AMD FirePro S7150 vs AMD Radeon Pro W5500X Comparison

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The aggregate benchmark data places the AMD FirePro S7150 and the AMD Radeon Pro W5500X extremely close, with the FirePro S7150 holding a narrow average score of 28,117 compared to the W5500X’s 27,973. That is a delta of only 0.5% in favor of the older card, a margin that falls well within normal run-to-run variance. The nearest rival list confirms this: the FirePro S7150 sits just 0.3% ahead of the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980 Ti (28,020) and 0.8% ahead of the AMD Radeon RX 7800M (27,883), while the W5500X trails the GTX 980 Ti by 0.2% and leads the RX 7800M by 0.3%.

The raw numbers, however, tell different stories depending on the workload. The FirePro S7150 delivers 3.768 TFLOPS of FP32 compute and 7.537 TFLOPS of FP16 (2:1 ratio), while the W5500X pushes 5.398 TFLOPS FP32 and 10.80 TFLOPS FP16. That is a 43% advantage in FP32 for the W5500X and a 43% lead in FP16 as well. In pixel throughput, the W5500X hits 56.22 GPixel/s against the FirePro’s 29.44 GPixel/s — a 91% difference. Texture rate tells a similar tale: 168.7 GTexel/s versus 117.8 GTexel/s, a 43% gap in favor of the newer card.

Yet the FirePro S7150 counters in other measurable ways. Its memory bandwidth of 160.0 GB/s, while lower than the W5500X’s 224.0 GB/s, comes over a 256-bit bus compared to the W5500X’s 128-bit interface. The FirePro also offers 2,048 shading units against 1,536, and 128 TMUs versus 96. These architectural counts suggest the FirePro can handle certain parallel workloads more gracefully, even if per-clock efficiency favors the W5500X. The Geekbench scores reflect this split: the FirePro S7150 posts 26,543 in OpenCL and 29,690 in Vulkan, while the W5500X shows 27,973 in Metal — a different API, so direct cross-comparison is limited. What the data indicates is that the W5500X’s single Metal score lands within 0.5% of the FirePro’s average across two tests, meaning neither card has a decisive overall edge.

The percentile rankings underscore the parity: both cards sit at the 73rd percentile against all GPUs. The W5500X’s nearest rival list includes the FirePro S7150 itself with a delta of -0.5%, meaning the W5500X trails by that margin. The FirePro’s list, in turn, shows the W5500X at +0.5% ahead of it. This is effectively a statistical tie, with the practical differences showing up in specific workload types rather than in a blanket average.

FAQ

Q: Which card has higher raw compute throughput?

A: The Radeon Pro W5500X is substantially ahead in raw compute. It delivers 5.398 TFLOPS FP32 and 10.80 TFLOPS FP16, versus the FirePro S7150’s 3.768 TFLOPS FP32 and 7.537 TFLOPS FP16. That is roughly 43% higher in both FP32 and FP16.

Q: How do they compare on memory bandwidth?

A: The W5500X offers 224.0 GB/s of bandwidth using GDDR6 on a 128-bit bus, while the FirePro S7150 provides 160.0 GB/s using GDDR5 on a 256-bit bus. The W5500X has a 40% bandwidth advantage, which matters for memory-heavy workloads.

Q: Are both cards still in production?

A: No. Both the AMD FirePro S7150 and the AMD Radeon Pro W5500X are listed as end-of-life products. The FirePro S7150 was released on 2016-01-31, while the W5500X came later on 2019-12-10.

Q: What are the power connector requirements?

A: The FirePro S7150 uses a single 6-pin power connector and lists a suggested PSU of 450 W. The W5500X has no specified power connector in the data and lists a suggested PSU of 300 W. Note that the W5500X is designed for Apple MPX bus interface, which changes how power is delivered.

Q: Which card supports which graphics APIs?

A: The FirePro S7150 supports DirectX 12 (12_0), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.2.170. The W5500X supports DirectX 12 (12_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. The W5500X has a higher DirectX feature level (12_1 vs 12_0) and a newer Vulkan version.

Q: How do their physical dimensions differ?

A: The FirePro S7150 is a single-slot card measuring 241 mm in length and 111 mm in height, with no display outputs. The W5500X is a dual-slot card, but its length, height, and width are not specified in the data. The W5500X has 2x HDMI 2.0b outputs.

Architecture Differences

The two cards come from entirely different architectural generations. The FirePro S7150 uses the Tonga chip built on GCN 3.0, fabricated on a 28 nm process at TSMC. It packs 5,000 million transistors onto a 366 mm² die, yielding a transistor density of 13.7M per mm². The W5500X, by contrast, uses the Navi 14 chip on RDNA 1.0, built on a 7 nm process, also at TSMC. It contains 6,400 million transistors on a much smaller 158 mm² die, achieving 40.5M transistors per mm² — nearly three times the density of the FirePro.

The GCN 3.0 architecture in the FirePro S7150 was designed for compute-heavy server workloads, which explains its lack of display outputs and its single-slot form factor. RDNA 1.0 in the W5500X is a gaming-oriented architecture that also handles professional tasks, but it prioritizes higher clock speeds and better per-watt efficiency. The FirePro S7150 has no listed base or boost clock, while the W5500X runs at 1187 MHz base and 1757 MHz boost. That clock advantage, combined with the newer process node, explains why the W5500X achieves higher pixel, texture, and FP32 rates despite having fewer shading units (1,536 vs 2,048) and TMUs (96 vs 128).

