AMD Radeon HD 6950 vs AMD Radeon Pro WX 4100 Comparison

The AMD Radeon Pro WX 4100 and the AMD Radeon HD 6950 represent two distinct eras of AMD GPU design, separated by nearly six years of architectural evolution. The data shows a clear overall winner in the Pro WX 4100, which leads the average benchmark score with 6330 versus 6210 for the HD 6950, a modest 1.9% advantage that belies the significant generational differences between the two cards. The Pro WX 4100 achieves this with a fraction of the power draw and a much smaller physical footprint, while the HD 6950 counters with a wider memory bus and higher raw pixel throughput.

The Verdict

The benchmark results indicate that the AMD Radeon Pro WX 4100 is the superior choice for compute-oriented workloads, as demonstrated by its overwhelming 184.1% lead in the Geekbench OpenCL test (17642 vs 6210). This makes it the clear pick for professionals running OpenCL-accelerated applications, where the newer GCN 4.0 architecture's efficiency and features provide a decisive advantage. The Pro WX 4100 also holds a 37th percentile ranking among all GPUs, compared to the HD 6950's 36th percentile, placing both in the lower-middle tier of overall performance but with the newer card holding a slight edge.

However, the HD 6950 is not without its merits for specific legacy use cases. Its 256-bit memory bus provides 160.0 GB/s of bandwidth versus the Pro WX 4100's 96.00 GB/s, and its higher pixel rate of 25.60 GPixel/s versus 19.22 GPixel/s suggests superior fill-rate-bound performance in older DirectX 11 titles. For users running legacy software that relies on these specific strengths, the HD 6950 could still be a functional, if power-hungry, option. The data suggests the Pro WX 4100 is the better all-around card, but the HD 6950 wins on memory bandwidth and pixel throughput.

Architecture Differences

The two cards are built on fundamentally different architectures. The Pro WX 4100 uses the Baffin chip on the GCN 4.0 architecture, fabricated on a 14 nm process at GlobalFoundries, with a die size of 123 mm² and 3,000 million transistors. In contrast, the HD 6950 uses the Cayman chip on the older TeraScale 3 architecture, built on a 40 nm process at TSMC, with a much larger 389 mm² die containing 2,640 million transistors. This results in a stark difference in transistor density: the Pro WX 4100 packs 24.4M transistors per mm², while the HD 6950 manages only 6.8M per mm².

The architectural generational gap is evident in the feature sets. The Pro WX 4100 supports DirectX 12 (12_0), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.3, while the HD 6950 is limited to DirectX 11.2 (11_0) and OpenGL 4.4, with no Vulkan support at all. The Pro WX 4100 also features a single-slot design with no external power connectors, while the HD 6950 requires a dual-slot cooler and two 6-pin power connectors. The newer card's 50 W TDP is dramatically lower than the HD 6950's 200 W, and the suggested PSU drops from 550 W to 250 W, reflecting the efficiency gains of the 14 nm process.

FAQ

Q: Which card has higher compute performance in OpenCL?

A: The AMD Radeon Pro WX 4100 is significantly faster, scoring 17642 in Geekbench OpenCL compared to the HD 6950's 6210, a 184.1% advantage. This makes the Pro WX 4100 the clear choice for OpenCL-based compute tasks.

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

A: Yes. The HD 6950 has a 256-bit memory bus with 160.0 GB/s bandwidth, while the Pro WX 4100 has a 128-bit bus with 96.00 GB/s. The HD 6950's wider bus provides 66.7% more bandwidth, which can benefit memory-intensive workloads.

Q: What are the API support differences between the two cards?

A: The Pro WX 4100 supports DirectX 12 (12_0), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.3. The HD 6950 only supports DirectX 11.2 (11_0) and OpenGL 4.4, and lacks Vulkan support entirely. This makes the Pro WX 4100 compatible with modern APIs and software.

Q: How do the power requirements compare?

A: The Pro WX 4100 has a 50 W TDP and requires no external power connectors with a 250 W suggested PSU. The HD 6950 has a 200 W TDP, requires two 6-pin power connectors, and needs a 550 W suggested PSU. The Pro WX 4100 is far more power-efficient.

