AMD FirePro W5000 vs AMD Radeon RX 6600S Comparison

The AMD Radeon RX 6600S and AMD FirePro W5000 represent two distinct eras of AMD graphics technology. The data shows a single head-to-head benchmark result, and the performance gap is staggering. The RX 6600S delivers a Geekbench OpenCL score of 66,435, while the FirePro W5000 manages only 9,803, resulting in a 577.7% advantage for the newer mobile part. This places the RX 6600S in the 49th percentile of all GPUs, whereas the FirePro W5000 sits at the 47th percentile, a relatively close overall standing that is belied by their extreme divergence in compute workloads.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The only direct comparison available is the Geekbench OpenCL test, which measures raw compute throughput. The Radeon RX 6600S scores 66,435, dwarfing the FirePro W5000’s 9,803. This translates to a delta of 577.7% in favor of the RX 6600S, making the comparison not merely a win, but a complete rout. The RX 6600S’s score is more than six times higher, a difference that reflects the generational leap in architecture and memory technology.

To contextualize the FirePro W5000’s score, its average benchmark of 9,803 places it within a hair of the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070, which has an average score of 9,780 (a 0.2% delta favoring the FirePro). It also sits extremely close to the NVIDIA Quadro M2000M (9,832, -0.3% delta) and the NVIDIA Quadro 6000 (9,846, -0.4% delta). This positions the older FirePro as a mid-range performer from its era.

Conversely, the Radeon RX 6600S, with its average score of 10,629, is ranked against a different class of rivals. It is a mere 0.4% ahead of the AMD Radeon R9 M275X (10,582) and 1.4% ahead of the AMD Radeon RX 550X (10,481). It trails the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 560 Ti by 0.6% (10,690) and the NVIDIA Quadro K2200 by 1.2% (10,761). This suggests that while the RX 6600S excels in the OpenCL compute test, its overall average benchmark score is more modest, indicating that its strength is specifically in compute-heavy tasks rather than a uniform dominance across all test types.

The disparity in OpenCL performance is stark. The RX 6600S’s 66,435 versus the FirePro W5000’s 9,803 is not incremental; it is transformative. This single data point suggests that for any modern workload leveraging OpenCL, the RX 6600S is in a different league entirely, despite being a mobile (IGP) part.

Where Each One Wins

Based on the single head-to-head benchmark, the Radeon RX 6600S wins decisively in compute performance. The Geekbench OpenCL test is a general-purpose compute benchmark, and the RX 6600S’s 577.7% lead indicates a massive advantage in parallel processing capabilities. This would translate to superiority in tasks like video encoding, 3D rendering, scientific simulations, and any other workload that leverages GPGPU compute.

The FirePro W5000, despite losing the compute test, has its own historical strengths that are evident from its specification profile. As a single-slot, 75 W workstation card from 2012, it was designed for professional applications requiring stable drivers and certified performance. Its 2 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 256-bit bus provided 102.4 GB/s of bandwidth, which was substantial for its time. The RX 6600S, by contrast, uses a 128-bit bus with 4 GB of GDDR6, yielding 224.0 GB/s. While the newer card has double the bandwidth, the FirePro’s wider bus was a hallmark of workstation design.

The FirePro W5000 also features display outputs that are fixed and professional-oriented: 1x DVI and 2x DisplayPort 1.2. The RX 6600S’s outputs are listed as “Portable Device Dependent,” meaning it relies on the host laptop’s connections. For a fixed workstation setup with multiple monitors, the FirePro’s dedicated outputs are a clear advantage, whereas the RX 6600S is at the mercy of the laptop manufacturer’s port selection.

In terms of legacy support, the FirePro W5000 supports Vulkan 1.2.170, while the RX 6600S supports Vulkan 1.4. The newer card also supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), whereas the FirePro only supports DirectX 12 (11_1). For modern gaming or DX12 Ultimate features like ray tracing, the RX 6600S is the clear winner. For older professional software that may rely on specific GCN-era optimizations, the FirePro could hold a niche advantage, though no benchmark data supports this claim.

FAQ

Q: How much faster is the AMD Radeon RX 6600S in compute benchmarks?

A: The RX 6600S scores 66,435 in the Geekbench OpenCL test, which is 577.7% higher than the FirePro W5000’s 9,803. This represents a more than six-fold advantage in raw compute throughput.

Q: Which GPU has a higher overall average benchmark score?

A: The Radeon RX 6600S has an average benchmark score of 10,629, while the FirePro W5000 has an average of 9,803. This places the RX 6600S in the 49th percentile of all GPUs, compared to the FirePro’s 47th percentile.

Q: What are the closest rivals to the FirePro W5000 based on average score?