Memory architecture differs fundamentally as well. The FirePro uses GDDR5 at 1250 MHz (5 Gbps effective) across a 256-bit bus. The W5500X uses GDDR6 at 1750 MHz (14 Gbps effective) across a 128-bit bus. The result is that the W5500X achieves 224.0 GB/s versus 160.0 GB/s, despite the narrower bus. The FirePro’s wider bus might help in certain access patterns, but the bandwidth data favors the W5500X.

Both cards lack dedicated ray tracing cores and tensor cores — neither field has a value in the data. The FirePro’s API support includes DirectX 12 (12_0), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.2.170. The W5500X supports DirectX 12 (12_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. The newer Vulkan and higher DirectX feature level on the W5500X reflect its later release date and RDNA architecture improvements.

Specification Differences

The two cards differ across nearly every measurable specification. The FirePro S7150 has a 28 nm process node versus the W5500X’s 7 nm. Transistor count is 5,000 million versus 6,400 million, but die size is 366 mm² versus 158 mm², giving transistor densities of 13.7M/mm² and 40.5M/mm² respectively.

Clock speeds: the FirePro has no base or boost clock listed, while the W5500X runs at 1187 MHz base and 1757 MHz boost. Memory clocks are 1250 MHz (5 Gbps effective) for the FirePro and 1750 MHz (14 Gbps effective) for the W5500X. Memory type is GDDR5 versus GDDR6, with the same 8 GB capacity but different bus widths: 256-bit versus 128-bit. Bandwidth is 160.0 GB/s versus 224.0 GB/s.

Compute resources: 2,048 shading units versus 1,536; 128 TMUs versus 96; 32 ROPs on both. Pixel rate is 29.44 GPixel/s versus 56.22 GPixel/s, and texture rate is 117.8 GTexel/s versus 168.7 GTexel/s. FP32 is 3.768 TFLOPS versus 5.398 TFLOPS, and FP16 is 7.537 TFLOPS versus 10.80 TFLOPS.

Power and physical specs: TDP of 150 W versus 125 W. The FirePro is single-slot with a 1x 6-pin connector and a suggested PSU of 450 W. The W5500X is dual-slot with no power connector listed and a suggested PSU of 300 W. The bus interface is PCIe 3.0 x16 for the FirePro and Apple MPX for the W5500X. Display outputs: none on the FirePro, 2x HDMI 2.0b on the W5500X. Dimensions: the FirePro is 241 mm long and 111 mm tall, while the W5500X has no listed dimensions. The FirePro’s launch MSRP is 2,399 USD; the W5500X’s launch MSRP is 599 USD.

Where Each One Wins

The W5500X wins on raw throughput metrics that matter for graphics rendering and modern compute tasks. Its 43% higher FP32 and FP16 performance, 91% higher pixel rate, and 43% higher texture rate make it the clear choice for real-time rendering, video processing, and any workload that scales with shader output. The 224.0 GB/s memory bandwidth, while on a narrower bus, provides 40% more headroom for data-intensive operations. The dual display outputs and Apple MPX interface also make it suitable for Mac Pro environments where external display output is required.

The FirePro S7150 wins on architectural flexibility that comes from sheer resource counts. Its 2,048 shading units, 128 TMUs, and 256-bit memory bus provide a wider execution width that can benefit certain parallel compute workloads, particularly those that are latency-bound rather than bandwidth-bound. The single-slot design and 150 W TDP make it easier to pack into dense server configurations, and the lack of display outputs confirms its intended role as a compute accelerator. The Vulkan score of 29,690 suggests strong compute performance in cross-platform APIs, though the W5500X’s Metal score of 27,973 is comparable.

For professional visualization, the W5500X’s higher pixel rate and newer architecture make it the better candidate. For headless compute clusters or workloads that favor wider memory buses and more shading units, the FirePro S7150 retains relevance despite its age. The benchmark averages show both cards within 0.5% of each other, so neither has a blanket advantage — the wins are workload-specific.

The Verdict

The data presents a clear split: the Radeon Pro W5500X is the better all-around card for modern graphics and compute due to its 43% higher FP32, 91% higher pixel rate, and 40% higher memory bandwidth, all within a 125 W TDP. The FirePro S7150, despite being older and built on a 28 nm process, holds its own in aggregate benchmarks at 28,117 versus 27,973, a 0.5% difference. That parity is remarkable given the architectural gap.

Choose the W5500X if you need display outputs, higher throughput, and lower power draw. Its Apple MPX bus interface and 2x HDMI 2.0b outputs make it suitable for Mac-based workflows, and its 5.398 TFLOPS FP32 outpaces the FirePro by a wide margin. The launch MSRP of 599 USD also reflects a more accessible positioning, though pricing is not part of the performance analysis.

Choose the FirePro S7150 if you need a single-slot, headless compute card with a 256-bit memory bus and more shading units. Its 2,048 shaders and 128 TMUs provide a wider execution path, and its 150 W TDP fits into power-constrained server chassis. The Vulkan score of 29,690 is the highest single benchmark result between the two cards, suggesting strong compute potential in that API.

Both cards are end-of-life, so the decision rests on workload fit rather than future-proofing. If your software leverages Metal or requires HDMI outputs, the W5500X is the only option of the two. If you need maximum compute density in a server slot with no display requirements, the FirePro S7150’s single-slot profile and wider bus give it a niche advantage. The benchmark data shows a statistical tie on average, so let your specific workload — not the aggregate score — decide.