a MSRP of $329. It is built on the Maxwell 2.0 GPU microarchitecture (codename GM204) and is manufactured on a 28 nm process.

Memory

The GTX 970 has 4 GB of GDDR5 memory, with a 1,753 MHz memory clock and a 256 bit interface. This gives it a memory bandwidth of 224.4 Gb/s, which affects how fast it can transfer data to and from memory. GPU memory stores temporary data that helps the GPU with complex math and graphics operations. More memory is generally better, as not having enough can cause performance bottlenecks.

Cores and Clock Speeds

The GTX 970 includes 1,664 CUDA cores, the processing units for handling parallel computing tasks. The GPU operates at a core clock speed of 1,050 MHz and can dynamically boost its clock speed up to 1,178 MHz. Complementing the processing units are 104 texture mapping units (TMUs) for efficient texture filtering and 56 render output units (ROPs) for pixel processing.

Compatibility & Power Consumption

The GTX 970 occupies 2 PCIe expansion slots. It supports DVI, HDMI 2.0, DisplayPort 1.2 display connections. NVIDIA recommends a power supply of at least 300 W to handle the GPU's thermal design power (TDP) of 148 W.

Benchmark Performance & Value

The GTX 970 has the 138th best 3DMark 11 Performance GPU score among the 543 benchmarked GPUs in our database. It achieves 15.31% of the performance of the best benchmarked GPU, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090. Its 16,033 score and $329 launch price (MSRP) gives it a performance per dollar of 48.73. This is the 66th best in value for the 3DMark 11 Performance GPU benchmark.

General Info

General overview of the GPU, including details like its manufacturer, release date, launch price, and current production status.

InfoRadeon RX Vega 56GeForce GTX 970
ManufacturerAMDNVIDIA
ArchitectureGCN 5.0Maxwell 2.0
Market SegmentDesktopDesktop
Release DateQ3 2017Q3 2014
Launch Price (MSRP)$399$329
Production StatusActiveEnd-of-life
ShopCheck PriceCheck Price

Gaming Performance

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FPS Benchmarks

This table showcases the average frame rate (FPS) achieved both GPUs in at various resolutions. Frame rate is a crucial indicator of how smoothly the GPU can run the game. A higher FPS generally translates to a smoother gameplay experience.

  • Frames Per Second
FPS data for Borderlands 3
Borderlands 3
Radeon RX Vega 56GeForce GTX 970
Low - 720p
--
--
Medium - 1080p
--
74 FPS
High - 1080p
--
49 FPS
Ultra - 1080p
--
37 FPS
QHD - 1440p
--
--
4K UHD - 2160p
--
--
FPS Source: Notebookcheck

Compare Frames Per Second (FPS)

The average frame rate (FPS) in can be compared to similar GPUs to assess relative performance. Generally, higher FPS results in a smoother gameplay experience.

Choose Baseline GPU:Radeon RX Vega 56 orGeForce GTX 970

Compare Cost Per Frame

The average cost per frame in can be compared to similar GPUs to assess relative value. Generally, a lower cost per frame implies better value for your money.

Choose Baseline GPU:Radeon RX Vega 56 orGeForce GTX 970
GPUCost Per Frame
GeForce GTX 10706.55-27%
Radeon RX 5906.63-26%
GeForce GTX 1060 (6 GB)7.67-14%
Radeon RX Vega 648.59-4%
Radeon VII8.86-1%
GeForce GTX 9708.96
GeForce GTX 980 Ti12.18+36%

Benchmark Performance

#
Performance
Radeon RX Vega 5681% better
29,08628% of 104,737
GeForce GTX 970
16,03315% of 104,737

The Radeon RX Vega 56 has 81% better performance than the GeForce GTX 970 for the 3DMark 11 Performance GPU benchmark.

The Radeon RX Vega 56 is ranked 81st with a score of 29,086, and the GeForce GTX 970 is ranked 138th with a score of 16,033.

Performance per dollar
Radeon RX Vega 5650% better
72.945% of 161.45
GeForce GTX 970
48.7330% of 161.45

The Radeon RX Vega 56 has 50% better value for the money than the GeForce GTX 970 for the 3DMark 11 Performance GPU benchmark.

The Radeon RX Vega 56 is ranked 42nd with a performance per dollar of 72.9, and the GeForce GTX 970 is ranked 66th with a performance per dollar of 48.73.

Relative Performance

The average score in the benchmark test can be compared to similar GPUs to assess relative performance. Generally, powerful GPUs tend to have higher scores.

