AMD FirePro D700 vs AMD Radeon RX 6700 Comparison

The Verdict

The database comparison between the AMD Radeon RX 6700 and the AMD FirePro D700 is decisively one-sided. The RX 6700 outperforms the FirePro D700 in every recorded head-to-head benchmark, with the average benchmark score favoring the newer card by 17.8%. For any user selecting between these two, the RX 6700 is the clear choice based on raw performance data, architectural modernity, and feature support.

The RX 6700 sits in the 75th percentile of all GPUs in the database, while the FirePro D700 lands in the 71st percentile. This percentile gap, though modest, is backed by substantial performance differences in compute and graphics workloads. The RX 6700's average benchmark score of 30,433 places it just ahead of the NVIDIA CMP 70HX (30,476, a 0.1% difference) and the NVIDIA Tesla M60 (30,490, 0.2% behind), while also leading the AMD Radeon RX 6800 by 1.1% and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Ti by 1.6%. The FirePro D700, with an average score of 25,842, sits nearly 4,600 points behind its rival, a gap that no workload type is likely to close.

For gaming and general-purpose compute, the RX 6700 is the only rational selection. Its Geekbench OpenCL score of 97,841 is 312.6% higher than the FirePro D700's 23,716, and its Vulkan score of 83,974 is 200.3% higher than the FirePro's 27,968. The FirePro D700, released in 2014 as a workstation card, simply cannot compete with the 2021 RDNA 2.0 architecture in modern APIs. Even in legacy DirectX tests, the RX 6700 shows clear dominance, with PassMark DirectX 9, 10, 11, and 12 scores that are multiple times higher across the board.

The FirePro D700 does retain one niche advantage: its display output configuration. With 6x mini-DisplayPort 1.2 and 1x SDI outputs, it was designed for multi-display professional setups. The RX 6700 offers 1x HDMI 2.1 and 3x DisplayPort 1.4a. For users needing more than four simultaneous displays, the FirePro D700's six outputs could be a deciding factor, though the RX 6700's newer display standards support higher resolutions and refresh rates per output.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has the higher average benchmark score?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 6700 has an average benchmark score of 30,433, which is 17.8% higher than the AMD FirePro D700's average of 25,842. The RX 6700 also holds a 75th percentile ranking versus the FirePro's 71st percentile.

Q: How do the two cards compare in Geekbench OpenCL performance?

A: The RX 6700 scores 97,841 in Geekbench OpenCL, which is 312.6% higher than the FirePro D700's score of 23,716. This is the largest performance gap in any recorded benchmark between the two cards.

Q: What are the key architectural differences between the two GPUs?

A: The RX 6700 uses the Navi 22 chip on RDNA 2.0 architecture, built on a 7 nm TSMC process with 17,200 million transistors. The FirePro D700 uses the Tahiti chip on GCN 1.0 architecture, built on a 28 nm TSMC process with 4,313 million transistors. The RX 6700 also features 36 ray tracing cores and supports DirectX 12 Ultimate, while the FirePro D700 has no ray tracing support and only DirectX 12 (11_1).

Q: Which GPU has higher memory bandwidth?

A: The RX 6700 has a memory bandwidth of 320.0 GB/s across a 160-bit bus with 10 GB of GDDR6 memory. The FirePro D700 has 263.0 GB/s bandwidth across a wider 384-bit bus but with only 6 GB of GDDR5 memory. The RX 6700's effective memory speed is 16 Gbps versus 5.5 Gbps for the FirePro.

Q: Can the FirePro D700 compete in modern API benchmarks?

A: No, the data shows a decisive gap. In Geekbench Vulkan, the RX 6700 scores 83,974 versus the FirePro's 27,968, a 200.3% difference. The FirePro D700 supports Vulkan 1.2.170, while the RX 6700 supports Vulkan 1.4, and this API version gap translates directly into the benchmark results.

Q: What is the power consumption difference between the two cards?

A: The RX 6700 has a TDP of 175 W with a suggested PSU of 450 W. The FirePro D700 has a TDP of 274 W with a suggested PSU of 600 W. Despite the FirePro consuming 99 W more, it delivers significantly lower performance across all recorded benchmarks.

