GPU Comparison

The AMD Radeon Pro WX 4100 and the AMD FirePro W4100 are two professional workstation GPUs separated by a full architectural generation. Benchmark data shows the WX 4100 is decisively faster in every measurable compute test, while the FirePro W4100 holds its ground primarily as a legacy option with a different feature set. The average benchmark score for the WX 4100 is 6330, placing it in the 37th percentile of all GPUs, whereas the FirePro W4100 averages 5987, sitting in the 34th percentile. The performance gap is not marginal; it is a generational leap.

Where Each One Wins

The AMD Radeon Pro WX 4100 wins outright in every head-to-head benchmark available. In Geekbench OpenCL, the WX 4100 scores 17642 against the FirePro W4100’s 5478, a delta of 222.1%. In Geekbench Vulkan, the WX 4100 posts 18703 versus 6496, a 187.9% advantage. These are not close contests. The WX 4100’s compute throughput is more than three times higher in OpenCL and nearly three times higher in Vulkan.

The FirePro W4100 has no benchmark wins. Its only advantage is historical context. As a 2014 product, it was designed for a different era of workstation software. Its GCN 1.0 architecture supports DirectX 12 (11_1) and Vulkan 1.2.170, which are older API levels. For legacy software that relies on those specific driver paths, the FirePro W4100 remains a compatible option, but the data does not show any performance scenario where it outperforms the newer card.

The WX 4100 is the clear choice for any modern compute workload. Its 2.460 TFLOPS FP32 performance dwarfs the FirePro W4100’s 645.1 GFLOPS. The WX 4100 also offers 1:1 FP16 throughput at 2.460 TFLOPS, a feature entirely absent from the FirePro W4100’s specifications. For OpenCL and Vulkan tasks, the WX 4100 is the only rational pick based on raw scores.

Architecture Differences

The two cards are built on fundamentally different process nodes and GPU architectures. The Radeon Pro WX 4100 uses the Baffin chip on GCN 4.0 architecture, fabricated on a 14 nm process at GlobalFoundries. The FirePro W4100 uses the Cape Verde chip on GCN 1.0 architecture, fabricated on a 28 nm process at TSMC. The process node shrink from 28 nm to 14 nm is the primary driver of the efficiency and performance gains.

Transistor counts differ significantly. The WX 4100 packs 3,000 million transistors into a 123 mm² die, yielding a transistor density of 24.4 million per mm². The FirePro W4100 has 1,500 million transistors on the same 123 mm² die size, but with a density of only 12.2 million per mm². The WX 4100 doubles the transistor count within the same physical footprint.

The compute resources are doubled on the WX 4100. It has 1024 shading units, 64 texture mapping units (TMUs), and 16 render output units (ROPs). The FirePro W4100 has 512 shading units, 32 TMUs, and 16 ROPs. This doubling of shading units and TMUs directly explains the massive compute performance lead. Pixel rate on the WX 4100 is 19.22 GPixel/s, versus 10.08 GPixel/s on the FirePro W4100. Texture rate is 76.86 GTexel/s versus 20.16 GTexel/s.

Memory subsystem differences also matter. Both use GDDR5, but the WX 4100 has 4 GB versus 2 GB on the FirePro W4100. Both have a 128-bit memory bus, but the WX 4100 runs at 1500 MHz (6 Gbps effective) yielding 96.00 GB/s bandwidth, while the FirePro W4100 runs at 1000 MHz (4 Gbps effective) for 64.00 GB/s. The WX 4100 has 50% more memory bandwidth.

FAQ

Q: Which card is faster in OpenCL compute?

A: The AMD Radeon Pro WX 4100 is dramatically faster, scoring 17642 in Geekbench OpenCL versus 5478 for the FirePro W4100, a 222.1% difference.

Q: Does the FirePro W4100 have any API advantages?

A: No. The WX 4100 supports DirectX 12 (12_0), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.3, while the FirePro W4100 supports DirectX 12 (11_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.2.170. The WX 4100 has newer API versions.

Q: What is the memory capacity difference?

A: The WX 4100 has 4 GB of GDDR5 memory, double the 2 GB found on the FirePro W4100. Both use a 128-bit memory bus.

Q: Are both cards single-slot with no power connectors?

A: Yes. Both are single-slot cards with no power connectors and a suggested PSU of 250 W. Both have a TDP of 50 W.

Q: Which card supports FP16 compute?