Q: Which card has a higher transistor density?

A: The Pro WX 4100 has a transistor density of 24.4M per mm², significantly higher than the HD 6950's 6.8M per mm². This reflects the Pro WX 4100's more advanced 14 nm manufacturing process versus the HD 6950's 40 nm process.

Specification Differences

| Specification | AMD Radeon Pro WX 4100 | AMD Radeon HD 6950 |

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

| Architecture | GCN 4.0 | TeraScale 3 |

| Process Node | 14 nm | 40 nm |

| Foundry | GlobalFoundries | TSMC |

| Transistors | 3,000 million | 2,640 million |

| Die Size | 123 mm² | 389 mm² |

| Transistor Density | 24.4M / mm² | 6.8M / mm² |

| Base Clock | 1125 MHz | N/A |

| Boost Clock | 1201 MHz | N/A |

| Memory Clock | 1500 MHz (6 Gbps effective) | 1250 MHz (5 Gbps effective) |

| Memory Size | 4 GB | 2 GB |

| Memory Bus Width | 128 bit | 256 bit |

| Memory Bandwidth | 96.00 GB/s | 160.0 GB/s |

| Shading Units | 1024 | 1408 |

| TMUs | 64 | 88 |

| ROPs | 16 | 32 |

| Pixel Rate | 19.22 GPixel/s | 25.60 GPixel/s |

| Texture Rate | 76.86 GTexel/s | 70.40 GTexel/s |

| FP32 | 2.460 TFLOPS | 2.253 TFLOPS |

| FP16 | 2.460 TFLOPS (1:1) | N/A |

| TDP | 50 W | 200 W |

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

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

| Suggested PSU | 250 W | 550 W |

| Bus Interface | PCIe 3.0 x8 | PCIe 2.0 x16 |

| Display Outputs | 4x mini-DisplayPort 1.4a | 2x DVI, 1x HDMI 1.4a, 2x mini-DisplayPort 1.2 |

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

| OpenGL | 4.6 | 4.4 |

| Vulkan | 1.3 | N/A |

| Length | 168 mm (6.6 inches) | 286 mm (11.3 inches) |

| Height | 69 mm (2.7 inches) | 126 mm (5 inches) |

| Width | N/A | 42 mm (1.7 inches) |

| Release Date | 2016-11-09 | 2010-12-13 |

| Launch MSRP | 399 USD | 299 USD |

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The only direct head-to-head benchmark available in the data is Geekbench OpenCL, and the result is a decisive victory for the AMD Radeon Pro WX 4100. The Pro WX 4100 scores 17642, while the HD 6950 scores 6210, giving the newer card a 184.1% advantage. This massive delta underscores the compute efficiency of the GCN 4.0 architecture, which delivers over 2.4x the OpenCL performance despite having fewer shading units (1024 versus 1408) and a narrower memory bus.

Looking at the broader benchmark suite, the Pro WX 4100 shows its versatility with strong scores across multiple tests, including 21018 in Geekbench Metal, 18703 in Geekbench Vulkan, and 3699 in Passmark G3D. The HD 6950 has no comparable scores in these tests, as it lacks Vulkan and Metal support. The Pro WX 4100 also achieves a Passmark GPU Compute score of 1475, a data point absent for the HD 6950. In terms of average benchmark score, the Pro WX 4100's 6330 edges out the HD 6950's 6210, though the HD 6950's nearest rival data shows it performs comparably to the NVIDIA Quadro K620, which has an average score of 6282 and a delta of -1.1% relative to the HD 6950.

The Pro WX 4100's nearest rivals include the AMD Radeon R7 M350 (avg 6327, delta 0.1%) and the NVIDIA Quadro K620 (avg 6282, delta 0.8%), placing it in a tight performance cluster. The HD 6950's rivals include the AMD FirePro W600 (avg 6223, delta -0.2%) and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti SUPER AD102 (avg 6270, delta -0.9%), showing it competes with a mix of professional and modern cards. The data confirms that while the HD 6950 is not obsolete in raw compute, the Pro WX 4100's architectural advantages in OpenCL and API support make it the more future-proof and capable card for professional workloads.