AMD Radeon Instinct MI60 vs AMD Radeon VII Comparison

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The head-to-head data between the AMD Radeon Instinct MI60 and the AMD Radeon VII is remarkably close, with the MI60 taking both recorded comparisons by narrow margins. In Geekbench OpenCL, the MI60 scores 92,488 against the Radeon VII’s 91,947, a difference of just 0.6%. That is a statistical tie in practical terms, yet the MI60 still claims the win. The Vulkan results follow the same pattern: the MI60 posts 92,444, the Radeon VII posts 91,788, and the margin is 0.7% in favor of the MI60.

The average benchmark scores tell a more dramatic story, but it is important to understand why. The MI60’s average sits at 92,466, while the Radeon VII’s average drops to 66,004. That gap is driven by the Radeon VII’s inclusion of a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 2,304 and a Geekbench Metal score of 77,975, both of which pull its average down. The MI60 has no corresponding low-scoring entries in its benchmark set, so its average stays tightly clustered near its OpenCL and Vulkan results.

Looking at the percentile rankings, the MI60 places in the 93rd percentile of all GPUs, while the Radeon VII sits in the 90th percentile. That three-point spread reflects the MI60’s slightly higher raw scores, but also its more consistent profile across the tests recorded in the database.

The nearest rivals for each card put these numbers in context. The MI60’s closest competitor is the NVIDIA RTX A4500, which averages 91,671, a 0.9% deficit. The RTX A4500 Mobile trails by 1.5%. On the other side, the AMD Radeon Pro VII beats the MI60 by 4.8%, and the AMD Radeon RX 7900M leads by 5.2%. So the MI60 is competitive with professional NVIDIA offerings, but it is not at the top of the stack.

The Radeon VII’s nearest rivals include the NVIDIA Tesla T4, which averages 66,733, putting it 1.1% ahead of the Radeon VII. The NVIDIA Tesla P40 trails the Radeon VII by 1.4%, the AMD Radeon Pro WX 9100 by 2.8%, and the NVIDIA CMP 30HX by 3.4%. In this group, the Radeon VII lands in the middle, clearly behind the Tesla T4 but comfortably ahead of the older Tesla P40 and the workstation-oriented Radeon Pro WX 9100.

In direct comparison, the MI60 wins both head-to-head tests, but the margins are so small that they could easily be explained by driver maturity, thermal behavior, or clock binning rather than any fundamental architectural advantage. Both cards share the same Vega 20 chip, the same 7 nm TSMC process, and the same GCN 5.1 architecture. The differences in benchmark outcomes are more about configuration than about design philosophy.

The more interesting observation is that the MI60’s benchmark profile is entirely OpenCL and Vulkan, with no DirectX or Metal entries. The Radeon VII, by contrast, has a broader footprint that includes a DirectX 12 test and a Metal test. That broader footprint is what lowers its average, but it also means the Radeon VII has been measured in consumer and cross-platform scenarios that the MI60 has not.

The Verdict

The data points to a clear split between these two cards, and the choice depends almost entirely on the workload. The AMD Radeon Instinct MI60 wins both head-to-head tests, holds a higher percentile ranking (93rd versus 90th), and carries twice the memory at 32 GB versus 16 GB. For compute-heavy tasks where memory capacity matters, the MI60 is the stronger pick.

The AMD Radeon VII, however, is the more versatile card in terms of measured scenarios. It has a Geekbench Metal score of 77,975 and a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 2,304, neither of which the MI60 can match because the MI60 has no recorded scores in those tests. The Radeon VII also has a richer set of display outputs: 1x HDMI 2.0b and 3x DisplayPort 1.4a, versus the MI60’s single mini-DisplayPort 1.4a. If the use case involves direct display output, multi-monitor setups, or consumer-oriented APIs, the Radeon VII is the one with the measured evidence on its side.

The launch MSRP for the Radeon VII is 699 USD. The MI60 has no recorded launch MSRP, so no direct price comparison is possible from the database.

For a pure compute deployment where the GPU sits headless and the workload is OpenCL or Vulkan, the MI60’s 0.6% and 0.7% wins are marginal, but the 32 GB memory capacity gives it a decisive edge for datasets that exceed 16 GB. For a desktop workstation or a mixed-use machine that needs display outputs and has been tested across DirectX and Metal, the Radeon VII is the better documented option.

The Radeon VII is end-of-life and its successor is listed as Navi. The MI60 is also end-of-life, with no successor listed. Neither card is a future-proof investment, but within the recorded data, the MI60 is the higher-performing compute card and the Radeon VII is the more broadly tested consumer-facing card.

Architecture Differences

Both GPUs are built on the same Vega 20 silicon, fabricated on TSMC’s 7 nm process. The transistor count is identical at 13,230 million, and the die size is the same at 331 mm². The transistor density is 40.0M per mm² for both. The architecture is GCN 5.1 in both cases, and both support DirectX 12 (12_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.3.

The core configurations differ. The MI60 has 4096 shading units, 256 texture mapping units, and 64 ROPs. The Radeon VII has 3840 shading units, 240 TMUs, and 64 ROPs. That gives the MI60 a 256-shader and 16-TMU advantage, which explains its higher peak rates. The MI60’s pixel rate is 115.2 GPixel/s versus 112.0 GPixel/s for the Radeon VII. The texture rate is 460.8 GTexel/s versus 420.0 GTexel/s. FP32 throughput is 14.75 TFLOPS for the MI60 and 13.44 TFLOPS for the Radeon VII. FP16 is 29.49 TFLOPS (2:1) for the MI60 and 26.88 TFLOPS (2:1) for the Radeon VII.

