AMD Radeon Pro Vega II vs NVIDIA GB10 Comparison

The data positions the NVIDIA GB10 and AMD Radeon Pro Vega II as two very different answers to the same question: what do you put in a workstation when you need serious compute? The GB10 is a modern, power-efficient Blackwell part aimed at server workloads. The Radeon Pro Vega II is a legacy, high-bandwidth Mac-oriented card. The benchmark results show a clear generational gap, but the story is more nuanced than a simple win-loss tally.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

In the shared benchmark tests, the NVIDIA GB10 wins both matchups decisively. In Geekbench OpenCL, the GB10 scores 120,137 against the Vega II’s 99,048. That is a 21.3% advantage for the NVIDIA part. The Vulkan result is closer but still a clear win: the GB10 posts 114,648 versus 99,621 for the AMD card, a 15.1% delta. Across the two common tests, the GB10’s average benchmark score of 117,393 is 7.1% higher than the Vega II’s 109,617 average.

The GB10 also holds up well against its own nearest rivals, which reinforces that these are not cherry-picked numbers. It sits 0.3% above the NVIDIA RTX 4000 SFF Ada Generation and 2.6% above the Tesla V100 SXM2 16 GB. The only competitor it trails in its peer group is the AMD Radeon PRO W7700, where it is 1.3% behind. The Vega II, meanwhile, is 1% behind the AMD Radeon PRO W7900 and 3.8% behind the NVIDIA RTX A5500 Mobile. The performance context is clear: the GB10 is a mid-pack modern performer, while the Vega II is at the bottom of its own comparison group.

The margin of victory matters here. A 21.3% OpenCL lead is not a small edge; it represents a substantial amount of compute throughput that could translate to faster renders or simulations. The Vulkan gap of 15.1% is similarly meaningful for cross-platform workloads. However, it is worth noting the Vega II has one benchmark the GB10 cannot contest: Geekbench Metal, where it scores 130,183. That is a significant single-test result, but since the GB10 has no Metal support, it is not a direct head-to-head comparison.

Architecture Differences

The fundamental architectural split explains the benchmark results. The NVIDIA GB10 is built on the Blackwell 2.0 architecture using a 5 nm TSMC process. The AMD Radeon Pro Vega II uses the older GCN 5.1 architecture on a 7 nm node. That process advantage gives the GB10 a massive efficiency lead in the raw specs.

The compute resources tell the story. The GB10 has 6,144 shading units, 384 texture mapping units, and 48 raster output units. It also features 48 ray tracing cores and 384 tensor cores, making it a fully modern accelerator. The Vega II has 4,096 shading units, 256 TMUs, and 64 ROPs. It has no ray tracing cores and no tensor cores. In raw FP32 throughput, the GB10 delivers 29.71 TFLOPS while the Vega II manages 14.09 TFLOPS—the NVIDIA card is more than double the AMD part in single-precision compute. The FP16 picture is different: the GB10 offers 29.71 TFLOPS at a 1:1 ratio, while the Vega II hits 28.18 TFLOPS at a 2:1 ratio. That means for half-precision work, the AMD card is nearly competitive, which is a notable strength for a 2019 part.

Memory is where the architectures diverge in strategy. The GB10 uses 128 GB of LPDDR5X on a 256-bit bus, providing 273.2 GB/s of bandwidth. The Vega II uses 32 GB of HBM2 on a massive 4096-bit bus, yielding 825.3 GB/s of bandwidth. The AMD card has three times the memory bandwidth, which is crucial for certain HPC workloads, but it has one quarter of the memory capacity. The GB10’s power draw is listed at 140 W with a suggested PSU of 300 W, while the Vega II consumes 475 W and needs an 850 W PSU. The physical design also differs: the GB10 is an IGP (integrated graphics processor) with no power connectors, while the Vega II is a quad-slot card using an Apple MPX interface.

Where Each One Wins

The NVIDIA GB10 wins in every shared compute benchmark, but that does not mean it is the right choice for every scenario. The data shows the GB10 is the pick for modern, cross-platform compute workloads. Its OpenCL and Vulkan scores are substantially higher, and its tensor cores make it suitable for AI-adjacent tasks. The 128 GB memory capacity is a major asset for large datasets that need to fit in VRAM, even if the bandwidth is lower. The 140 W TDP and IGP form factor mean it can be integrated into systems without the power and cooling demands of a traditional discrete GPU.

