AMD Radeon Pro Vega II Duo vs NVIDIA Quadro GP100 Comparison

# The Verdict

The AMD Radeon Pro Vega II Duo is the clear performance leader in this matchup, but the NVIDIA Quadro GP100 wins on efficiency and system integration. The data shows the AMD card is 12.6% faster than the NVIDIA Quadro GP100 in the only shared benchmark (Geekbench OpenCL), with an average benchmark score of 106,750 versus 87,445. That performance edge comes at a cost: the AMD card consumes 475 W compared to 235 W for the NVIDIA, and requires a quad-slot footprint versus a dual-slot design.

For users who prioritize raw compute throughput in macOS ecosystems, the AMD Radeon Pro Vega II Duo is the only choice — it uses the Apple MPX bus interface, whereas the NVIDIA Quadro GP100 uses PCIe 3.0 x16. The AMD card also offers double the memory capacity (32 GB vs 16 GB) and significantly higher memory bandwidth (1.02 TB/s vs 732.2 GB/s). However, for users needing a standard PCIe form factor, lower power draw, and a smaller physical footprint, the NVIDIA Quadro GP100 is the more practical option despite its lower performance.

The AMD card sits at the 94th percentile among all GPUs, while the NVIDIA card is at the 93rd percentile — both are high-end performers, but the AMD card edges ahead. The AMD card's nearest rival is the AMD Radeon Pro W6600X (0.6% slower), while the NVIDIA card's closest competitor is the AMD Radeon PRO W7600 (0.4% slower). These percentile positions confirm both cards are near the top of the stack, but the AMD card has a measurable advantage in raw compute.

# Where Each One Wins

AMD Radeon Pro Vega II Duo wins on: raw compute performance (12.6% faster in OpenCL), memory capacity (32 GB vs 16 GB), memory bandwidth (1.02 TB/s vs 732.2 GB/s), shading units (4096 vs 3584), texture mapping units (256 vs 224), FP32 throughput (14.09 TFLOPS vs 10.34 TFLOPS), and FP16 throughput (28.18 TFLOPS vs 20.69 TFLOPS). It also wins on process node efficiency (7 nm vs 16 nm) and transistor density (40.0M / mm² vs 25.1M / mm²).

NVIDIA Quadro GP100 wins on: power efficiency (235 W vs 475 W), pixel fill rate (138.5 GPixel/s vs 110.1 GPixel/s), and raster operation units (96 vs 64). It also wins on physical size — dual-slot versus quad-slot — and uses a standard PCIe 3.0 x16 interface, making it compatible with conventional workstation motherboards. The NVIDIA card also has a longer track record, with a release date of 2016-09-30 versus the AMD card's 2019-06-02.

The data indicates the AMD card is a compute-first design, while the NVIDIA card balances compute with rasterization efficiency. The NVIDIA card's higher pixel rate comes from its 96 ROPs despite having fewer shading units and lower clock speeds (1304 MHz base, 1443 MHz boost versus 1400 MHz base, 1720 MHz boost).

# Architecture Differences

The two cards come from fundamentally different architectural generations. The AMD Radeon Pro Vega II Duo uses the GCN 5.1 architecture on a 7 nm TSMC process, while the NVIDIA Quadro GP100 uses the Pascal architecture on a 16 nm TSMC process. The AMD card's die is smaller (331 mm²) but packs more transistors per square millimeter (40.0M / mm² versus 25.1M / mm²), thanks to the newer process node.

Despite the smaller die, the AMD card has more shading units (4096 vs 3584) and more TMUs (256 vs 224). The NVIDIA card has more ROPs (96 vs 64), which explains its higher pixel rate. Both cards use HBM2 memory, but the AMD card pairs it with a 1000 MHz memory clock (2 Gbps effective) versus 715 MHz (1430 Mbps effective) on the NVIDIA card, resulting in 1.02 TB/s versus 732.2 GB/s of bandwidth.

Neither card has ray tracing cores or tensor cores — both are pre-RTX designs. Both support DirectX 12 (12_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.3, so API compatibility is identical. The transistor counts are similar in absolute terms (13,230 million for AMD vs 15,300 million for NVIDIA), but the AMD card achieves its performance with fewer transistors on a much smaller die.

The Apple MPX bus interface on the AMD card is a significant architectural difference — it is designed specifically for Apple Mac Pro systems. The NVIDIA card uses the industry-standard PCIe 3.0 x16 interface, which offers broader compatibility across workstation platforms.

# FAQ

Q: Which card is faster in OpenCL benchmarks?

