AMD FirePro W4100 vs NVIDIA GeForce GTX 550 Ti Comparison

The AMD FirePro W4100 and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 550 Ti are both end-of-life graphics cards, but they represent fundamentally different design goals. The data shows a clear, albeit narrow, victory for the NVIDIA card in raw compute, with the GTX 550 Ti outperforming the FirePro W4100 by 4.4% in the sole head-to-head benchmark. However, the FirePro counters with a far more modern feature set, lower power demands, and significantly better API support, making it the more sensible choice for modern professional workloads despite its slight performance deficit.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The only direct comparison available in the data is the Geekbench OpenCL test, and it is a close contest. The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 550 Ti scores 5,731 points, while the AMD FirePro W4100 trails with 5,478 points. This represents a delta of -4.4% for the AMD card, meaning the GTX 550 Ti is the winner in this specific test. It is a narrow margin, but it is a consistent one across the board, as the GTX 550 Ti also holds a higher average benchmark score of 5,731 compared to the FirePro’s 5,987. Wait, that is incorrect based on the data. The FirePro W4100 has an average benchmark score of 5,987, which is higher than the GTX 550 Ti's 5,731. This is a crucial distinction: the FirePro's average score is bolstered by its second benchmark result in Geekbench Vulkan, where it scores 6,496. The GTX 550 Ti has no Vulkan score listed, so its average is solely based on its OpenCL result.

Focusing strictly on the OpenCL result, the GTX 550 Ti has a clear edge. Its score of 5,731 places it in the 33rd percentile of all GPUs, while the FirePro's OpenCL score of 5,478 puts it in the 34th percentile. The percentile difference is minimal, but the raw score difference is real. The GTX 550 Ti's nearest rivals in the database include the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 670MX with an average score of 5,721, against which it is 0.2% faster, and the Intel Iris Pro Graphics P6300 with a score of 5,712, where it leads by 0.3%. The FirePro W4100, on the other hand, sits in a tight cluster with the NVIDIA Quadro K4000M (avg score 5,986, 0% delta) and the NVIDIA Quadro K4000 (avg score 5,982, 0.1% delta). This indicates that while the FirePro loses to the GTX 550 Ti in OpenCL, it is statistically tied with professional Quadro cards from its era.

The GTX 550 Ti's victory is not a landslide. It wins the only shared test, but the FirePro's Vulkan score of 6,496 demonstrates a capability the NVIDIA card simply does not possess. This is not just a matter of a missing benchmark; it is a sign of architectural obsolescence. In the head-to-head count, the GTX 550 Ti takes the win with a score of 1-0, but the data suggests that this win is specific to a legacy API workload.

Where Each One Wins

The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 550 Ti wins in raw OpenCL compute performance. Its score of 5,731 is higher than the FirePro's 5,478, making it the better choice for applications that rely heavily on this specific API and do not leverage newer interfaces. Its higher pixel rate of 7.200 GPixel/s compared to the FirePro's 10.08 GPixel/s is actually lower, but its texture rate of 28.80 GTexel/s is higher than the FirePro's 20.16 GTexel/s. This suggests the GTX 550 Ti may have an edge in fill-rate-bound scenarios that are heavily textured. Its FP32 performance of 691.2 GFLOPS also slightly exceeds the FirePro's 645.1 GFLOPS, corroborating its compute lead.

The AMD FirePro W4100 wins in virtually every other category that matters for a modern system. Its support for Vulkan 1.2.170 is a decisive advantage, as the GTX 550 Ti has no Vulkan support listed. This means the FirePro can run modern games and compute applications that require Vulkan, while the GTX 550 Ti cannot. The FirePro also has a higher pixel rate (10.08 GPixel/s vs. 7.200 GPixel/s), which is beneficial for tasks like 2D rendering and desktop compositing. Its lower TDP of 50 W versus 116 W makes it a far more efficient card, and its single-slot design with no power connectors allows it to fit in smaller workstations. The FirePro's 2 GB of VRAM is double the 1024 MB on the GTX 550 Ti, which is critical for modern textures and datasets. Its support for DirectX 12 (11_1) versus the GTX 550 Ti's DirectX 12 (11_0) provides a slight edge in API feature level.

Architecture Differences

The architectural gap between these two cards is vast, representing a generational shift in GPU design. The AMD FirePro W4100 is built on the Graphics Core Next (GCN) 1.0 architecture, using the Cape Verde chip. This architecture was designed from the ground up for compute-heavy workloads and asynchronous execution. In contrast, the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 550 Ti uses the Fermi 2.0 architecture with the GF116 chip. Fermi was an early attempt at unified shaders and compute, but GCN is a much more mature and efficient implementation.

The process node difference is stark. The FirePro is manufactured on a 28 nm process at TSMC, while the GTX 550 Ti uses a 40 nm process. This accounts for the massive difference in transistor density: the FirePro packs 1,500 million transistors into a 123 mm² die, yielding a density of 12.2M / mm². The GTX 550 Ti has 1,170 million transistors spread across a much larger 238 mm² die, resulting in a density of just 4.9M / mm². The smaller, denser process allows the FirePro to deliver more features and performance per watt.

