AMD Instinct MI100 vs AMD Radeon Vega Frontier Edition Comparison

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The only directly comparable benchmark recorded in the database is Geekbench OpenCL, and the result is decisive. The AMD Instinct MI100 scores 139,035 points, while the AMD Radeon Vega Frontier Edition scores 76,111 points. That gives the MI100 a lead of 82.7%, a massive gap that reflects fundamental architectural differences rather than minor clock adjustments.

To put the MI100's score in context, it sits at the 96th percentile among all GPUs tracked in the database. Its nearest rivals are the NVIDIA Tesla V100 PCIe 16 GB at 138,063 points (just 0.7% behind), the NVIDIA Tesla V100 SXM2 32 GB at 137,731 points (0.9% behind), the AMD Radeon PRO V620 at 136,472 points (1.9% behind), and the AMD Radeon Pro W6800X Duo at 135,774 points (2.4% behind). The MI100 is the leader of this group, but the margins are narrow, all within 2.4 percentage points. This indicates that the MI100 sits in a performance tier where compute cards from both vendors are tightly clustered.

The Radeon Vega Frontier Edition, by contrast, sits at the 91st percentile with an average benchmark score of 73,370 across all recorded tests. Its nearest rivals are the AMD Radeon Pro Vega 64 at 72,379 points (1.4% behind the Frontier Edition's average score, which means the Frontier Edition leads by 1.4%), the NVIDIA TITAN X Pascal at 72,098 points (1.8% behind), the AMD Radeon RX 6650M at 71,768 points (2.2% behind), and the AMD Radeon RX 6600 LE at 70,829 points (3.6% behind). The Frontier Edition leads all of these cards by margins ranging from 1.4% to 3.6%, a much wider spread than what surrounds the MI100. Data shows the Frontier Edition is a strong performer in its own tier, but that tier is vastly lower than the MI100's.

The head-to-head benchmark table lists only one test, Geekbench OpenCL, and the MI100 wins it outright. The Radeon Vega Frontier Edition has no recorded wins in this comparison, though it does have additional benchmark entries for Geekbench Metal at 72,061 points and Geekbench Vulkan at 71,937 points, tests for which the MI100 has no recorded scores. The MI100's average benchmark score is 139,035, which is identical to its single OpenCL result, while the Frontier Edition's average of 73,370 reflects the combination of its three recorded tests.

Architecture Differences

The MI100 is built on the CDNA 1.0 architecture using the Arcturus chip, while the Radeon Vega Frontier Edition uses the GCN 5.0 architecture with the Vega 10 chip. This is a generational shift: the MI100 belongs to the Instinct (MIx) generation, whereas the Frontier Edition belongs to the Radeon Pro Vega (Vega Series) generation. The MI100's predecessor is listed as Radeon Instinct, while the Frontier Edition's predecessor is Radeon Pro Polaris and its successor is Radeon Pro Navi.

Manufacturing processes differ substantially. The MI100 uses a 7 nm process from TSMC, while the Frontier Edition uses a 14 nm process from GlobalFoundries. Transistor counts reflect this: the MI100 packs 25,600 million transistors on a 750 mm² die, giving a transistor density of 34.1 million transistors per mm². The Frontier Edition contains 12,500 million transistors on a 495 mm² die, with a density of 25.3 million per mm². The MI100 more than doubles the transistor count and achieves higher density despite the larger die.

Compute resources scale accordingly. The MI100 has 7,680 shading units, 480 texture mapping units, and 64 ROPs. The Frontier Edition has 4,096 shading units, 256 TMUs, and 64 ROPs. The MI100 therefore has 87.5% more shading units and 87.5% more TMUs, while ROP count stays identical. Pixel rates tell a nuanced story: the Frontier Edition achieves 102.4 GPixel/s, which is higher than the MI100's 96.13 GPixel/s, likely due to the Frontier Edition's higher boost clock. Texture rates, however, favor the MI100 at 721.0 GTexel/s versus 409.6 GTexel/s, a 76% advantage.