Choose Baseline GPU:Radeon RX Vega 56 or
GPUBenchmark Performance
GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER29,668+2%
GeForce GTX 108029,263+1%
Radeon RX Vega 5629,086
GeForce RTX 306028,375-2%
GeForce GTX 1070 Ti27,503-5%
Radeon R9 Nano17,282-41%
Radeon R9 290X16,167.5-44%
GeForce GTX 97016,033-45%
GeForce GTX 780 Ti15,619-46%
GeForce GTX 165013,645-53%

Relative Value For Money

The average performance per dollar in the benchmark test can be compared to similar GPUs to assess relative value. A higher score implies a better value for your money.

Choose Baseline GPU:Radeon RX Vega 56 or

Benchmark Scores

This table showcases the average performance scores achieved by both GPUs across industry-standard benchmark tests. These scores provide a valuable insight into overall performance. Powerful GPUs tend to have higher scores.

  • Popular
BenchmarkRadeon RX Vega 56GeForce GTX 970
3DMark Time Spy Graphics
6,482
(+82.9%)
3,544
3DMark Time Spy Score
6,746
(+82.67%)
3,693
3DMark Cloud Gate Graphics
125,359
(+72.15%)
72,819
3DMark Fire Strike Standard Graphics
20,759
(+73.66%)
11,954
3DMark 11 Performance Score
22,937
(+73.12%)
13,249
Cinebench R15 OpenGL 64 Bit
--
141.6
PassMark G3D Mark
13,234
(+37.31%)
9,638
PassMark G2D Mark
760
775
(+1.97%)
Benchmarks Source: Notebookcheck

Technical Specs

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Graphics Processor

General information about the graphics processing unit like their architecture, manufacturing process size, and transistor count. Newer GPU architectures generally bring efficiency improvements and may introduce technologies that enhance graphical capabilities.

SpecRadeon RX Vega 56GeForce GTX 970
CodenameVega 10GM204
ArchitectureGCN 5.0Maxwell 2.0
Process Size14 nm28 nm
Transistors12,500 million5,200 million

Memory Details

Memory specifications like their capacity, bandwidth, and clock speeds. GPU memory stores graphics data like frames, textures, and shadows which helps display rendered images. These specs are crucial for graphics-intense applications like gaming and 3D modeling.

SpecRadeon RX Vega 56GeForce GTX 970
Memory Size8 GB4 GB
Memory TypeHBM2GDDR5
Memory Bandwidth409.6 Gb/s224.4 Gb/s
Memory Clock800 MHz1,753 MHz
Memory Interface2,048 bit256 bit
L1 Cache16 KB48 KB
L2 Cache4 MB2 MB

Board Compatibility

Compatibility information like their slot size, bus interface, power consumption, and display support. These specs are useful for verifying compatibility with your motherboard, power supply, and monitor.

SpecRadeon RX Vega 56GeForce GTX 970
Slots2 slots2 slots
Bus InterfacePCIe 3.0 x16PCIe 3.0 x16
Thermal Design Power (TDP)210 W148 W
Suggested PSU550 W300 W
Power Connectors2x 8-pin2x 6-pin
OutputsHDMI 2.0b, DisplayPort 1.4aDVI, HDMI 2.0, DisplayPort 1.2

Cores & Clock Speeds

Processing power information like its cores and clock speed. These specs impact how fast they can process graphics. Each type of core or component serves a specific computational purpose.

SpecRadeon RX Vega 56GeForce GTX 970
Stream Processors (SP)3,584--
CUDA Cores--1,664
Compute Units (CU)56--
Texture Mapping Units (TMU)224104
Render Output Units (ROP)6456
Core Clock Speed1,156 MHz1,050 MHz
Core Clock Speed (Boost)1,471 MHz1,178 MHz

Theoretical Performance

Theoretical performance numbers derived from the raw specifications of the different components like core count and clock speeds. While these provide a glimpse into peak processing power, they do not represent real-world performance.

SpecRadeon RX Vega 56GeForce GTX 970
Pixel Fill Rate94.14 GPixel/s65.97 GPixel/s
Texture Fill Rate329.5 GTexel/s122.5 GTexel/s
FP32 Performance10.54 TFLOPS3.92 TFLOPS
FP64 Performance659 GFLOPS122.5 GFLOPS

API Support

Graphics API versions supported by these graphics cards. APIs evolve over time, introducing new features and functionalities. Older GPUs may not support recent versions.

SpecRadeon RX Vega 56GeForce GTX 970
DirectX12 (12_1)12 (12_1)
OpenCL2.13.0
OpenGL4.64.6
Shader Model6.76.8

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* Performance rating, performance per dollar, and rankings are based on the 3DMark 11 Performance GPU benchmark and MSRP.