AMD Radeon HD 6850 X2 vs NVIDIA Quadro K2000 Comparison

The AMD Radeon HD 6850 X2 and NVIDIA Quadro K2000 are both end-of-life graphics cards that land in the same performance tier, yet they achieve parity through wildly different design philosophies. The benchmark data places them within a fraction of a percent of each other on average, with the Quadro K2000 holding a narrow lead in the single head-to-head test. This is a classic case where the numbers tell a story of two very different engineering approaches converging on a similar outcome.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The only direct comparison available is the Geekbench OpenCL test, and the results are remarkably close. The NVIDIA Quadro K2000 scores 4071 points, while the AMD Radeon HD 6850 X2 trails slightly with 3977 points. This gives the Quadro a 2.3% advantage in this workload. That margin is small enough to be considered a statistical tie in real-world terms, but it is a clear win for the NVIDIA card in the data.

Looking at the broader benchmark picture, the average scores reinforce this near-parity. The Quadro K2000 averages 3964 points across all its tested workloads, while the Radeon HD 6850 X2 averages 3977 points from its single OpenCL result. Interestingly, the Radeon's single score is actually higher than the Quadro's average score by 13 points, or 0.3%. This suggests that if the Radeon had been tested in more scenarios, the overall outcome could easily have flipped in its favor.

The nearest-rival data further contextualizes these numbers. The Quadro K2000's closest competitor is the NVIDIA GeForce 830M, which trails by just 0.2% with a score of 3957. The AMD Radeon R5 M420 is right behind at 3956 points, a 0.2% gap. The GeForce GT 745M rounds out the group at 3953 points, 0.3% behind. For the Radeon HD 6850 X2, its nearest rival is the Quadro K2000 itself, with a 0.3% delta, followed by the same trio of mobile chips at 0.5-0.6% deltas. This clustering of four cards within a 24-point spread tells us that this performance tier is extremely crowded, and the differences between any of these products are essentially negligible.

Architecture Differences

The two cards represent completely different eras of GPU design. The AMD Radeon HD 6850 X2 is built on the Barts chip using the TeraScale 2 architecture, belonging to the Northern Islands generation (HD 6800). It is fabricated on a 40 nm process at TSMC, packing 1,700 million transistors into a 255 mm² die. This yields a transistor density of 6.7 million per square millimeter. The NVIDIA Quadro K2000, in contrast, uses the GK107 chip with the Kepler architecture from the Quadro Kepler generation (Kx000). It benefits from a more advanced 28 nm process, also from TSMC, but packs fewer transistors—1,270 million—into a much smaller 118 mm² die. This gives it a significantly higher transistor density of 10.8 million per square millimeter.

The compute configurations diverge sharply. The Radeon HD 6850 X2 fields 960 shading units, 48 texture mapping units, and 32 ROPs. Its theoretical peak performance reaches 1.536 TFLOPS for FP32 calculations, with pixel and texture rates of 25.60 GPixel/s and 38.40 GTexel/s respectively. The Quadro K2000 is far more modest in raw hardware: 384 shading units, 32 TMUs, and just 16 ROPs. Its FP32 output is 732.7 GFLOPS, roughly half of the Radeon's, with pixel and texture rates of 7.632 GPixel/s and 30.53 GTexel/s. Despite having half the shading units and half the FP32 throughput, the Quadro manages to keep pace in the OpenCL test, which points to architectural efficiency rather than brute force.

Memory configurations also tell a tale of different priorities. Both cards ship with 2 GB of GDDR5, but the Radeon uses a 256-bit bus delivering 134.4 GB/s of bandwidth, while the Quadro is limited to a 128-bit bus and 64.00 GB/s. The Radeon's memory clock is 1050 MHz (4.2 Gbps effective), whereas the Quadro runs at 1000 MHz (4 Gbps effective). Again, the Quadro compensates for its narrower, slower memory path with better per-clock efficiency in the tested workload.

Where Each One Wins

The Quadro K2000 wins the only head-to-head benchmark, which suggests it has an edge in compute-oriented OpenCL tasks. However, the Radeon HD 6850 X2 shows a higher peak score in its single test, indicating it might perform better in specific OpenCL scenarios that favor its wider memory bus and greater shading unit count. The data does not support a definitive split across gaming, workstation, or compute use cases, as only one benchmark is shared.

The Quadro's additional benchmark results offer clues about its strengths. It scores 4191 in Geekbench Vulkan and 3630 in Geekbench Metal, which are not matched by the Radeon. These results suggest the Quadro has broader API support and may handle newer compute interfaces more gracefully. The Radeon, with no Vulkan or Metal scores listed, appears limited to OpenCL in this dataset, potentially restricting its utility in modern applications that rely on those APIs.