The AMD Radeon Pro Vega II has a narrower but real set of advantages. Its 825.3 GB/s memory bandwidth is a massive lead over the GB10’s 273.2 GB/s, which matters for memory-bound workloads like certain scientific simulations or in-memory databases. The Metal benchmark score of 130,183 is the highest single result across both cards, indicating strong performance in Apple’s graphics API. The Vega II also supports DirectX 12 (12_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.3, while the GB10 lists N/A for all three APIs—so the AMD card is the only one of the two with any traditional graphics API support. For a Mac Pro user with specific Metal-optimized software, the Vega II remains a viable option.

FAQ

Q: Which card has the higher average benchmark score?

A: The NVIDIA GB10 has an average benchmark score of 117,393, which is 7.1% higher than the AMD Radeon Pro Vega II’s 109,617.

Q: How much faster is the GB10 in OpenCL?

A: The GB10 scores 120,137 in Geekbench OpenCL, which is 21.3% higher than the Vega II’s 99,048.

Q: Does the AMD card have any ray tracing or tensor cores?

A: No. The Radeon Pro Vega II has no ray tracing cores and no tensor cores. The NVIDIA GB10 has 48 ray tracing cores and 384 tensor cores.

Q: Which card has more memory bandwidth?

A: The AMD Radeon Pro Vega II has 825.3 GB/s of bandwidth from its 4096-bit HBM2 interface. The NVIDIA GB10 has 273.2 GB/s from a 256-bit LPDDR5X interface.

Q: What is the memory capacity difference?

A: The NVIDIA GB10 has 128 GB of LPDDR5X, while the AMD Radeon Pro Vega II has 32 GB of HBM2.

Q: Can the GB10 run DirectX or Vulkan workloads?

A: The data lists the GB10’s DirectX, OpenGL, and Vulkan APIs as N/A. The Vega II supports DirectX 12 (12_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.3.

Specification Differences

The two cards differ on nearly every measurable specification. The GB10 uses a 5 nm process and an NVIDIA chip, while the Vega II uses 7 nm and an AMD chip. The GB10 has a die size of 382 mm²; the Vega II is 331 mm². The transistor count is unknown for the GB10, but the Vega II has 13,230 million transistors. Base clocks are 1665 MHz for the GB10 and 1574 MHz for the Vega II. Boost clocks are 2418 MHz versus 1720 MHz.

Memory is the biggest spec split: 128 GB LPDDR5X on a 256-bit bus versus 32 GB HBM2 on a 4096-bit bus. Bandwidth favors the AMD card at 825.3 GB/s versus 273.2 GB/s. The GB10 has 6,144 shading units, 384 TMUs, and 48 ROPs. The Vega II has 4,096 shading units, 256 TMUs, and 64 ROPs. The GB10 has 48 RT cores and 384 tensor cores; the Vega II has none. Pixel rates are close (116.1 GPixel/s vs 110.1 GPixel/s), but texture rates are not (928.5 GTexel/s vs 440.3 GTexel/s). FP32 performance is 29.71 TFLOPS for the GB10 and 14.09 TFLOPS for the Vega II. FP16 is 29.71 TFLOPS (1:1) versus 28.18 TFLOPS (2:1). Power consumption is 140 W versus 475 W, with suggested PSUs of 300 W and 850 W, respectively. The GB10 is an IGP with no power connectors; the Vega II is quad-slot with an Apple MPX interface. The GB10 has one HDMI output; the Vega II has one HDMI 2.0b and four Thunderbolt outputs. The release dates are 2025 for the GB10 and 2019 for the Vega II. The GB10’s launch MSRP is 3,999 USD; the Vega II’s is 2,199 USD.

The Verdict

The data is unambiguous on raw performance: choose the NVIDIA GB10 for any OpenCL or Vulkan compute task. It is 21.3% faster in OpenCL and 15.1% faster in Vulkan, and its 29.71 TFLOPS FP32 throughput is more than double the Vega II’s 14.09 TFLOPS. The GB10 also has the advantage of being an active product with 128 GB of memory, a 140 W power draw, and modern tensor cores. The benchmark results place it in the 95th percentile of all GPUs, versus the 94th percentile for the Vega II.

The AMD Radeon Pro Vega II is not without merit, but its case rests on specific conditions. If you require 825.3 GB/s of memory bandwidth, the GB10 cannot match it. If you work exclusively in Apple’s Metal API, the Vega II’s 130,183 Metal score is the highest result across both cards. If you need DirectX, OpenGL, or Vulkan API support, the Vega II offers all three while the GB10 lists N/A. However, the Vega II is end-of-life, consumes 475 W, and requires an 850 W PSU. Its 32 GB memory capacity is a quarter of the GB10’s. For a new system build, the GB10 is the logical choice. The Vega II is only defensible as a legacy upgrade in an existing Mac Pro where Metal performance and memory bandwidth are the primary drivers. The benchmark data shows the GB10 is the faster card in every shared test, and that is the bottom line for most buyers.