GeForce GTX 980M SLI vs Quadro RTX 4000 with Max-Q Design

G3D Mark is a standard benchmark that measures graphics performance in real-world gaming scenarios. It simplifies comparing cards from different brands, where higher scores directly correlate with better fps and smoother gaming experiences.

GeForce GTX 980M SLI vs Quadro RTX 4000 with Max-Q Design FPS Benchmarks

Predicted gaming performance across popular games. Tested paired with Ryzen 7 9800X3D to isolate GPU performance.

Search any supported game below to compare 1080p FPS for both components.

GeForce GTX 980M SLI vs Quadro RTX 4000 with Max-Q Design: Pros, Cons & Final Verdict

See where each GPU makes more sense in practice: raw FPS, VRAM, features, power draw, pricing, and long-term headroom.

GeForce GTX 980M SLI

2014

Why buy it

✅Competitive enough if your priority is price, power, or specific feature preference.

Trade-offs

❌Lower average FPS than Quadro RTX 4000 with Max-Q Design across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.
❌No equivalent frame-generation stack like DLSS 3.5 + Frame Generation (2023).
❌2014 hardware with 8 GB of VRAM already sits in legacy territory for modern games.
❌150% higher power demand at 200W vs 80W.

Quadro RTX 4000 with Max-Q Design

2019

Why buy it

✅98.3% more average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.
✅Access to a newer frame-generation stack with DLSS 3.5 + Frame Generation (2023).
✅Better long-term bet: Turing (2018−2022) on 12nm gives it a newer hardware base for upcoming games.
✅Draws 80W instead of 200W, a 120W reduction.

Trade-offs

❌Fewer clear downsides in this head-to-head, aside from the usual pricing and availability swings.

Quick Answers

Which GPU is faster for gaming right now?

Quadro RTX 4000 with Max-Q Design is the faster gaming card right now. In our data, it leads by 98.3% in average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data. PassMark G3D leans toward GeForce GTX 980M SLI instead at 12,523 vs 12,173, so for this question the real-game FPS result matters more than the synthetic split.

Which GPU is the safer long-term pick for 2026 and beyond?

Quadro RTX 4000 with Max-Q Design is the safer long-term pick for 2026 and beyond. The case is simple: the newer feature stack, with DLSS 3.5 Super Resolution (2023) and DLSS 3.5 + Frame Generation (2023), while GeForce GTX 980M SLI is limited to no meaningful modern upscaling stack and no comparable frame-generation support, a 12nm process instead of 28nm, 40 vs 0 ray-tracing units, and a newer 2019 generation instead of 2014. That gives it the more rounded hardware package for newer games.

Which GPU is the better buy today?

Quadro RTX 4000 with Max-Q Design makes the most sense today based on the pricing and value data we have for this matchup.

GeForce GTX 980M SLI vs Quadro RTX 4000 with Max-Q Design Technical Specifications

Side-by-side specs, architecture details, clocks, memory, power, and platform differences.

GeForce GTX 980M SLI

The GeForce GTX 980M SLI is manufactured by NVIDIA. It was released in October 7 2014. It features the Maxwell architecture. The core clock ranges from 1038 MHz to 1127 MHz. It has 3072 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 200W. Manufactured using 28 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 12,523 points.

Quadro RTX 4000 with Max-Q Design

The Quadro RTX 4000 with Max-Q Design is manufactured by NVIDIA. It was released in May 27 2019. It features the Turing architecture. The core clock ranges from 780 MHz to 1380 MHz. It has 2560 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 80W. Manufactured using 12 nm process technology. It features 40 dedicated ray tracing cores for enhanced lighting effects. G3D Mark benchmark score: 12,173 points.

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Graphics Performance

The GeForce GTX 980M SLI scores 12,523 and the Quadro RTX 4000 with Max-Q Design reaches 12,173 in the G3D Mark benchmark — just a 2.9% difference, making them near-identical in rasterization performance. The GeForce GTX 980M SLI is built on Maxwell while the Quadro RTX 4000 with Max-Q Design uses Turing, both on 28 nm vs 12 nm. Shader units: 3,072 (GeForce GTX 980M SLI) vs 2,560 (Quadro RTX 4000 with Max-Q Design). Boost clocks: 1127 MHz vs 1380 MHz.

