AMD FirePro W5000 vs NVIDIA GeForce GTX 760 Comparison

The AMD FirePro W5000 and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 760 occupy nearly the same performance percentile, yet serve entirely different purposes based on their benchmark scores and architectural traits. The FirePro W5000, a professional workstation card from 2012, delivers a Geekbench OpenCL score of 9,803, placing it at the 47th percentile of all GPUs, while the GTX 760, a consumer gaming card from 2013, achieves 11,299 in the same test, landing at the 46th percentile. The head-to-head data shows the GTX 760 winning the sole OpenCL benchmark by 13.2%, a significant margin. However, the FirePro W5000’s nearest rivals include the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 with an average score of 9,780 (deltaPct 0.2%) and the Quadro M2000M at 9,832 (deltaPct -0.3%), indicating it trades blows with much newer hardware. Conversely, the GTX 760’s rivals include the GTX TITAN BLACK at 9,474 (deltaPct -0.2%) and the Radeon R7 M380 at 9,313 (deltaPct 1.6%), showing a tighter cluster around its lower average. The data reveals a clear split: the GTX 760 wins on raw compute speed, but the FirePro W5000 maintains competitive standing against a different class of professional and high-end parts.

The Verdict

For pure OpenCL compute performance, the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 760 is the definitive winner. Its score of 11,299 in geekbench_opencl outpaces the FirePro W5000’s 9,803 by 13.2%, a decisive margin that holds across the single head-to-head benchmark. The GTX 760 also demonstrates versatility with additional benchmark results: 4,524 in geekbench_metal and 12,551 in geekbench_vulkan, showcasing multi-API capability that the FirePro W5000 lacks entirely in the data. However, the FirePro W5000’s average benchmark score of 9,803 is actually higher than the GTX 760’s average of 9,458, despite losing the direct comparison. This paradox stems from the rivals each card faces: the FirePro sits within 0.4% of the Quadro 6000 (9,846) and within 0.2% of the GTX 1070 (9,780), while the GTX 760 leads its nearest rival, the GTX TITAN BLACK (9,474), by only 0.2%. The data suggests the FirePro W5000 is optimized for consistent professional workloads where absolute speed is less critical than stability and precision, while the GTX 760 is built for raw throughput in gaming and general compute. The FirePro W5000’s 75 W TDP and single-slot design with no power connectors make it ideal for dense workstation environments, whereas the GTX 760’s 170 W TDP, dual-slot footprint, and dual 6-pin connectors target a desktop gaming rig. The GTX 760 also offers a broader display output set with 2x DVI, 1x HDMI 1.4a, and 1x DisplayPort 1.2, versus the FirePro’s 1x DVI and 2x DisplayPort 1.2. For professionals needing Vulkan support, the GTX 760’s API version 1.2.175 edges out the FirePro’s 1.2.170, though both support DirectX 12 and OpenGL 4.6. The verdict is clear: choose the GTX 760 for faster compute and gaming features, or the FirePro W5000 for its lower power draw, smaller physical footprint, and professional-grade positioning.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU is faster in the Geekbench OpenCL benchmark?

A: The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 760 scored 11,299 in geekbench_opencl, which is 13.2% higher than the AMD FirePro W5000’s score of 9,803. This is the only head-to-head benchmark listed, and the GTX 760 wins it outright.

Q: How does the FirePro W5000 compare to its closest rivals?

A: The FirePro W5000’s average benchmark score of 9,803 places it within 0.2% of the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 (9,780) and within 0.3% of the NVIDIA Quadro M2000M (9,832). It also trails the Quadro 6000 (9,846) by only 0.4% and leads the Tesla M10 (9,724) by 0.8%.

Q: Does the GTX 760 support more graphics APIs than the FirePro W5000?

A: Yes. The GTX 760 has benchmark results for geekbench_metal (4,524), geekbench_opencl (11,299), and geekbench_vulkan (12,551), while the FirePro W5000 only has a geekbench_opencl result. In terms of API versions, the GTX 760 supports Vulkan 1.2.175 versus the FirePro’s 1.2.170, and both support DirectX 12 and OpenGL 4.6.

Q: What are the power consumption differences between the two cards?

A: The FirePro W5000 has a TDP of 75 W and requires no power connectors, with a suggested PSU of 250 W. The GTX 760 has a TDP of 170 W, requires 2x 6-pin power connectors, and needs a suggested PSU of 450 W. This makes the FirePro significantly more power-efficient on paper.

Q: Which card has a higher transistor count and die size?

A: The GTX 760 uses the GK104 chip with 3,540 million transistors on a 294 mm² die, while the FirePro W5000 uses the Pitcairn chip with 2,800 million transistors on a 212 mm² die. Despite the larger chip, the GTX 760 has a lower transistor density of 12.0M/mm² versus the FirePro’s 13.2M/mm².

Q: Are both cards still in production?

A: No, both cards are marked as end-of-life in the data. The FirePro W5000 was released on 2012-08-06 and the GTX 760 on 2013-06-24.