Clock behavior is where the Radeon VII pushes back. Its base clock is 1400 MHz, higher than the MI60’s 1200 MHz, but its boost clock is 1750 MHz, lower than the MI60’s 1800 MHz. The MI60 has a higher ceiling, while the Radeon VII has a higher floor. Memory clocks are identical at 1000 MHz, 2 Gbps effective.

Memory capacity is the biggest architectural difference. The MI60 ships with 32 GB of HBM2, the Radeon VII with 16 GB. Both use a 4096-bit bus and both achieve 1.02 TB/s of bandwidth. The capacity difference does not affect bandwidth, but it doubles the maximum working set for the MI60.

Power and connectivity differ as well. The MI60 has a TDP of 300 W and uses 1x 6-pin plus 1x 8-pin power connectors. The Radeon VII has a TDP of 295 W and uses 2x 8-pin connectors. The suggested PSU is 700 W for the MI60 and 600 W for the Radeon VII. The MI60 uses PCIe 4.0 x16, while the Radeon VII uses PCIe 3.0 x16. The MI60 is 267 mm long and 111 mm tall. The Radeon VII is 280 mm long, 125 mm tall, and 40 mm wide.

Neither card has ray tracing cores or tensor cores. The MI60’s predecessor is listed as FirePro Data Center; the Radeon VII’s predecessor is listed as Vega and its successor as Navi. The Radeon VII was released on 2019-02-06, while the MI60 was released on 2018-11-17.

FAQ

Q: Which card is faster in OpenCL?

A: The AMD Radeon Instinct MI60 scores 92,488 in Geekbench OpenCL, against 91,947 for the AMD Radeon VII. The MI60 wins by 0.6%.

Q: Does the Radeon VII have any benchmark wins over the MI60?

A: No. In the direct head-to-head tests, the MI60 wins both Geekbench OpenCL and Geekbench Vulkan. The Radeon VII does have additional benchmark scores, including a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 2,304 and a Geekbench Metal score of 77,975, but the MI60 has no recorded scores in those tests to compare against.

Q: How much memory does each card have?

A: The MI60 has 32 GB of HBM2 memory. The Radeon VII has 16 GB of HBM2 memory. Both use a 4096-bit bus and both deliver 1.02 TB/s of bandwidth.

Q: What is the power draw difference?

A: The MI60 has a TDP of 300 W, and the Radeon VII has a TDP of 295 W. The MI60 uses 1x 6-pin and 1x 8-pin power connectors, while the Radeon VII uses 2x 8-pin connectors. The suggested PSU is 700 W for the MI60 and 600 W for the Radeon VII.

Q: Do these cards support ray tracing or tensor cores?

A: No. Neither the MI60 nor the Radeon VII has ray tracing cores or tensor cores. Both are based on GCN 5.1 architecture.

Q: Which card has a higher boost clock?

A: The MI60 has a boost clock of 1800 MHz. The Radeon VII has a boost clock of 1750 MHz. The Radeon VII does have a higher base clock at 1400 MHz versus 1200 MHz for the MI60.

Where Each One Wins

The MI60 wins in pure compute throughput. It leads in FP32 with 14.75 TFLOPS against 13.44 TFLOPS, and in FP16 with 29.49 TFLOPS against 26.88 TFLOPS. Its texture rate is 460.8 GTexel/s versus 420.0 GTexel/s, and its pixel rate is 115.2 GPixel/s versus 112.0 GPixel/s. It also wins both head-to-head benchmarks, takes the higher percentile ranking, and doubles the memory capacity. For workloads that fit into 32 GB and rely on OpenCL or Vulkan, the MI60 is the stronger card.

The Radeon VII wins in breadth of measured compatibility. It has a Geekbench Metal score of 77,975 and a 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 2,304, giving it recorded performance in APIs where the MI60 has no data. It also has a higher base clock at 1400 MHz, which can help in latency-sensitive or lightly threaded scenarios. Its display output suite is far more practical for a desktop machine: 1x HDMI 2.0b and 3x DisplayPort 1.4a, versus a single mini-DisplayPort 1.4a on the MI60. The Radeon VII is also slightly more power-efficient per its TDP rating, 295 W versus 300 W, and it asks for a smaller PSU at 600 W versus 700 W.

The Radeon VII’s nearest rival comparison shows it holding its own in its segment, sitting 1.1% behind the NVIDIA Tesla T4 and 1.4% ahead of the NVIDIA Tesla P40. The MI60, meanwhile, sits 0.9% ahead of the NVIDIA RTX A4500 and 1.5% ahead of the RTX A4500 Mobile, but 4.8% behind the AMD Radeon Pro VII and 5.2% behind the AMD Radeon RX 7900M.

For a headless compute node, a server rack, or any environment where display outputs are irrelevant, the MI60 is the pick. Its 32 GB memory capacity is the single most important differentiating factor, and its benchmark wins, however small, are consistent. For a desktop workstation with monitors attached, a need for HDMI or multiple DisplayPort connections, or software that relies on Metal or DirectX 12, the Radeon VII is the card with the evidence to back it up. The Radeon VII’s 16 GB memory is still substantial, and its 1.02 TB/s bandwidth matches the MI60 exactly.

Neither card is current, both are end-of-life, and both share the same underlying silicon. The MI60 is the more capable compute part. The Radeon VII is the more flexible, better-connected, and more broadly tested part. The data does not support a single winner across all scenarios, but it does support a clear recommendation based on the intended use.