Architecture Differences

The architectural divide between these two GPUs spans multiple generations of AMD design philosophy. The RX 6700 is built on RDNA 2.0, AMD's second-generation Radeon DNA architecture, utilizing the Navi 22 chip. The FirePro D700 uses the older GCN 1.0 (Graphics Core Next) architecture with the Tahiti chip, a design that dates back to the early 2010s.

Manufacturing processes tell a story of rapid advancement. The RX 6700 is fabricated on TSMC's 7 nm process, packing 17,200 million transistors into a 335 mm² die, yielding a transistor density of 51.3 million per square millimeter. The FirePro D700 uses TSMC's 28 nm process, with 4,313 million transistors on a slightly larger die of 352 mm², resulting in a transistor density of just 12.3 million per square millimeter. This fourfold density advantage gives the RX 6700 a fundamental efficiency lead before clock speeds are even considered.

The RX 6700's feature set is dramatically more modern. It includes 36 dedicated ray tracing cores, a capability entirely absent from the FirePro D700. The RX 6700 supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), while the FirePro D700 is limited to DirectX 12 (11_1). Vulkan support also differs, with the RX 6700 at version 1.4 versus the FirePro's 1.2.170. Both cards support OpenGL 4.6, marking one of the few feature similarities.

The bus interface has been upgraded from PCIe 3.0 x16 on the FirePro D700 to PCIe 4.0 x16 on the RX 6700, doubling the theoretical bandwidth available for data transfer between the GPU and the rest of the system. This is particularly relevant for workloads that stream large datasets to the GPU.

Memory technology also reflects the generational gap. The RX 6700 uses GDDR6 memory with an effective speed of 16 Gbps, while the FirePro D700 uses GDDR5 at 5.5 Gbps effective. Even though the FirePro has a wider 384-bit bus compared to the RX 6700's 160-bit bus, the much higher per-pin data rate of GDDR6 allows the RX 6700 to achieve higher total bandwidth (320.0 GB/s versus 263.0 GB/s).

Specification Differences

The recorded specifications show a clear evolution in GPU design. The RX 6700 operates at a base clock of 1941 MHz, a boost clock of 2450 MHz, and a game clock of 2174 MHz. The FirePro D700 has no recorded base, boost, or game clocks, only a memory clock of 1370 MHz. This clock speed disparity is a major factor in the performance gap.

Compute resources differ across every unit type. The RX 6700 has 2304 shading units, 144 texture mapping units (TMUs), and 64 raster operation units (ROPs). The FirePro D700 has 2048 shading units, 128 TMUs, and only 32 ROPs. The RX 6700's pixel rate of 156.8 GPixel/s is 5.8 times higher than the FirePro's 27.20 GPixel/s, and its texture rate of 352.8 GTexel/s is 3.2 times higher than 108.8 GTexel/s.

Floating-point performance shows an even larger divide. The RX 6700 delivers 11.29 TFLOPS of FP32 compute, more than three times the FirePro D700's 3.482 TFLOPS. The RX 6700 also supports FP16 at 22.58 TFLOPS (2:1 ratio), while the FirePro D700 has no recorded FP16 capability.

Memory configuration differs in capacity and type. The RX 6700 has 10 GB of GDDR6 on a 160-bit bus, while the FirePro D700 has 6 GB of GDDR5 on a 384-bit bus. The RX 6700's bandwidth advantage is 320.0 GB/s versus 263.0 GB/s. Power consumption is also notably different: the RX 6700 draws 175 W with a suggested PSU of 450 W, while the FirePro D700 draws 274 W with a suggested PSU of 600 W. Both cards are dual-slot designs, but the RX 6700 is shorter at 267 mm (10.5 inches) versus the FirePro's 279 mm (11 inches). The RX 6700 also uses a single 8-pin power connector, while the FirePro D700 has no recorded power connector specification.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The recorded head-to-head benchmarks between these two cards are limited to two tests, but both show overwhelming dominance for the RX 6700. In Geekbench OpenCL, the RX 6700 scores 97,841 against the FirePro D700's 23,716, a delta of 312.6%. This is the largest performance gap in any benchmark where both cards have recorded scores. The RX 6700's OpenCL result is more than four times higher than the FirePro's, indicating that compute-heavy workloads such as scientific simulations, video rendering, and machine learning inference will see dramatic performance improvements.

