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Radeon R9 390X vs Tesla P4

CPUCPUGPUGPU
AMD

Radeon R9 390X

2015Boost: 1050 MHz
Similar parts
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Buy on Amazon
VS
NVIDIA

Tesla P4

2016Core: 886 MHzBoost: 1114 MHz
Similar parts
·····
Buy on Amazon

Radeon R9 390X vs Tesla P4 Performance Spectrum

Radeon R9 390X
8 GB 275
9,278
+3.0%
brand logoRadeon R9 M295X
brand logoRadeon R9 380X
brand logoRadeon RX 470 (móvel)
brand logoRadeon R9 290
brand logoRadeon RX 6600S
brand logoRadeon RX 6650M XT
brand logoRadeon RX 6750 XT
brand logoRadeon RX 7800 XT
Tesla P4
4 GB 75
9,004
0.0%
brand logoGeForce GTX 1050 (móvel)
brand logoGeForce GTX 770
brand logoGeForce GTX 1650 (móvel)
brand logoGeForce GTX 780
brand logoGeForce GTX 1660 Ti
brand logoGeForce RTX 2060 SUPER
brand logoRTX 5000 Ada Generation Embedded GPU
brand logoRTX 4000 Ada Generation

About G3D Mark

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.

Radeon R9 390X vs Tesla P4: Pros, Cons & Final Verdict

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

Radeon R9 390X

2015

Why buy it

  • ✅Costs $571 less on MSRP ($429 MSRP vs $1,000 MSRP).
  • ✅Delivers 140.2% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 21.6 vs 9.0 G3D/$ ($429 MSRP vs $1,000 MSRP).
  • ✅100% more VRAM for high-resolution textures and newer games (8 GB vs 4 GB).

Trade-offs

  • ❌2015 hardware with 8 GB of VRAM already sits in legacy territory for modern games.
  • ❌266.7% higher power demand at 275W vs 75W.
  • ❌64.9% longer card at 277mm vs 168mm.

Tesla P4

2016

Why buy it

  • ✅Draws 75W instead of 275W, a 200W reduction.
  • ✅Measures 168mm instead of 277mm, a 109mm shorter card that is more SFF-friendly.
  • ✅More future proof: Pascal (2016−2021) on 16nm with a newer platform for upcoming games.

Trade-offs

  • ❌Less VRAM, with 4 GB vs 8 GB for high-resolution textures and newer games.
  • ❌2016 hardware with 4 GB of VRAM already sits in legacy territory for modern games.
  • ❌
    133.1% HIGHER MSRP
    $1,000 MSRPvs$429 MSRP
  • ❌Lower G3D Mark per dollar, at 9.0 vs 21.6 G3D/$ ($1,000 MSRP vs $429 MSRP).

Quick Answers

Which GPU is faster for gaming right now?
Radeon R9 390X is the faster gaming card right now based on the synthetic data we have. It leads by 3% in PassMark G3D (9,278 vs 9,004), which is the best performance signal available in this matchup.
Which GPU is the safer long-term pick for 2026 and beyond?
Radeon R9 390X is the safer long-term pick for 2026 and beyond. The case is simple: 8 GB vs 4 GB of VRAM and the newer upscaling stack, FSR Upscaling / FSR 4 (2025) instead of no meaningful modern upscaling stack. That gives it more room for heavier textures and higher settings over time.
Which GPU is the better buy today?
Radeon R9 390X makes the most sense to buy today. It is $571 cheaper on MSRP at $429 vs $1,000, and it leads G3D-per-dollar by 140.2% (21.6 vs 9.0), so the value case lines up with the gaming result.

Radeon R9 390X vs Tesla P4 Technical Specifications

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

AMD

Radeon R9 390X

The Radeon R9 390X is manufactured by AMD. It was released in June 18 2015. It features the GCN 2.0 architecture. The boost clock speed is 1050 MHz. It has 2816 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 275W. Manufactured using 28 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 9,278 points. Launch price was $429.

NVIDIA

Tesla P4

The Tesla P4 is manufactured by NVIDIA. It was released in September 13 2016. It features the Pascal architecture. The core clock ranges from 886 MHz to 1114 MHz. It has 2560 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 75W. Manufactured using 16 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 9,004 points.