The power and physical profiles are starkly different. The Radeon HD 6850 X2 is a dual-slot card with a 254 W TDP, requiring two 8-pin power connectors and a 600 W suggested power supply. The Quadro K2000 is a single-slot card with a 51 W TDP, requiring no external power connectors and only a 250 W suggested PSU. For systems where power delivery and physical space are constrained, the Quadro is the obvious choice. For raw thermal headroom and expandability, the Radeon demands a serious power supply but offers nothing more in the benchmark data.

FAQ

Q: Which card has a higher average benchmark score?

A: The AMD Radeon HD 6850 X2 has an average benchmark score of 3977, while the NVIDIA Quadro K2000 averages 3964. The Radeon leads by 13 points, or 0.3%.

Q: What is the margin of victory in the head-to-head OpenCL test?

A: The NVIDIA Quadro K2000 wins the Geekbench OpenCL test with a score of 4071 versus the Radeon's 3977, a 2.3% difference.

Q: How do the power requirements compare?

A: The Radeon HD 6850 X2 has a TDP of 254 W and needs two 8-pin connectors with a 600 W suggested PSU. The Quadro K2000 has a TDP of 51 W, requires no power connectors, and only needs a 250 W suggested PSU.

Q: What are the memory bandwidth differences?

A: The Radeon HD 6850 X2 offers 134.4 GB/s over a 256-bit bus, while the Quadro K2000 provides 64.00 GB/s over a 128-bit bus. The Radeon has more than double the bandwidth.

Q: Do both cards support the same APIs?

A: No. The Radeon supports DirectX 11.2 (11_0) and OpenGL 4.4. The Quadro supports DirectX 12 (11_0), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.2.175.

Q: What is the release date for each card?

A: The AMD Radeon HD 6850 X2 was released on September 18, 2011. The NVIDIA Quadro K2000 was released on February 28, 2013.

The Verdict

The data shows two cards that are effectively interchangeable in raw OpenCL performance, but the choice between them depends entirely on system constraints and API requirements. The NVIDIA Quadro K2000 is the safer pick for a wide range of environments: it is single-slot, sips power at 51 W, requires no external connectors, and offers Vulkan support alongside a higher OpenCL score. It also has a documented launch MSRP of 599 USD, though the Radeon's pricing is not listed.

The AMD Radeon HD 6850 X2 is the card for a system that can accommodate its dual-slot size and 254 W TDP. It offers double the memory bandwidth and nearly double the FP32 throughput, but these advantages did not translate into a benchmark win. Its 3977 OpenCL score is higher than the Quadro's average score of 3964, but the Quadro's best OpenCL result is 4071. Users prioritizing raw compute density on paper might lean toward the Radeon, but the actual test data favors the Quadro.

For professional environments requiring reliability in a low-power chassis, the Quadro K2000 is the clear choice. For a system with a beefy PSU and space for a long dual-slot card, the Radeon HD 6850 X2 offers comparable performance with a different set of trade-offs. Neither card holds a decisive edge, so the deciding factor is the rest of the system, not the GPU itself.

Specification Differences

| Specification | AMD Radeon HD 6850 X2 | NVIDIA Quadro K2000 |

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

| Architecture | TeraScale 2 | Kepler |

| Process Node | 40 nm | 28 nm |

| Transistors | 1,700 million | 1,270 million |

| Die Size | 255 mm² | 118 mm² |

| Transistor Density | 6.7M / mm² | 10.8M / mm² |

| Memory Clock | 1050 MHz (4.2 Gbps effective) | 1000 MHz (4 Gbps effective) |

| Memory Bus Width | 256 bit | 128 bit |

| Memory Bandwidth | 134.4 GB/s | 64.00 GB/s |

| Shading Units | 960 | 384 |

| TMUs | 48 | 32 |

| ROPs | 32 | 16 |

| Pixel Rate | 25.60 GPixel/s | 7.632 GPixel/s |

| Texture Rate | 38.40 GTexel/s | 30.53 GTexel/s |

| FP32 Performance | 1.536 TFLOPS | 732.7 GFLOPS |

| TDP | 254 W | 51 W |

| Slot Width | Dual-slot | Single-slot |

| Power Connectors | 2x 8-pin | None |

| Suggested PSU | 600 W | 250 W |

| Display Outputs | 2x DVI, 1x HDMI 1.3a, 1x DisplayPort 1.1 | 1x DVI, 2x DisplayPort 1.2 |

| DirectX Support | 11.2 (11_0) | 12 (11_0) |

| OpenGL Support | 4.4 | 4.6 |

| Vulkan Support | None | 1.2.175 |

| Dimensions | Not listed | 202 mm (8 inches) length, 111 mm (4.4 inches) height |

| Release Date | 2011-09-18 | 2013-02-28 |

| Predecessor | Evergreen | Quadro Fermi |

| Successor | Southern Islands | Quadro Maxwell |