A: Its average score of 9,803 places it within 1% of the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 (9,780), NVIDIA Quadro M2000M (9,832), NVIDIA Quadro 6000 (9,846), and NVIDIA Tesla M10 (9,724). The delta values are 0.2%, -0.3%, -0.4%, and 0.8%, respectively.

Q: Is the Radeon RX 6600S a mobile or desktop part?

A: The RX 6600S is a mobile part, as indicated by its slot width of “IGP” (Integrated Graphics Processor) and generation “Navi Mobile (RX 6000M)”. The FirePro W5000 is a desktop workstation card with a single-slot form factor.

Q: What is the memory configuration difference?

A: The RX 6600S has 4 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus, providing 224.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The FirePro W5000 has 2 GB of GDDR5 memory on a 256-bit bus, providing 102.4 GB/s of bandwidth.

Q: Which GPU has a higher transistor count?

A: The RX 6600S uses the Navi 23 chip with 11,060 million transistors on a 7 nm process. The FirePro W5000 uses the Pitcairn chip with 2,800 million transistors on a 28 nm process.

Specification Differences

The two GPUs differ significantly across nearly every specification category. The most fundamental difference is memory capacity and type: the RX 6600S offers 4 GB of GDDR6 on a 128-bit bus, while the FirePro W5000 offers 2 GB of GDDR5 on a 256-bit bus. This results in bandwidth of 224.0 GB/s for the RX 6600S versus 102.4 GB/s for the FirePro, a 121.6 GB/s advantage for the newer card.

The compute units also differ drastically. The RX 6600S has 1,792 shading units, 112 TMUs, and 64 ROPs. The FirePro W5000 has 768 shading units, 48 TMUs, and 32 ROPs. This means the RX 6600S has over twice the shading units and TMUs, and double the ROPs. The RX 6600S also includes 28 ray tracing cores, which are absent from the older FirePro.

Clock speeds are another major differentiator. The RX 6600S has a base clock of 1700 MHz and a boost clock of 2000 MHz, with a game clock of 1881 MHz. The FirePro W5000 has no listed base or boost clocks in the data. Memory clocks also differ, with the RX 6600S running at 1750 MHz (14 Gbps effective) versus the FirePro’s 800 MHz (3.2 Gbps effective).

Process technology and power are also distinct. The RX 6600S is built on a 7 nm process at TSMC, while the FirePro W5000 uses a 28 nm process. The RX 6600S has a TDP of 80 W, slightly higher than the FirePro’s 75 W. The RX 6600S uses a PCIe 4.0 x8 interface, while the FirePro uses PCIe 3.0 x16. The FirePro has a suggested PSU of 250 W and physical dimensions of 183 mm in length and 111 mm in height, whereas the RX 6600S has no listed dimensions due to its IGP form factor.

Architecture Differences

The architectural gap between these two GPUs is generational. The Radeon RX 6600S is based on the RDNA 2.0 architecture, specifically the Navi 23 chip, and is part of the Navi Mobile (RX 6000M) generation. The FirePro W5000 is based on the GCN 1.0 architecture, using the Pitcairn chip, from the FirePro GCN (Wx000) generation.

The RDNA 2.0 architecture brings several key features that GCN 1.0 lacks. Most notably, the RX 6600S includes 28 dedicated ray tracing cores, enabling hardware-accelerated ray tracing. The FirePro W5000 has no such cores. The RX 6600S also supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), which includes features like variable rate shading and mesh shaders, while the FirePro only supports DirectX 12 (11_1).

The process node difference is stark: 7 nm versus 28 nm. This allows the RX 6600S to pack 11,060 million transistors into a 237 mm² die, achieving a transistor density of 46.7M per mm². The FirePro W5000 has 2,800 million transistors on a 212 mm² die, with a density of only 13.2M per mm². This four-fold increase in density is a primary driver of the RX 6600S’s massive compute advantage.

The FP32 performance figures illustrate the architectural leap. The RX 6600S delivers 7.168 TFLOPS of FP32 compute, while the FirePro W5000 delivers 1,267.2 GFLOPS (1.267 TFLOPS). The RX 6600S also supports FP16 at 14.34 TFLOPS (2:1 ratio), while the FirePro has no listed FP16 capability. The pixel and texture rates follow suit: the RX 6600S achieves 128.0 GPixel/s and 224.0 GTexel/s, versus the FirePro’s 26.40 GPixel/s and 39.60 GTexel/s.

API support also differs. The RX 6600S supports Vulkan 1.4, while the FirePro supports Vulkan 1.2.170. Both support OpenGL 4.6. The RX 6600S’s support for the latest API revisions ensures compatibility with modern software, whereas the FirePro is limited to older API versions. The RX 6600S was released in January 2022, while the FirePro was released in August 2012, a gap of nearly a decade that is fully reflected in their architectural capabilities.