⚡

Graphics Performance

The Radeon R9 390X scores 9,278 and the Tesla P4 reaches 9,004 in the G3D Mark benchmark — just a 3% difference, making them near-identical in rasterization performance. The Radeon R9 390X is built on GCN 2.0 while the Tesla P4 uses Pascal, both on 28 nm vs 16 nm. Shader units: 2,816 (Radeon R9 390X) vs 2,560 (Tesla P4). Raw compute: 5.914 TFLOPS (Radeon R9 390X) vs 5.704 TFLOPS (Tesla P4). Boost clocks: 1050 MHz vs 1114 MHz.

FeatureRadeon R9 390XTesla P4
G3D Mark Score
9,278+3%
9,004
Architecture
GCN 2.0
Pascal
Process Node
28 nm
16 nm
Shading Units
2816+10%
2560
Compute (TFLOPS)
5.914 TFLOPS+4%
5.704 TFLOPS
Boost Clock
1050 MHz
1114 MHz+6%
ROPs
64
64
TMUs
176+10%
160
L1 Cache
704 KB
960 KB+36%
L2 Cache
1 MB
2 MB+100%
✨

Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)

FeatureRadeon R9 390XTesla P4
Upscaling Tech
FSR Upscaling / FSR 4
Upscaling support
Frame Generation
Not Supported
Not Supported
Ray Reconstruction
No
No
Low Latency
AMD Anti-Lag
Standard
💾

Video Memory (VRAM)

The Radeon R9 390X has 8 GB of VRAM, while the Tesla P4 carries 4 GB. Radeon R9 390X gives you 100% more memory capacity, which matters more once you move into heavier textures, mods, or higher resolutions. Memory bus width is 512-bit on the Radeon R9 390X and 256-bit on the Tesla P4. L2 Cache: 1 MB (Radeon R9 390X) vs 2 MB (Tesla P4) — the Tesla P4 has significantly larger on-die cache to reduce VRAM reliance.

FeatureRadeon R9 390XTesla P4
VRAM Capacity
8 GB+100%
4 GB
Memory Type
GDDR5
GDDR6
Bus Width
512-bit+100%
256-bit
L2 Cache
1 MB
2 MB+100%
🖥️

Display & API Support

DirectX support: 12 (12_0) (Radeon R9 390X) vs 12.1 (Tesla P4). Vulkan: 1.2 vs 1.4. OpenGL: 4.6 vs 4.6. Maximum simultaneous displays: 4 vs 0.

FeatureRadeon R9 390XTesla P4
DirectX
12 (12_0)
12.1
Vulkan
1.2
1.4+17%
OpenGL
4.6
4.6
Max Displays
4
0
🎬

Media & Encoding

Hardware encoder: VCE 2.0 (Radeon R9 390X) vs NVENC 6.0 (Tesla P4). Decoder: UVD 4.2 vs PureVideo HD VP6. Supported codecs: H.264,MPEG-2,VC-1 (Radeon R9 390X) vs MPEG-2,H.264,HEVC,VP8,VP9 (Tesla P4).

FeatureRadeon R9 390XTesla P4
Encoder
VCE 2.0
NVENC 6.0
Decoder
UVD 4.2
PureVideo HD VP6
Codecs
H.264,MPEG-2,VC-1
MPEG-2,H.264,HEVC,VP8,VP9
🔌

Power & Dimensions

The Radeon R9 390X draws 275W versus the Tesla P4's 75W — a 114.3% difference. The Tesla P4 is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 750W (Radeon R9 390X) vs 500W (Tesla P4). Power connectors: 6-pin + 8-pin vs PCIe-powered. Card length: 277mm vs 168mm, occupying 2 vs 1 slots. Typical load temperature: 80 vs 75°C.

FeatureRadeon R9 390XTesla P4
TDP
275W
75W-73%
Recommended PSU
750W
500W-33%
Power Connector
6-pin + 8-pin
PCIe-powered
Length
277mm
168mm
Height
129mm
53mm
Slots
2
1-50%
Temp (Load)
80
75°C-6%
Perf/Watt
33.7
120.1+256%
💰

Value Analysis

At launch, the Radeon R9 390X came in at $429, while the Tesla P4 launched at $1000. On MSRP, Radeon R9 390X was 57.1% cheaper ($571 less). Performance per dollar on MSRP (G3D Mark / MSRP): 21.6 (Radeon R9 390X) vs 9.0 (Tesla P4) — the Radeon R9 390X offers 140% better value. The newer card here is Tesla P4 (2016 vs 2015).

FeatureRadeon R9 390XTesla P4
MSRP
$429-57%
$1000
Performance per Dollar
21.6+140%
9.0
Codename
Grenada
GP104
Release
June 18 2015
September 13 2016
Ranking
#287
#293
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