AMD FirePro M6100 vs NVIDIA Tesla K20Xm Comparison

# AMD FirePro M6100 vs NVIDIA Tesla K20Xm

The AMD FirePro M6100 and NVIDIA Tesla K20Xm are both end-of-life professional GPUs, but they target entirely different segments of the market. The FirePro M6100 is a mobile workstation part built on GCN 2.0, while the Tesla K20Xm is a dual-slot compute accelerator from NVIDIA's Kepler generation. Benchmark data shows the Tesla K20Xm holds a clear performance advantage in OpenCL workloads, scoring 17,215 versus the FirePro's 13,354, a delta of 22.4%. However, each card has its own strengths depending on the use case, and the specification sheets reveal fundamental differences in memory capacity, power requirements, and physical design.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has the higher OpenCL benchmark score?

A: The NVIDIA Tesla K20Xm scores 17,215 in Geekbench OpenCL, while the AMD FirePro M6100 scores 13,354. That gives the Tesla a 22.4% lead in this specific test.

Q: How much memory does each card have?

A: The Tesla K20Xm comes with 6 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 384-bit bus, delivering 249.6 GB/s of bandwidth. The FirePro M6100 has 2 GB of GDDR5 on a 128-bit bus, with 96.00 GB/s of bandwidth.

Q: What are the power requirements for the Tesla K20Xm?

A: The Tesla K20Xm has a TDP of 235 W and NVIDIA recommends a 550 W power supply. It draws power through its dual-slot PCIe form factor, and it has no display outputs.

Q: Is the FirePro M6100 a desktop or mobile card?

A: It is a mobile workstation GPU using an MXM Module form factor with an MXM-B (3.0) bus interface. Its display outputs are described as "Portable Device Dependent," meaning they vary by laptop implementation.

Q: Which card supports newer graphics APIs?

A: The FirePro M6100 supports DirectX 12 (12_0), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.2.170. The Tesla K20Xm supports DirectX 12 (11_0), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.2.175 — a slightly newer Vulkan version but an older DirectX feature level.

Q: What is the launch MSRP of the Tesla K20Xm?

A: The Tesla K20Xm had a launch MSRP of 7,699 USD. The FirePro M6100 has no listed launch MSRP.

Architecture Differences

The two GPUs come from different architectural lineages. The AMD FirePro M6100 uses the Emerald chip built on GCN 2.0 architecture, fabricated by TSMC on a 28 nm process. It packs 2,080 million transistors into a 160 mm² die, yielding a transistor density of 13.0M per mm². The NVIDIA Tesla K20Xm uses the GK110 chip with Kepler architecture, also on TSMC's 28 nm node, but with 7,080 million transistors spread across a much larger 561 mm² die, giving a density of 12.6M per mm².

The compute resources differ sharply. The FirePro M6100 has 896 shading units, 56 texture mapping units (TMUs), and 16 raster operations pipelines (ROPs). The Tesla K20Xm scales up to 2,688 shading units, 224 TMUs, and 48 ROPs — roughly three times the shader count and four times the TMU count. Neither card includes dedicated ray tracing or tensor cores.

Memory architecture is another major split. The FirePro uses a 128-bit memory bus with 2 GB GDDR5 running at 1500 MHz (6 Gbps effective), producing 96.00 GB/s of bandwidth. The Tesla K20Xm uses a 384-bit bus with 6 GB GDDR5 at 1300 MHz (5.2 Gbps effective), yielding 249.6 GB/s. The Tesla's wider bus and larger frame buffer make it substantially better suited for memory-heavy workloads.

The FirePro M6100 carries a mobile form factor (MXM Module) with no power connectors and no suggested PSU, reflecting its laptop-oriented design. The Tesla K20Xm is a dual-slot PCIe 3.0 x16 card measuring 267 mm (10.5 inches) in length, requires a 550 W power supply, and has no display outputs — it is a pure compute accelerator.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The only direct benchmark comparison available is Geekbench OpenCL, and the results are decisive. The NVIDIA Tesla K20Xm scores 17,215, while the AMD FirePro M6100 scores 13,354. The delta is 22.4% in favor of the Tesla. This is a substantial margin that aligns with the raw specification differences — the Tesla has 2,688 shading units versus 896, and 3.935 TFLOPS of FP32 performance versus 1.971 TFLOPS.

The FirePro M6100's nearest rivals in the benchmark database include the AMD Radeon RX 5500M (13,356, 0% delta), the AMD Radeon HD 8950M (13,376, -0.2%), the AMD Radeon Pro 555X (13,321, +0.3%), and the AMD Radeon Pro 555 (13,407, -0.4%). The FirePro sits right in the middle of that cluster, essentially tied with those mobile and small desktop parts.

The Tesla K20Xm's nearest rivals tell a different story. It is compared against the AMD Radeon RX 7600M XT (12,710, -0.7%), NVIDIA GeForce GTX 670 (12,773, -1.2%), NVIDIA GeForce GTX 590 (12,830, -1.6%), and AMD Radeon Pro 455 (12,831, -1.6%). The Tesla's average benchmark score of 12,625 is actually lower than its OpenCL score because it also includes a Geekbench Metal score of 8,035, which drags down the average. The FirePro M6100's average benchmark score is 13,354, matching its single OpenCL result.