Feature	GeForce GTX 980M SLI	Quadro RTX 4000 with Max-Q Design
G3D Mark Score	12,523+3%	12,173
Architecture	Maxwell	Turing
Process Node	28 nm	12 nm
Shading Units	3072+20%	2560
Boost Clock	1127 MHz	1380 MHz+22%

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Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)

The clearest feature edge for the Quadro RTX 4000 with Max-Q Design is support for DLSS 3.5 + Frame Generation. In games that support it, that can smooth out motion and lift perceived FPS. The GeForce GTX 980M SLI does not have comparable native support in the same tier.The Quadro RTX 4000 with Max-Q Design supports the newer DLSS 3.5 Super Resolution, whereas the GeForce GTX 980M SLI is capped at Upscaling support.

Feature	GeForce GTX 980M SLI	Quadro RTX 4000 with Max-Q Design
Upscaling Tech	Upscaling support	DLSS 3.5 Super Resolution
Frame Generation	Not Supported	DLSS 3.5 + Frame Generation
Ray Reconstruction	No	Yes (DLSS 3.5)
Low Latency	NVIDIA Reflex	NVIDIA Reflex

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Video Memory (VRAM)

Both cards ship with 8 GB of video memory. Memory bus width is 256-bit on the GeForce GTX 980M SLI and 256-bit on the Quadro RTX 4000 with Max-Q Design.

Feature	GeForce GTX 980M SLI	Quadro RTX 4000 with Max-Q Design
VRAM Capacity	8 GB	8 GB
Memory Type	GDDR5	GDDR6
Bus Width	256-bit	256-bit

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Display & API Support

DirectX support: 12.1 (GeForce GTX 980M SLI) vs 12.2 (Quadro RTX 4000 with Max-Q Design). Vulkan: 1.1 vs 1.3. OpenGL: 4.4 vs 4.6. Maximum simultaneous displays: 4 vs 4.

Feature	GeForce GTX 980M SLI	Quadro RTX 4000 with Max-Q Design
DirectX	12.1	12.2
Vulkan	1.1	1.3+18%
OpenGL	4.4	4.6+5%
Max Displays	4	4

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Media & Encoding

Hardware encoder: NVENC 4.0 (2x) (GeForce GTX 980M SLI) vs 7th Gen NVENC (Quadro RTX 4000 with Max-Q Design). Decoder: PureVideo HD VP6 (2x) vs 5th Gen NVDEC. Supported codecs: MPEG-2,H.264,HEVC (GeForce GTX 980M SLI) vs MPEG-2,H.264,HEVC,VP9 (Quadro RTX 4000 with Max-Q Design).

Feature	GeForce GTX 980M SLI	Quadro RTX 4000 with Max-Q Design
Encoder	NVENC 4.0 (2x)	7th Gen NVENC
Decoder	PureVideo HD VP6 (2x)	5th Gen NVDEC
Codecs	MPEG-2,H.264,HEVC	MPEG-2,H.264,HEVC,VP9

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Power & Dimensions

The GeForce GTX 980M SLI draws 200W versus the Quadro RTX 4000 with Max-Q Design's 80W — a 85.7% difference. The Quadro RTX 4000 with Max-Q Design is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 500W (GeForce GTX 980M SLI) vs 500W (Quadro RTX 4000 with Max-Q Design). Power connectors: 1x 6-pin vs PCIe-powered. Card length: 267mm vs 0mm, occupying 2 vs 0 slots. Typical load temperature: 85°C vs 80°C.

Feature	GeForce GTX 980M SLI	Quadro RTX 4000 with Max-Q Design
TDP	200W	80W-60%
Recommended PSU	500W	500W
Power Connector	1x 6-pin	PCIe-powered
Length	267mm	0mm
Height	111mm	0mm
Slots	2	0-100%
Temp (Load)	85°C	80°C-6%
Perf/Watt	62.6	152.2+143%