Memory configurations are also generationally different. The MI100 offers 32 GB of HBM2 on a 4096-bit bus with 1.23 TB/s bandwidth. The Frontier Edition offers 16 GB of HBM2 on a 2048-bit bus with 483.8 GB/s bandwidth. The MI100 has quadruple the bus width and roughly 2.5 times the bandwidth. Memory clocks differ too: the MI100 runs at 1200 MHz with 2.4 Gbps effective, while the Frontier Edition runs at 945 MHz with 1890 Mbps effective.

Clock speeds show an interesting reversal. The Frontier Edition has a higher base clock at 1382 MHz and a higher boost clock at 780 MHz higher than the MI100's boost of 1502 MHz. The MI100 compensates with its massive shader count and memory bandwidth, but its lower clocks contribute to reduced pixel rate despite the architectural advantages.

Display outputs and API support differ completely. The MI100 has no display outputs and lists DirectX, OpenGL, and Vulkan as N/A. The Frontier Edition includes 1x HDMI 2.0b and 3x DisplayPort 1.4a, and supports DirectX 12 (12_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.3. The MI100 is a compute-only accelerator, while the Frontier Edition retains graphics capabilities.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU wins in Geekbench OpenCL performance?

A: The AMD Instinct MI100 scores 139,035 points versus the Radeon Vega Frontier Edition's 76,111 points, a lead of 82.7%.

Q: How does the MI100 compare to NVIDIA Tesla V100 variants?

A: The MI100 scores 139,035, which is 0.7% ahead of the Tesla V100 PCIe 16 GB at 138,063 and 0.9% ahead of the Tesla V100 SXM2 32 GB at 137,731.

Q: What memory capacities and bandwidths do these cards offer?

A: The MI100 has 32 GB of HBM2 with 1.23 TB/s bandwidth on a 4096-bit bus. The Frontier Edition has 16 GB of HBM2 with 483.8 GB/s on a 2048-bit bus.

Q: Does the Frontier Edition have any benchmark scores in tests the MI100 lacks?

A: Yes, the Frontier Edition has Geekbench Metal at 72,061 points and Geekbench Vulkan at 71,937 points. The MI100 has no recorded scores for those tests.

Q: Which card has higher clock speeds?

A: The Frontier Edition has a base clock of 1382 MHz and a boost clock of 1600 MHz. The MI100 has a base clock of 1000 MHz and a boost clock of 1502 MHz.

Q: Are both cards still in production?

A: No, both are end-of-life products. The MI100 released on 2020-11-15, while the Frontier Edition released on 2017-06-26.