In Geekbench Vulkan, the RX 6700 scores 83,974 versus the FirePro D700's 27,968, a delta of 200.3%. While not as extreme as the OpenCL gap, this still represents a threefold performance advantage. Vulkan has become a critical API for modern games and professional visualization tools, and this benchmark result directly reflects the RX 6700's architectural advantages in draw call handling and parallel execution.

Beyond the head-to-head tests, the RX 6700's broader benchmark suite provides additional context. Its PassMark G3D score is 18,931, and its PassMark GPU Compute score is 8,240. DirectX performance follows a similar pattern: PassMark DirectX 9 scores 250, DirectX 10 scores 115, DirectX 11 scores 166, and DirectX 12 scores 71. The 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 test shows a score of 2,014, and Geekbench Metal scores 122,223. The FirePro D700 has no recorded scores for any of these tests, meaning the RX 6700's performance in those areas is unopposed in this comparison.

The nearest rivals for each card provide useful context for interpreting these scores. The RX 6700's closest competitors in the database are the NVIDIA CMP 70HX (0.1% lower average score), the NVIDIA Tesla M60 (0.2% lower), the AMD Radeon RX 6800 (1.1% lower), and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Ti (1.6% lower). The FirePro D700's nearest rivals are the AMD FirePro W7100 (0.1% lower), the AMD Radeon R9 M395X (0.2% lower), the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 Ti Mobile (0.4% higher), and the AMD Radeon Pro W5700 (0.5% higher). This places the RX 6700 in a performance class well above its workstation predecessor.

Where Each One Wins

The RX 6700 wins in every measured performance category, making it the superior choice for virtually all workloads. Its 312.6% advantage in Geekbench OpenCL makes it ideal for compute-intensive applications like video encoding, 3D rendering, scientific computing, and any OpenCL-accelerated professional software. The 200.3% advantage in Geekbench Vulkan positions it strongly for modern gaming, where Vulkan is increasingly the API of choice, and for professional applications that leverage Vulkan for real-time visualization.

The RX 6700's DirectX 12 Ultimate support, combined with its 36 ray tracing cores, makes it the only card of the two capable of hardware-accelerated ray tracing. Its FP32 throughput of 11.29 TFLOPS, more than triple the FirePro D700's 3.482 TFLOPS, ensures strong performance in general compute tasks. The 10 GB GDDR6 memory with 320.0 GB/s bandwidth provides ample capacity for modern game textures and professional datasets, while the FP16 support at 22.58 TFLOPS adds flexibility for AI and machine learning workloads that can use reduced precision.

The FirePro D700's advantages are confined to its physical and display characteristics. Its 6x mini-DisplayPort 1.2 and 1x SDI outputs allow for up to seven simultaneous display connections, compared to the RX 6700's four outputs (1x HDMI 2.1 and 3x DisplayPort 1.4a). For users running multi-monitor wall displays or specialized broadcast setups that rely on SDI output, the FirePro D700 offers a connectivity advantage. Its dual-slot design and 279 mm length are comparable to the RX 6700's dual-slot, 267 mm footprint, so physical installation is similar.

The FirePro D700's wider 384-bit memory bus is theoretically advantageous for memory-intensive workloads, but the RX 6700's GDDR6 memory at 16 Gbps effective achieves higher total bandwidth (320.0 GB/s versus 263.0 GB/s) despite the narrower bus. The FirePro also consumes more power (274 W versus 175 W) and requires a larger PSU (600 W versus 450 W), making it less efficient in every performance-per-watt comparison.

In summary, the RX 6700 is the correct choice for gaming, compute, and modern professional workloads. The FirePro D700 retains value only in specific multi-display or SDI-based professional environments where its unique output configuration matters more than raw performance. For any other use case, the RX 6700's architectural advantages and benchmark dominance make it the definitive pick.