Radeon R9 M395X vs Tesla K8

AMD

Radeon R9 M395X

2015Core: 723 MHz
Similar parts
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VS
NVIDIA

Tesla K8

2014Core: 693 MHzBoost: 811 MHz
Similar parts
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Radeon R9 M395X vs Tesla K8 Performance Spectrum

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 M395X vs Tesla K8: 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 M395X

2015

Why buy it

  • Costs $400 less on MSRP ($600 MSRP vs $1,000 MSRP).
  • Delivers 67% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 8.5 vs 5.1 G3D/$ ($600 MSRP vs $1,000 MSRP).
  • Draws 75W instead of 100W, a 25W reduction.

Trade-offs

  • 2015 hardware with 4 GB of VRAM is already well past its comfortable zone for modern gaming, so it is hard to recommend now.

Tesla K8

2014

Why buy it

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

Trade-offs

  • 2014 hardware with 4 GB of VRAM is already well past its comfortable zone for modern gaming, so it is hard to recommend now.
  • 66.7% HIGHER MSRP
    $1,000 MSRPvs$600 MSRP
  • Lower G3D Mark per dollar, at 5.1 vs 8.5 G3D/$ ($1,000 MSRP vs $600 MSRP).
  • 33.3% higher power demand at 100W vs 75W.

Quick Answers

Which GPU is faster for gaming right now?
Radeon R9 M395X is the faster gaming card right now based on the synthetic data we have. It leads by 0.2% in PassMark G3D (5,120 vs 5,111), which is the best performance signal available in this matchup.
Which GPU is the safer long-term pick for 2026 and beyond?
Radeon R9 M395X is the safer long-term pick for 2026 and beyond. The case is simple: the newer upscaling stack, FSR Upscaling / FSR 4 (2025) instead of no meaningful modern upscaling stack and a newer 2015 generation instead of 2014. That makes it the less risky pick as game demands keep moving.
Which GPU is the better buy today?
Radeon R9 M395X makes the most sense to buy today. It is $400 cheaper on MSRP at $600 vs $1,000, and it leads G3D-per-dollar by 67% (8.5 vs 5.1), so the value case lines up with the gaming result.

Radeon R9 M395X vs Tesla K8 Technical Specifications

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

AMD

Radeon R9 M395X

The Radeon R9 M395X is manufactured by AMD. It was released in May 5 2015. It features the GCN 3.0 architecture. The core clock speed is 723 MHz. It has 2048 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 75W. Manufactured using 28 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 5,120 points.

NVIDIA

Tesla K8

The Tesla K8 is manufactured by NVIDIA. It was released in September 16 2014. It features the Kepler architecture. The core clock ranges from 693 MHz to 811 MHz. It has 1536 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 100W. Manufactured using 28 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 5,111 points.

Graphics Performance

The Radeon R9 M395X scores 5,120 and the Tesla K8 reaches 5,111 in the G3D Mark benchmark — just a 0.2% difference, making them near-identical in rasterization performance. The Radeon R9 M395X is built on GCN 3.0 while the Tesla K8 uses Kepler, both on a 28 nm process. Shader units: 2,048 (Radeon R9 M395X) vs 1,536 (Tesla K8). Raw compute: 2.961 TFLOPS (Radeon R9 M395X) vs 2.491 TFLOPS (Tesla K8).

FeatureRadeon R9 M395XTesla K8
G3D Mark Score
5,120
5,111
Architecture
GCN 3.0
Kepler
Process Node
28 nm
28 nm
Shading Units
2048+33%
1536
Compute (TFLOPS)
2.961 TFLOPS+19%
2.491 TFLOPS
ROPs
32
32
TMUs
128
128
L1 Cache
512 KB+300%
128 KB
L2 Cache
512 KB
512 KB

Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)

FeatureRadeon R9 M395XTesla K8
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)

Both cards ship with 4 GB of video memory. Memory bus width is 256-bit on the Radeon R9 M395X and 128-bit on the Tesla K8.

FeatureRadeon R9 M395XTesla K8
VRAM Capacity
4 GB
4 GB
Memory Type
GDDR5
GDDR6
Bus Width
256-bit+100%
128-bit
L2 Cache
512 KB
512 KB
🔌

Power & Dimensions

The Radeon R9 M395X draws 75W versus the Tesla K8's 100W — a 28.6% difference. The Radeon R9 M395X is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 350W (Radeon R9 M395X) vs 350W (Tesla K8). Power connectors: Mobile vs PCIe-powered.

FeatureRadeon R9 M395XTesla K8
TDP
75W-25%
100W
Recommended PSU
350W
350W
Power Connector
Mobile
PCIe-powered
Perf/Watt
68.3+34%
51.1
💰

Value Analysis

At launch, the Radeon R9 M395X came in at $600, while the Tesla K8 launched at $1000. On MSRP, Radeon R9 M395X was 40% cheaper ($400 less). Performance per dollar on MSRP (G3D Mark / MSRP): 8.5 (Radeon R9 M395X) vs 5.1 (Tesla K8) — the Radeon R9 M395X offers 66.7% better value. The newer card here is Radeon R9 M395X (2015 vs 2014).

FeatureRadeon R9 M395XTesla K8
MSRP
$600-40%
$1000
Performance per Dollar
8.5+67%
5.1
Codename
Amethyst
GK104
Release
May 5 2015
September 16 2014
Ranking
#438
#515

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