Specification Differences

| Specification | AMD Instinct MI100 | AMD Radeon Vega Frontier Edition |

|---|---|---|

| Architecture | CDNA 1.0 | GCN 5.0 |

| Chip | Arcturus | Vega 10 |

| Generation | Instinct (MIx) | Radeon Pro Vega (Vega Series) |

| Process Node | 7 nm (TSMC) | 14 nm (GlobalFoundries) |

| Transistors | 25,600 million | 12,500 million |

| Die Size | 750 mm² | 495 mm² |

| Transistor Density | 34.1M / mm² | 25.3M / mm² |

| Base Clock | 1000 MHz | 1382 MHz |

| Boost Clock | 1502 MHz | 1600 MHz |

| Memory Clock | 1200 MHz 2.4 Gbps effective | 945 MHz 1890 Mbps effective |

| Memory Size | 32 GB | 16 GB |

| Memory Bus Width | 4096 bit | 2048 bit |

| Memory Bandwidth | 1.23 TB/s | 483.8 GB/s |

| Shading Units | 7680 | 4096 |

| TMUs | 480 | 256 |

| Pixel Rate | 96.13 GPixel/s | 102.4 GPixel/s |

| Texture Rate | 721.0 GTexel/s | 409.6 GTexel/s |

| FP32 Compute Power | 23.07 TFLOPS | 13.11 TFLOPS |

| FP16 Compute Power | 46.14 TFLOPS (2:1) | 26.21 TFLOPS (2:1) |

| Bus Interface | PCIe 4.0 x16 | PCIe 3.0 x16 |

| Display Outputs | No outputs | 1x HDMI 2.0b, 3x DisplayPort 1.4a |

| DirectX Support | N/A | 12 (12_1) |

| OpenGL Support | N/A | 4.6 |

| Vulkan Support | N/A | 1.3 |

| Release Date | 2020-11-15 | 2017-06-26 |

| Predecessor | Radeon Instinct | Radeon Pro Polaris |

| Successor | None listed | Radeon Pro Navi |

| Launch MSRP | None listed | 999 USD |

Dimensions are identical: both are 267 mm (10.5 inches) long and 111 mm (4.4 inches) tall, dual-slot cards with 2x 8-pin power connectors and a recommended 700 W PSU. TDP is also identical at 300 W for both.

The Verdict

The data points to a clear performance hierarchy. The MI100 leads the Frontier Edition by 82.7% in the only shared benchmark, Geekbench OpenCL. Its score of 139,035 places it at the 96th percentile, while the Frontier Edition's average of 73,370 places it at the 91st percentile. The MI100 also leads its nearest rivals, the Tesla V100 variants, by margins of 0.7% and 0.9%, confirming it competes at the high end of compute accelerators.

The Frontier Edition is not without merits. It has higher base and boost clocks, a higher pixel rate, and supports display outputs with full graphics API support. Its Geekbench Metal score of 72,061 and Vulkan score of 71,937 show it handles multiple workloads. However, in the compute metric that both cards share, the MI100 is overwhelmingly faster.

The MI100 is the choice for raw compute throughput. It has 87.5% more shading units, 87.5% more TMUs, double the memory, more than double the bandwidth, and a 76% higher texture rate. Its FP32 output of 23.07 TFLOPS versus 13.11 TFLOPS for the Frontier Edition reinforces this. The Frontier Edition is the choice for users who need graphics output, API compatibility, or who value its higher clock speeds.

Where Each One Wins

The AMD Instinct MI100 wins in every recorded head-to-head benchmark result, and its architectural advantages point to several specific strengths. Compute-heavy workloads benefit from the 23.07 TFLOPS FP32 and 46.14 TFLOPS FP16 output. Memory-bound tasks benefit from 1.23 TB/s bandwidth, which is roughly 2.5 times the Frontier Edition's 483.8 GB/s. Texture-heavy operations gain from the 721.0 GTexel/s rate. The 7 nm process with 25,600 million transistors and 34.1M per mm² density indicates a modern, dense design suited to sustained compute. The 32 GB memory capacity allows larger datasets to reside on-card, and the PCIe 4.0 x16 interface doubles the bus bandwidth available to the Frontier Edition's PCIe 3.0 x16.

The AMD Radeon Vega Frontier Edition wins where specific metrics are considered. Its boost clock of 1600 MHz exceeds the MI100's 1502 MHz, and its base clock of 1382 MHz is substantially higher than 1000 MHz. Its pixel rate of 102.4 GPixel/s beats the MI100's 96.13 GPixel/s. It is the only one of the two with display outputs, offering 1x HDMI 2.0b and 3x DisplayPort 1.4a, which makes it usable in workstation setups that require visual output. It supports DirectX 12 (12_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.3, whereas the MI100 lists all three as N/A. The Frontier Edition also has recorded Metal and Vulkan benchmark scores, 72,061 and 71,937 respectively, showing it can handle those APIs, and its 16 GB memory capacity, while half the MI100's, remains substantial. Its 14 nm process and 12,500 million transistor count make it the less complex, lower-transistor design, which may appeal to those seeking simpler hardware, though no thermal or power data distinguishes them: both are 300 W with the same connector and PSU requirements.