A: The AMD Radeon Pro Vega II Duo scores 98,432 in Geekbench OpenCL versus 87,445 for the NVIDIA Quadro GP100, giving the AMD card a 12.6% advantage.

Q: How much memory does each card have?

A: The AMD Radeon Pro Vega II Duo has 32 GB of HBM2 memory, while the NVIDIA Quadro GP100 has 16 GB of HBM2 memory.

Q: What is the power consumption difference?

A: The AMD card has a TDP of 475 W with a suggested PSU of 850 W, while the NVIDIA card has a TDP of 235 W with a suggested PSU of 550 W.

Q: Are these cards compatible with standard PCIe motherboards?

A: The NVIDIA Quadro GP100 uses PCIe 3.0 x16, making it compatible with standard motherboards. The AMD Radeon Pro Vega II Duo uses the Apple MPX bus interface, which is specific to Apple Mac Pro systems.

Q: Which card has higher memory bandwidth?

A: The AMD Radeon Pro Vega II Duo delivers 1.02 TB/s, compared to 732.2 GB/s for the NVIDIA Quadro GP100.

Q: What are the physical size differences?

A: The AMD card is a quad-slot design, while the NVIDIA card is a dual-slot design. The NVIDIA card measures 267 mm in length and 111 mm in height.

# Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The only direct benchmark comparison available is Geekbench OpenCL, where the AMD Radeon Pro Vega II Duo scores 98,432 against 87,445 for the NVIDIA Quadro GP100. That is a 12.6% delta in favor of the AMD card. This is the sole head-to-head result in the data, and it establishes the AMD card as the clear winner in raw compute.

Beyond the direct comparison, the AMD card also holds a significant advantage in its average benchmark score across all tests: 106,750 versus 87,445 for the NVIDIA card. The AMD card has additional benchmark results in Geekbench Metal (122,522) and Geekbench Vulkan (99,296), while the NVIDIA card only has the OpenCL result. The AMD card's Metal score is particularly notable for macOS users, as Metal is the primary graphics API on Apple platforms.

The AMD card's nearest rivals in the overall database are the AMD Radeon Pro W6600X (0.6% slower), AMD Radeon Pro Vega II (2.6% slower), and AMD Radeon PRO W7900 (3.6% slower). The NVIDIA card's nearest rivals are the AMD Radeon PRO W7600 (0.4% slower), NVIDIA CMP 40HX (2.1% slower), NVIDIA RTX A4500 Mobile (4% slower), and NVIDIA RTX A4500 (4.6% slower). This places both cards in a similar performance tier, but the AMD card is positioned slightly higher.

# Specification Differences

| Specification | AMD Radeon Pro Vega II Duo | NVIDIA Quadro GP100 |

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

| Architecture | GCN 5.1 | Pascal |

| Process Node | 7 nm | 16 nm |

| Transistors | 13,230 million | 15,300 million |

| Die Size | 331 mm² | 610 mm² |

| Transistor Density | 40.0M / mm² | 25.1M / mm² |

| Base Clock | 1400 MHz | 1304 MHz |

| Boost Clock | 1720 MHz | 1443 MHz |

| Memory Clock | 1000 MHz (2 Gbps effective) | 715 MHz (1430 Mbps effective) |

| Memory Size | 32 GB | 16 GB |

| Memory Bandwidth | 1.02 TB/s | 732.2 GB/s |

| Shading Units | 4096 | 3584 |

| TMUs | 256 | 224 |

| ROPs | 64 | 96 |

| Pixel Rate | 110.1 GPixel/s | 138.5 GPixel/s |

| Texture Rate | 440.3 GTexel/s | 323.2 GTexel/s |

| FP32 | 14.09 TFLOPS | 10.34 TFLOPS |

| FP16 | 28.18 TFLOPS (2:1) | 20.69 TFLOPS (2:1) |

| TDP | 475 W | 235 W |

| Slot Width | Quad-slot | Dual-slot |

| Power Connectors | Not specified | 1x 8-pin |

| Suggested PSU | 850 W | 550 W |

| Bus Interface | Apple MPX | PCIe 3.0 x16 |

| Display Outputs | 1x HDMI 2.0b, 4x Thunderbolt | 1x DVI, 4x DisplayPort 1.4a |

| Release Date | 2019-06-02 | 2016-09-30 |

| Launch MSRP | 4,399 USD | Not specified |

The AMD card offers a newer architecture, more compute resources, and double the memory, but demands significantly more power and physical space. The NVIDIA card counters with higher pixel throughput, lower power requirements, and a standard PCIe interface. Both cards are end-of-life products, though the AMD card's 2019 release date makes it a more recent design.