Question 1

Can RTX 3080 12GB run Dolphin 2.9 8B?

Accepted Answer

Yes, RTX 3080 12GB can run Dolphin 2.9 8B with a B grade (Runs well). Expected decode speed: 134.6 tok/s.

Question 2

How much VRAM does Dolphin 2.9 8B need?

Accepted Answer

Dolphin 2.9 8B (8B parameters) requires approximately 8.5 GB of memory with Q4_K_M quantization.

Question 3

What is the best quantization for Dolphin 2.9 8B?

Accepted Answer

The recommended quantization for Dolphin 2.9 8B is Q4_K_M, which balances quality and memory efficiency.

Workload	Grade	Fit	Decode	TTFT	Context
Agentic Coding	B	Runs well	142.0 tok/s	1983 ms	33K
Chat	B	Runs well	142.0 tok/s	743 ms	12K
Coding	B	Runs well	134.6 tok/s	1439 ms	23K
RAG	B	Runs well	142.0 tok/s	2478 ms	33K
Reasoning	B	Runs well	142.0 tok/s	1611 ms	23K

Quant	Bits	VRAM	Quality	Fit
Q2_K	2	3.1 GB	Low	D35
Q3_K_S	3	3.9 GB	Low	D36
NVFP4	4

Can RTX 3080 12GB run Dolphin 2.9 8B?

Memory breakdown