The core configurations are also radically different. The FirePro has 512 shading units, 32 TMUs, and 16 ROPs. The GTX 550 Ti has only 192 shading units, but it has 32 TMUs and 24 ROPs. The higher ROP count on the NVIDIA card is a legacy of its fill-rate-oriented design. The FirePro's architecture is designed for parallel throughput with its large number of shaders, while the GTX 550 Ti's Fermi architecture is less efficient per shader. The FP32 performance figures reflect this: the FirePro achieves 645.1 GFLOPS, while the GTX 550 Ti achieves 691.2 GFLOPS, but the FirePro does so with significantly fewer resources dedicated to traditional ROP work.

Specification Differences

Beyond the architecture, the two cards differ on several key specifications. The most obvious is memory: the FirePro W4100 has 2 GB of GDDR5 on a 128-bit bus, providing 64.00 GB/s of bandwidth. The GTX 550 Ti has 1024 MB of GDDR5 on a wider 192-bit bus, resulting in higher bandwidth of 98.50 GB/s. While the GTX 550 Ti has more bandwidth, the FirePro has more capacity, which is often more important for holding large working sets. The memory clock also differs, with the FirePro running at 1000 MHz (4 Gbps effective) and the GTX 550 Ti running at 1026 MHz (4.1 Gbps effective).

Power and physical requirements are a major differentiator. The FirePro has a TDP of just 50 W and requires no power connectors, with a suggested PSU of 250 W. It is a single-slot card measuring 171 mm (6.7 inches) in length and 69 mm (2.7 inches) in height. The GTX 550 Ti, in contrast, has a TDP of 116 W, requires a single 6-pin power connector, and needs a 300 W PSU. It is a dual-slot card that is 210 mm (8.3 inches) long. The FirePro's smaller footprint and lower power draw make it far easier to integrate into compact systems.

Connectivity and output options also diverge. The FirePro offers 4x mini-DisplayPort 1.2 outputs, which is a standard for professional multi-monitor setups. The GTX 550 Ti offers 2x DVI and 1x mini-HDMI 1.3a, which is oriented towards consumer displays. The bus interface is another difference: the FirePro uses PCIe 3.0 x16, while the GTX 550 Ti uses the older PCIe 2.0 x16 standard. Finally, the API support shows the FirePro's advantage: it supports Vulkan 1.2.170 and DirectX 12 (11_1), while the GTX 550 Ti has no Vulkan support and only DirectX 12 (11_0). Both support OpenGL 4.6.

FAQ

Q: Which card has a higher average benchmark score?

A: The AMD FirePro W4100 has a higher average benchmark score of 5,987, compared to the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 550 Ti's 5,731. This is due to the FirePro's additional Vulkan score of 6,496, which the GTX 550 Ti does not have.

Q: What is the performance difference in the Geekbench OpenCL test?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 550 Ti wins the Geekbench OpenCL test with a score of 5,731, defeating the AMD FirePro W4100, which scores 5,478. This is a 4.4% advantage for the GTX 550 Ti.

Q: Which card supports the Vulkan API?

A: Only the AMD FirePro W4100 supports Vulkan, with version 1.2.170. The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 550 Ti has no Vulkan support listed in its specifications.

Q: What are the memory capacities of these two cards?

A: The AMD FirePro W4100 has 2 GB of GDDR5 memory, while the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 550 Ti has 1024 MB (1 GB) of GDDR5 memory. The FirePro has double the memory capacity.

Q: What is the TDP difference between the two cards?

A: The AMD FirePro W4100 has a significantly lower TDP of 50 W, while the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 550 Ti has a TDP of 116 W. The FirePro also does not require any power connectors, whereas the GTX 550 Ti needs a single 6-pin connector.

Q: Which card has a higher texture fill rate?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 550 Ti has a higher texture fill rate of 28.80 GTexel/s, compared to the AMD FirePro W4100's 20.16 GTexel/s. However, the FirePro has a higher pixel rate of 10.08 GPixel/s versus the GTX 550 Ti's 7.200 GPixel/s.

The Verdict

The data paints a clear picture for two distinct use cases. If your priority is legacy OpenCL compute performance and higher memory bandwidth, the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 550 Ti is the winner. It is 4.4% faster in the OpenCL benchmark and offers 98.50 GB/s of bandwidth, which is 34.5 GB/s more than the FirePro. It also has a higher texture rate, which may benefit certain older game workloads. However, this is where its advantages end.

For any modern workload, the AMD FirePro W4100 is the superior choice. Its support for Vulkan 1.2.170 is a non-negotiable feature for contemporary applications, and its 2 GB of VRAM is essential for holding larger datasets. The FirePro also offers a higher pixel rate, a much lower TDP of 50 W, a smaller single-slot physical footprint, and a more modern PCIe 3.0 interface. Its average benchmark score is also higher due to its Vulkan result. The GTX 550 Ti's higher memory bandwidth is offset by its smaller memory pool and lack of modern API support. The FirePro W4100 is a professional card designed for reliability and modern features, while the GTX 550 Ti is a consumer card from a bygone era. The verdict is simple: for modern use, the FirePro W4100 wins on capability and efficiency; for a legacy compute test, the GTX 550 Ti takes the point.