AMD Radeon HD 7790 vs AMD Radeon PRO W7500 Comparison

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The benchmark data presents a fascinating contrast between two very different generations of AMD graphics hardware. The AMD Radeon HD 7790 and the AMD Radeon PRO W7500 never directly compete in the same test suite—the older card has a single Geekbench Metal score, while the newer card posts results across Geekbench OpenCL, Geekbench Vulkan, and multiple Passmark tests. This makes a direct apples-to-apples comparison impossible, but the available numbers reveal the W7500’s overwhelming performance advantage.

The Radeon PRO W7500’s Geekbench OpenCL score of 58,213 and Vulkan score of 68,634 dwarf the HD 7790’s single Geekbench Metal result of 17,666. That Metal score places the HD 7790 in the 61st percentile of all GPUs, while the W7500 sits at the 59th percentile based on its average benchmark score of 16,415. Interestingly, the HD 7790’s average benchmark score of 17,666 is actually higher than the W7500’s average of 16,415, but this is a quirk of the averaging methodology—the W7500’s average pulls in its Passmark scores, which are measured on entirely different scales.

Looking at the W7500’s Passmark results, the DirectX 11 score of 125 and DirectX 12 score of 46 seem modest, but the GPU Compute score of 5,910 and G3D score of 13,368 tell a more complete story. The DirectX 9 score of 200 and DirectX 10 score of 65 round out the legacy API picture, while the G2D score of 1,174 indicates strong 2D performance. These figures, combined with the Geekbench results, suggest the W7500 is a capable professional workstation card.

The nearest rival comparison adds context. The HD 7790 sits within 0.7% of the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 (17,639), within 0.4% of the AMD Radeon 780M (17,588), and within 0.7% of the AMD Radeon Pro 560 (17,551). It trails the NVIDIA Quadro RTX 4000 (17,789) by 0.7%. The W7500, meanwhile, matches the NVIDIA RTX PRO 6000 Blackwell (16,408) within 0%, sits 0.3% ahead of the AMD Radeon RX 5700 XT (16,361), and 0.4% ahead of the AMD Radeon Pro 5600M (16,351). It trails the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D V2 (16,504) by 0.5%. These tight margins in the W7500’s rival set suggest a card that punches near some very heavy hitters in average score terms.

Architecture Differences

The architectural gulf between these two cards spans a decade of GPU design evolution. The HD 7790 uses the Bonaire chip built on GCN 2.0 architecture, part of the Southern Islands generation (HD 7700 series). It is fabricated on TSMC’s 28 nm process and packs 2,080 million transistors into a 160 mm² die. The W7500, by contrast, uses the Navi 33 chip built on RDNA 3.0 architecture, codenamed Hotpink Bonefish, and belongs to the Radeon Pro Navi (Navi III Series) generation. It is manufactured on TSMC’s 6 nm process with 13,300 million transistors on a 204 mm² die.

The transistor density tells a dramatic story: the HD 7790 achieves 13.0 million transistors per square millimeter, while the W7500 reaches 65.2 million per square millimeter—a fivefold improvement in integration density. This allows the W7500 to pack far more compute resources into a slightly larger die.

Core counts differ substantially. The HD 7790 has 896 shading units, 56 texture mapping units, and 16 ROPs. The W7500 doubles the shading units to 1,792, doubles the TMUs to 112, and quadruples the ROPs to 64. The W7500 also adds 28 ray tracing cores, a feature entirely absent from the older card. The pixel rate jumps from 16.00 GPixel/s on the HD 7790 to 108.8 GPixel/s on the W7500, while texture rate climbs from 56.00 GTexel/s to 190.4 GTexel/s. FP32 compute scales from 1.792 TFLOPS to 12.19 TFLOPS, and the W7500 adds FP16 capability at 24.37 TFLOPS (2:1) where the HD 7790 has none.

Memory architecture also diverges. The HD 7790 uses 1,024 MB of GDDR5 on a 128-bit bus at 1,500 MHz (6 Gbps effective), delivering 96.00 GB/s of bandwidth. The W7500 uses 8 GB of GDDR6 on the same 128-bit bus but at 2,000 MHz (16 Gbps effective), yielding 256.0 GB/s—more than 2.5 times the bandwidth. The W7500 also has explicit base and boost clocks of 1,500 MHz and 1,700 MHz, while the HD 7790’s core clocks are not listed.

API support reflects the newer architecture. The HD 7790 supports DirectX 12 (12_0), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.2.170. The W7500 supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4. The W7500 also uses PCIe 4.0 x8, while the HD 7790 uses PCIe 3.0 x16. Display outputs differ sharply: the HD 7790 offers 1x DVI, 1x HDMI 1.4a, and 2x mini-DisplayPort 1.2; the W7500 provides 4x DisplayPort 2.1.

Where Each One Wins

The use-case split is stark. The Radeon PRO W7500 is the clear winner for any modern workload that leverages current APIs, ray tracing, or high-bandwidth memory. Its 8 GB GDDR6 frame buffer at 256.0 GB/s makes it suitable for contemporary professional visualization, CAD, and content creation tasks. The 28 ray tracing cores enable hardware-accelerated ray tracing, a feature the HD 7790 cannot offer at all. The W7500’s FP16 support at 24.37 TFLOPS opens up AI and machine learning inference workloads that the HD 7790 cannot touch with its 1.792 TFLOPS FP32-only compute.

