AMD Radeon 760M vs AMD Radeon HD 6950 Comparison

The Verdict

The AMD Radeon 760M is the clear winner in raw compute performance, but the decision between these two is not straightforward. The data shows the 760M delivers over 3.2x the OpenCL score of the HD 6950, making it the obvious choice for anyone prioritizing compute workloads or modern API support. However, the HD 6950 still holds relevance in legacy DirectX 11 scenarios and offers dedicated GDDR5 memory with fixed bandwidth, which can be advantageous in specific use cases. For a new build, the 760M is the only rational choice—it is an active product with modern architecture, far lower power draw, and superior raw numbers. The HD 6950 is end-of-life, a 2010-era part, and should only be considered by someone maintaining an older system or seeking a specific legacy feature set.

Architecture Differences

The architectural gap between these two GPUs is generational. The HD 6950 uses the Cayman chip built on TeraScale 3 architecture, fabricated on a 40 nm process at TSMC. It packs 2,640 million transistors into a 389 mm² die, yielding a transistor density of 6.8M per mm². The 760M, in contrast, uses the Phoenix chip based on RDNA 3.0, built on a 4 nm process—also at TSMC—with 25,390 million transistors in a 178 mm² die, achieving a density of 142.6M per mm². That is a density difference of over 20x, reflecting the massive process node advancement.

The memory subsystems could not be more different. The HD 6950 has 2 GB of dedicated GDDR5 on a 256-bit bus, delivering 160.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The 760M uses System Shared memory with System Dependent bandwidth, meaning its performance is tied to the host system's RAM configuration. The 760M compensates with a boost clock of 2599 MHz versus the HD 6950's memory clock of 1250 MHz (5 Gbps effective), but the shared memory architecture is a fundamental constraint.

The feature sets diverge sharply. The 760M supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4, while the HD 6950 maxes out at DirectX 11.2 (11_0) and OpenGL 4.4 with no Vulkan support. The 760M also brings 8 ray tracing cores, a feature entirely absent on the HD 6950. The HD 6950 has 1408 shading units, 88 TMUs, and 32 ROPs, while the 760M has 512 shading units, 32 TMUs, and 16 ROPs—but the 760M's higher clocks and newer architecture more than compensate in raw throughput.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The only direct head-to-head benchmark available is Geekbench OpenCL, and the result is decisive. The 760M scores 20,255 against the HD 6950's 6,210, a delta of -69.3% for the older card. That means the 760M is approximately 3.26x faster in OpenCL compute. This is not a marginal win; it is a generational gap made visible in a single number.

The HD 6950's nearest rivals in the database include the AMD FirePro W600 (6,223, -0.2%), the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti SUPER AD102 (6,270, -0.9%), and the NVIDIA Quadro K620 (6,282, -1.1%). These deltas are all within 1.1%, placing the HD 6950 in a tight cluster of older and mid-range parts. The 760M's nearest rivals include the AMD Radeon RX 6400 (6,001, +0.3%), NVIDIA GeForce GTX 770M (6,000, +0.3%), and NVIDIA Quadro P2000 (6,049, -0.5%). The 760M's average benchmark score of 6,019 is slightly below the HD 6950's 6,210, but that average includes a mix of tests where the 760M's integrated nature and shared memory hurt its standing.

The 760M's individual benchmark suite shows a split personality. It scores 30,336 in Geekbench Vulkan, 5,310 in Passmark G3D, and 2,840 in Passmark GPU Compute. But its Passmark DirectX scores are low—19 in DX10, 52 in DX11, 25 in DX12, and 65 in DX9. The HD 6950, with its older architecture, likely performs relatively better in legacy DirectX workloads, though no direct comparison is available in the data.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has better raw compute performance?

A: The AMD Radeon 760M dominates. It scores 20,255 in Geekbench OpenCL versus 6,210 for the HD 6950, a 69.3% lead.

Q: Does the HD 6950 have any advantage in memory bandwidth?

A: Yes. The HD 6950 has 2 GB of dedicated GDDR5 on a 256-bit bus with 160.0 GB/s bandwidth. The 760M relies on System Shared memory with System Dependent bandwidth, which varies with the host system.

Q: Can the HD 6950 support modern APIs?

A: No. It supports DirectX 11.2 (11_0) and OpenGL 4.4, with no Vulkan support. The 760M supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4.