In terms of percentile ranking, the FirePro M6100 sits at the 54th percentile of all GPUs, while the Tesla K20Xm is at the 52nd percentile. Despite the Tesla's higher raw OpenCL score, its lower Metal score and mixed benchmark profile put it slightly behind the FirePro in overall percentile placement.

Specification Differences

The specification sheets reveal several fields where the two cards differ. The most obvious is form factor: the FirePro M6100 is an MXM Module while the Tesla K20Xm is a dual-slot PCIe card. The FirePro has no power connectors; the Tesla's power connector info is not listed, but it requires a 550 W suggested PSU. The Tesla measures 267 mm (10.5 inches) in length; the FirePro has no listed dimensions.

Memory capacity and bandwidth differ significantly: 2 GB at 96.00 GB/s versus 6 GB at 249.6 GB/s. The memory clock rates also differ — the FirePro runs at 1500 MHz (6 Gbps effective) while the Tesla runs at 1300 MHz (5.2 Gbps effective). The bus widths are 128-bit and 384-bit, respectively.

The Tesla K20Xm has a TDP of 235 W; the FirePro M6100 has no TDP listed. The Tesla also has a launch MSRP of 7,699 USD, while the FirePro has none. The bus interfaces differ: MXM-B (3.0) for the FirePro versus PCIe 3.0 x16 for the Tesla. Display outputs are "Portable Device Dependent" on the FirePro, while the Tesla has no outputs at all.

The chips themselves are built on the same 28 nm TSMC process, but the transistor counts and die sizes are vastly different. The FirePro uses 2,080 million transistors on 160 mm², while the Tesla uses 7,080 million on 561 mm². The transistor density is slightly higher on the FirePro (13.0M vs 12.6M per mm²). Shading units, TMUs, and ROPs are all higher on the Tesla. The FirePro's pixel rate is 17.60 GPixel/s and texture rate is 61.60 GTexel/s; the Tesla's are 40.99 GPixel/s and 164.0 GTexel/s.

Both cards support OpenGL 4.6. The FirePro supports DirectX 12 (12_0) and Vulkan 1.2.170; the Tesla supports DirectX 12 (11_0) and Vulkan 1.2.175.

The Verdict

The data paints a clear picture: the NVIDIA Tesla K20Xm is the stronger compute performer in raw OpenCL terms, with a 22.4% lead over the AMD FirePro M6100. Its 6 GB of memory and 249.6 GB/s of bandwidth make it far better suited for large datasets or high-resolution compute workloads. The Tesla also has a much higher FP32 throughput at 3.935 TFLOPS versus 1.971 TFLOPS.

However, the Tesla K20Xm is a compute-only card with no display outputs. It is not a graphics card in the traditional sense — you cannot plug a monitor into it. The FirePro M6100, by contrast, is a mobile workstation GPU designed for laptops, with display outputs that depend on the portable device. If you need a GPU for a laptop workstation, the FirePro is the only viable option here.

The FirePro also holds an edge in API support for DirectX, offering version 12 (12_0) versus the Tesla's 12 (11_0). This could matter for applications that rely on newer DirectX features. The FirePro's percentile ranking is also slightly higher (54th vs 52nd), though the benchmark scores tell a more nuanced story.

Power consumption is another differentiator. The Tesla draws 235 W and requires a 550 W PSU, making it unsuitable for anything but a desktop workstation with a robust power supply. The FirePro, with no listed TDP and no power connectors, is designed for the constrained thermal envelope of a mobile chassis.

Where Each One Wins

The Tesla K20Xm wins decisively in raw compute performance. Its OpenCL score of 17,215 versus 13,354 gives it a 22.4% advantage. It also wins on memory capacity (6 GB vs 2 GB), memory bandwidth (249.6 GB/s vs 96.00 GB/s), FP32 throughput (3.935 vs 1.971 TFLOPS), pixel rate (40.99 vs 17.60 GPixel/s), and texture rate (164.0 vs 61.60 GTexel/s). For compute clusters, scientific simulations, or any workload that can use a headless accelerator, the Tesla is the clear choice.

The FirePro M6100 wins on portability and integration. It is an MXM Module with no external power requirement, making it suitable for laptops. It has display outputs (device-dependent), so it can drive a screen. It also has a newer DirectX feature level (12_0 vs 11_0), which could be relevant for certain graphics applications. Its percentile ranking is higher (54 vs 52), and its average benchmark score of 13,354 is actually above the Tesla's 12,625.

For a mobile workstation user who needs OpenGL 4.6 and Vulkan support in a laptop, the FirePro M6100 is the only sensible pick. For a desktop compute node where power consumption and physical size are not constraints, the Tesla K20Xm's superior memory subsystem and shader throughput make it the stronger option. The 2 GB memory limit on the FirePro is a hard ceiling for many modern workloads, while the Tesla's 6 GB provides room to breathe.