The W7500 is also the choice for multi-display professional setups, with four DisplayPort 2.1 outputs compared to the HD 7790’s mixed DVI, HDMI, and mini-DisplayPort arrangement. The newer card’s single-slot design and lack of power connectors make it easier to integrate into dense workstation builds, while the HD 7790 requires a 1x 6-pin connector and dual-slot space.

The HD 7790’s advantage is essentially historical and compatibility-based. Its Geekbench Metal score of 17,666 places it in the 61st percentile, which is actually higher than the W7500’s 59th percentile ranking. For legacy applications that rely on older DirectX feature levels or specific GCN-era optimizations, the HD 7790 may still function adequately. Its 28 nm process and older architecture mean it draws more power (85 W TDP) than the W7500 (70 W TDP), but both cards suggest a 250 W PSU.

In terms of raw performance per watt, the W7500 wins decisively—higher scores, lower TDP, and far more compute resources. The HD 7790’s single benchmark result cannot compete with the W7500’s multi-test profile. For anyone building a system today, the W7500 is the only rational choice. For retro builds or legacy software compatibility, the HD 7790 retains some relevance, but its end-of-life production status and 2013 release date make it a museum piece rather than a practical option.

FAQ

Q: Which card has the higher average benchmark score?

A: The AMD Radeon HD 7790 has an average benchmark score of 17,666, while the AMD Radeon PRO W7500 has an average of 16,415. However, the HD 7790’s score comes from a single Geekbench Metal test, while the W7500’s average includes nine different benchmarks across Geekbench and Passmark suites.

Q: What is the performance difference in ray tracing capability?

A: The AMD Radeon PRO W7500 includes 28 ray tracing cores, while the AMD Radeon HD 7790 has no ray tracing cores at all. This makes the W7500 the only card of the two capable of hardware-accelerated ray tracing workloads.

Q: How do the memory bandwidth figures compare?

A: The AMD Radeon PRO W7500 delivers 256.0 GB/s of bandwidth from its 8 GB GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus. The AMD Radeon HD 7790 provides 96.00 GB/s from 1,024 MB of GDDR5 on the same 128-bit bus width. The W7500 offers more than 2.5 times the bandwidth.

Q: Which card supports newer PCIe and display standards?

A: The AMD Radeon PRO W7500 uses PCIe 4.0 x8 and provides 4x DisplayPort 2.1 outputs. The AMD Radeon HD 7790 uses PCIe 3.0 x16 and offers 1x DVI, 1x HDMI 1.4a, and 2x mini-DisplayPort 1.2 outputs.

Q: What are the TDP and power connector requirements?

A: The AMD Radeon HD 7790 has a TDP of 85 W and requires a 1x 6-pin power connector. The AMD Radeon PRO W7500 has a lower TDP of 70 W and requires no power connectors. Both cards suggest a 250 W power supply.

Q: How do the nearest rivals compare for each card?

A: The AMD Radeon HD 7790’s nearest rival is the NVIDIA Quadro RTX 4000 (0.7% higher score), with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 and AMD Radeon 780M both within 0.4%. The AMD Radeon PRO W7500’s nearest rival is the NVIDIA RTX PRO 6000 Blackwell (0% difference), with the AMD Radeon RX 5700 XT 0.3% behind and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 D V2 0.5% ahead.

Specification Differences

| Specification | AMD Radeon HD 7790 | AMD Radeon PRO W7500 |

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

| Architecture | GCN 2.0 | RDNA 3.0 |

| Chip | Bonaire | Navi 33 |

| Generation | Southern Islands (HD 7700) | Radeon Pro Navi (Navi III Series) |

| Process Node | 28 nm | 6 nm |

| Transistors | 2,080 million | 13,300 million |

| Die Size | 160 mm² | 204 mm² |

| Transistor Density | 13.0M / mm² | 65.2M / mm² |

| Base Clock | Not listed | 1500 MHz |

| Boost Clock | Not listed | 1700 MHz |

| Memory Clock | 1500 MHz / 6 Gbps effective | 2000 MHz / 16 Gbps effective |

| Memory Size | 1024 MB | 8 GB |

| Memory Type | GDDR5 | GDDR6 |

| Memory Bus Width | 128 bit | 128 bit |

| Memory Bandwidth | 96.00 GB/s | 256.0 GB/s |

| Shading Units | 896 | 1792 |

| TMUs | 56 | 112 |

| ROPs | 16 | 64 |

| Ray Tracing Cores | None | 28 |

| Pixel Rate | 16.00 GPixel/s | 108.8 GPixel/s |

| Texture Rate | 56.00 GTexel/s | 190.4 GTexel/s |

| FP32 Performance | 1.792 TFLOPS | 12.19 TFLOPS |

| FP16 Performance | Not listed | 24.37 TFLOPS (2:1) |

| TDP | 85 W | 70 W |

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

| Power Connectors | 1x 6-pin | None |

| Bus Interface | PCIe 3.0 x16 | PCIe 4.0 x8 |

| Display Outputs | 1x DVI, 1x HDMI 1.4a, 2x mini-DisplayPort 1.2 | 4x DisplayPort 2.1 |

| DirectX Support | 12 (12_0) | 12 Ultimate (12_2) |

| Vulkan Support | 1.2.170 | 1.4 |

| Length | 183 mm (7.2 inches) | 216 mm (8.5 inches) |

| Height | Not listed | 115 mm (4.5 inches) |

| Width | Not listed | 20 mm (0.8 inches) |

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

| Release Date | 2013-03-21 | 2023-08-02 |

| Predecessor | Northern Islands | Radeon Pro Vega |

| Successor | Sea Islands | Not listed |

| Launch MSRP | 149 USD | 429 USD |