A: Only the WX 4100 supports FP16 with 1:1 throughput at 2.460 TFLOPS. The FirePro W4100 has no FP16 specification listed.

Q: How do the cards compare in Vulkan performance?

A: The WX 4100 scores 18703 in Geekbench Vulkan, while the FirePro W4100 scores 6496, giving the WX 4100 a 187.9% lead.

Specification Differences

The two cards differ across nearly every core specification. The process node is 14 nm for the WX 4100 versus 28 nm for the FirePro W4100. The WX 4100 uses GlobalFoundries as its foundry, while the FirePro W4100 uses TSMC. Transistor count is 3,000 million versus 1,500 million. Transistor density is 24.4M/mm² versus 12.2M/mm².

Clock speeds differ: the WX 4100 has a base clock of 1125 MHz and a boost clock of 1201 MHz, while the FirePro W4100 has no base or boost clock listed. Memory clock is 1500 MHz (6 Gbps effective) for the WX 4100 versus 1000 MHz (4 Gbps effective) for the FirePro W4100.

Memory size is 4 GB versus 2 GB. Memory bandwidth is 96.00 GB/s versus 64.00 GB/s. Shading units are 1024 versus 512. TMUs are 64 versus 32. ROPs are identical at 16. Pixel rate is 19.22 GPixel/s versus 10.08 GPixel/s. Texture rate is 76.86 GTexel/s versus 20.16 GTexel/s.

FP32 performance is 2.460 TFLOPS versus 645.1 GFLOPS. FP16 performance is 2.460 TFLOPS (1:1) on the WX 4100, with no FP16 data for the FirePro W4100. The bus interface is PCIe 3.0 x8 on the WX 4100 versus PCIe 3.0 x16 on the FirePro W4100. Display outputs are 4x mini-DisplayPort 1.4a on the WX 4100 versus 4x mini-DisplayPort 1.2 on the FirePro W4100.

DirectX support is 12 (12_0) versus 12 (11_1). Vulkan support is 1.3 versus 1.2.170. The WX 4100 has a launch MSRP of 399 USD. The FirePro W4100 has no launch MSRP listed. Physical dimensions are nearly identical, with the WX 4100 at 168 mm (6.6 inches) long and the FirePro W4100 at 171 mm (6.7 inches) long; both are 69 mm (2.7 inches) high.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The only two direct benchmark comparisons available are Geekbench OpenCL and Geekbench Vulkan. In both, the AMD Radeon Pro WX 4100 wins by a wide margin.

In Geekbench OpenCL, the WX 4100 scores 17642 against the FirePro W4100’s 5478. The delta is 222.1%, meaning the WX 4100 is more than three times faster. This is the single largest performance gap in the comparison. The WX 4100’s 2.460 TFLOPS FP32 throughput and 1024 shading units simply overwhelm the FirePro W4100’s 645.1 GFLOPS and 512 shading units. The memory bandwidth advantage of 96.00 GB/s versus 64.00 GB/s also contributes to the OpenCL result, as compute workloads often saturate memory bandwidth.

In Geekbench Vulkan, the WX 4100 scores 18703 against 6496 for the FirePro W4100. The delta is 187.9%. The WX 4100’s Vulkan 1.3 support versus the FirePro W4100’s Vulkan 1.2.170 gives it a more modern driver path, but the raw hardware advantage is the dominant factor. The WX 4100 has double the shading units, double the TMUs, and double the transistor count. The Vulkan score also reflects the WX 4100’s 1:1 FP16 capability, which can accelerate certain graphics workloads.

The nearest rival data places these scores in context. The WX 4100’s average score of 6330 is nearly identical to the NVIDIA Quadro K620 (6282, delta 0.8%) and the AMD Radeon R7 M350 (6327, delta 0.1%). The FirePro W4100’s average score of 5987 matches the NVIDIA Quadro K4000M (5986, delta 0%) and sits just below the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 770M (6000, delta -0.2%). This means the WX 4100 competes with mid-range Kepler-era Quadro cards, while the FirePro W4100 sits in the same performance tier as older mobile workstation GPUs.

There are no benchmark wins for the FirePro W4100. Every available data point favors the WX 4100. The wins tally is 2 for the WX 4100 and 0 for the FirePro W4100. The FirePro W4100’s only redeeming quality is its compatibility with older software environments, but even there, the WX 4100 offers newer API support. The data is unambiguous: the WX 4100 is the superior card in every measured dimension.