Architecture Differences

The FirePro W5000 is built on AMD’s GCN 1.0 architecture using the Pitcairn chip, while the GTX 760 uses NVIDIA’s Kepler architecture with the GK104 chip. Both are fabricated on a 28 nm process at TSMC, but the GTX 760 packs significantly more transistors: 3,540 million versus 2,800 million, on a larger die of 294 mm² compared to 212 mm². Interestingly, the FirePro W5000 has a higher transistor density at 13.2M/mm² versus the GTX 760’s 12.0M/mm², suggesting a more tightly packed design despite fewer overall transistors. The compute configurations differ substantially: the FirePro has 768 shading units, 48 TMUs, and 32 ROPs, while the GTX 760 has 1,152 shading units, 96 TMUs, and 32 ROPs. This means the GTX 760 has 50% more shading units and double the texture units, directly explaining its higher texture rate of 99.07 GTexel/s versus the FirePro’s 39.60 GTexel/s. However, the FirePro’s pixel rate of 26.40 GPixel/s actually exceeds the GTX 760’s 24.77 GPixel/s, despite both having 32 ROPs, indicating different clock behavior. The memory subsystems are similar on the surface—both use 2 GB GDDR5 on a 256-bit bus—but the GTX 760’s memory clock of 1502 MHz (6 Gbps effective) yields 192.3 GB/s bandwidth versus the FirePro’s 800 MHz (3.2 Gbps effective) for 102.4 GB/s. The GTX 760 also has explicit base and boost clocks of 980 MHz and 1032 MHz, while the FirePro lists no base or boost clock in the data, only a memory clock. For APIs, the FirePro supports DirectX 12 (11_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.2.170, while the GTX 760 supports DirectX 12 (11_0), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.2.175. The FirePro’s higher DirectX feature level (11_1 versus 11_0) is notable, while the GTX 760 has a newer Vulkan version.

Specification Differences

The most striking specification gap is in power: the FirePro W5000 draws 75 W with no power connectors and a 250 W suggested PSU, while the GTX 760 draws 170 W, needs 2x 6-pin connectors, and suggests a 450 W PSU. Physical dimensions also differ: the FirePro is a single-slot card measuring 183 mm (7.2 inches) in length and 111 mm (4.4 inches) in height, whereas the GTX 760 is a dual-slot card at 241 mm (9.5 inches) long with no height listed. The GTX 760 has more display outputs—2x DVI, 1x HDMI 1.4a, and 1x DisplayPort 1.2—versus the FirePro’s 1x DVI and 2x DisplayPort 1.2. Compute resources favor the GTX 760: 1,152 shading units versus 768, 96 TMUs versus 48, and identical 32 ROPs. Clock speeds show the GTX 760 with base and boost clocks (980 MHz and 1032 MHz), while the FirePro lists no base or boost. Memory bandwidth heavily favors the GTX 760 at 192.3 GB/s versus 102.4 GB/s, driven by the memory clock difference of 1502 MHz versus 800 MHz. Floating-point performance follows suit: the GTX 760 delivers 2.378 TFLOPS FP32 versus the FirePro’s 1,267.2 GFLOPS. However, the FirePro has a higher pixel rate at 26.40 GPixel/s versus 24.77 GPixel/s, and a lower texture rate at 39.60 GTexel/s versus 99.07 GTexel/s. The FirePro’s launch MSRP is 599 USD, while the GTX 760’s is 249 USD. Production status is end-of-life for both, with release dates of 2012-08-06 for the FirePro and 2013-06-24 for the GTX 760. The FirePro succeeds the FirePro Terascale and is succeeded by Radeon Pro Polaris, while the GTX 760 succeeds GeForce 600 and is succeeded by GeForce 900.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The only direct benchmark comparison in the data is geekbench_opencl, where the GTX 760 scores 11,299 against the FirePro W5000’s 9,803, a deltaPct of -13.2% from the FirePro’s perspective. This 1,496-point gap is substantial and reflects the GTX 760’s architectural advantages: its 1,152 shading units and 96 TMUs deliver more parallel throughput, and its 192.3 GB/s memory bandwidth provides 88% more data movement capacity than the FirePro’s 102.4 GB/s. The GTX 760 also has higher FP32 performance at 2.378 TFLOPS versus 1,267.2 GFLOPS, nearly doubling the compute ceiling. However, the FirePro W5000’s average benchmark score of 9,803 is higher than the GTX 760’s average of 9,458, which is dragged down by its additional benchmark results—the 4,524 metal score and 12,551 Vulkan score. The GTX 760’s Vulkan score of 12,551 is its strongest result, exceeding its OpenCL score by 11.1%, while its Metal score is less than half of its OpenCL score. The FirePro’s single benchmark result of 9,803 puts it at the 47th percentile versus the GTX 760’s 46th percentile, a negligible difference. In terms of rival comparisons, the FirePro’s nearest rival is the Quadro 6000 at 9,846 (deltaPct -0.4%), meaning the FirePro is within 0.4% of that professional card, while the GTX 760’s nearest rival is the GTX TITAN BLACK at 9,474 (deltaPct -0.2%), showing it is essentially tied with a much higher-tier card. The FirePro leads its closest rival, the GTX 1070, by 0.2%, while the GTX 760 leads its closest rival by the same margin. The data indicates that while the GTX 760 wins the direct matchup decisively, the FirePro W5000 holds its own against a different competitive set, suggesting its professional optimization yields consistent scores across varied workloads.