Q: Is the 760M a discrete GPU?

A: No. It is an integrated graphics processor (IGP) with a 15 W TDP, no power connectors, and motherboard-dependent display outputs. The HD 6950 is a dual-slot discrete card with a 200 W TDP and 2x 6-pin power connectors.

Q: Which GPU has ray tracing support?

A: Only the 760M. It includes 8 ray tracing cores, while the HD 6950 has none.

Q: What is the production status of each?

A: The HD 6950 is end-of-life, released in December 2010. The 760M is active, released in January 2024.

Where Each One Wins

The AMD Radeon 760M wins decisively in compute-heavy workloads. Its 20,255 OpenCL score and 30,336 Vulkan score make it the clear choice for GPGPU tasks, modern game engines that leverage DirectX 12 Ultimate, and any workload that can use ray tracing. Its 5.323 TFLOPS FP32 and 5.323 TFLOPS FP16 (1:1) performance are more than double the HD 6950's 2.253 TFLOPS FP32. The 760M also wins on efficiency—15 W TDP versus 200 W—and on physical footprint, being an IGP with no slot width, while the HD 6950 requires a dual-slot 286 mm card. The 760M's higher pixel rate (41.58 GPixel/s vs 25.60 GPixel/s) and texture rate (83.17 GTexel/s vs 70.40 GTexel/s) further cement its performance lead.

The AMD Radeon HD 6950 wins in scenarios where dedicated memory matters. Its 2 GB of GDDR5 on a 256-bit bus with fixed 160.0 GB/s bandwidth provides predictable performance, whereas the 760M's shared memory performance is system-dependent and can bottleneck in memory-intensive applications. The HD 6950 also has more shading units (1408 vs 512), more TMUs (88 vs 32), and more ROPs (32 vs 16), which could give it an edge in certain legacy DirectX 11 workloads where its architecture is more familiar to older game engines. Its 2x DVI, 1x HDMI 1.4a, and 2x mini-DisplayPort 1.2 outputs are fixed and known, while the 760M's outputs are motherboard-dependent. For anyone running an older system with PCIe 2.0 and needing a dedicated card with fixed display outputs, the HD 6950 remains functional, but it is a niche use case.

Specification Differences

| Specification | AMD Radeon HD 6950 | AMD Radeon 760M |

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

| Architecture | TeraScale 3 | RDNA 3.0 |

| Process Node | 40 nm | 4 nm |

| Transistors | 2,640 million | 25,390 million |

| Die Size | 389 mm² | 178 mm² |

| Transistor Density | 6.8M / mm² | 142.6M / mm² |

| Base Clock | N/A | 800 MHz |

| Boost Clock | N/A | 2599 MHz |

| Memory Clock | 1250 MHz (5 Gbps effective) | System Shared |

| Memory Size | 2 GB GDDR5 | System Shared |

| Memory Bus Width | 256 bit | System Shared |

| Memory Bandwidth | 160.0 GB/s | System Dependent |

| Shading Units | 1408 | 512 |

| TMUs | 88 | 32 |

| ROPs | 32 | 16 |

| Ray Tracing Cores | N/A | 8 |

| Pixel Rate | 25.60 GPixel/s | 41.58 GPixel/s |

| Texture Rate | 70.40 GTexel/s | 83.17 GTexel/s |

| FP32 | 2.253 TFLOPS | 5.323 TFLOPS |

| FP16 | N/A | 5.323 TFLOPS (1:1) |

| TDP | 200 W | 15 W |

| Slot Width | Dual-slot | IGP |

| Power Connectors | 2x 6-pin | None |

| Suggested PSU | 550 W | N/A |

| Bus Interface | PCIe 2.0 x16 | PCIe 4.0 x8 |

| DirectX | 11.2 (11_0) | 12 Ultimate (12_2) |

| OpenGL | 4.4 | 4.6 |

| Vulkan | N/A | 1.4 |

| Display Outputs | 2x DVI, 1x HDMI 1.4a, 2x mini-DisplayPort 1.2 | Motherboard Dependent |

| Dimensions | 286 mm (11.3 in) long, 126 mm (5 in) high, 42 mm (1.7 in) wide | N/A |

| Production Status | End-of-life | Active |

| Release Date | December 2010 | January 2024 |

| Launch MSRP | 299 USD | N/A |