AMD Radeon Pro WX 5100 vs NVIDIA GeForce GTX 465 Comparison

The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 465 and the AMD Radeon Pro WX 5100 represent two distinct eras of GPU design, separated by over six years of architectural evolution. The data shows a clear generational gap, with the AMD card winning the only shared benchmark decisively, yet the older Fermi card still holds a noteworthy position in the performance percentile rankings. This analysis breaks down where each card excels based strictly on the provided benchmark and specification data.

Where Each One Wins

The benchmark results paint a stark picture of workload suitability. In the only direct head-to-head test available, the Geekbench OpenCL compute benchmark, the AMD Radeon Pro WX 5100 delivers a score of 24,217, which is a massive 160% higher than the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 465's score of 9,294. This indicates a clear victory for the AMD card in general-purpose compute tasks that leverage OpenCL, making it the superior choice for any application that can offload parallel processing to the GPU.

However, the picture is more nuanced when considering the broader performance context. The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 465 holds a 46th percentile ranking among all GPUs, which is higher than the Radeon Pro WX 5100's 44th percentile. This suggests that, despite losing the head-to-head compute test, the GTX 465's overall performance profile, as measured by the average benchmark score across various tests, is competitive with a wider range of contemporary graphics cards. Its nearest rival, the GeForce GTX 960, is only 0.2% behind, while the Radeon Vega 8 is 0.8% behind. In contrast, the WX 5100's average score is pulled down by its weaker performance in specific legacy tests, such as its Passmark DirectX 9 score of 88 and DirectX 12 score of 26.

The Radeon Pro WX 5100's wins are concentrated in modern and compute-heavy workloads. Its architecture, with 1,792 shading units and a peak FP32 throughput of 3.892 TFLOPS, is built for parallel math. Its high scores in Geekbench Vulkan (26,909) and Metal (29,003) also demonstrate its strength in modern graphics APIs. The GTX 465, on the other hand, wins in the context of its percentile ranking, suggesting it holds up well in a mix of older DirectX workloads where its Fermi architecture, despite its age, remains functional.

Architecture Differences

The fundamental architectural divide is immense. The GTX 465 uses the GF100 chip based on the Fermi architecture, manufactured on a 40 nm process at TSMC. This results in a large 529 mm² die housing 3,100 million transistors. In contrast, the Radeon Pro WX 5100 uses the Ellesmere chip with the GCN 4.0 architecture, built on a much more modern 14 nm process at GlobalFoundries. This allows AMD to pack 5,700 million transistors into a significantly smaller 232 mm² die. The transistor density tells the story: the WX 5100 has 24.6 million transistors per mm², compared to the GTX 465's 5.9 million, a 4x improvement in packing efficiency.

This architectural leap translates directly into core counts. The Radeon Pro WX 5100 features 1,792 shading units and 112 texture mapping units (TMUs), dwarfing the GTX 465's 352 shading units and 44 TMUs. Both cards have 32 ROPs. Memory configurations also differ starkly. The GTX 465 is equipped with 1024 MB of GDDR5 memory on a 256-bit bus, providing 102.7 GB/s of bandwidth. The WX 5100, while also using a 256-bit bus, offers 8 GB of GDDR5 memory and a higher bandwidth of 160.0 GB/s. The AMD card also supports a 1:1 FP16 rate at 3.892 TFLOPS, a feature entirely absent from the older Fermi card.

Power and physical characteristics highlight the efficiency gains. The GTX 465 has a 200 W TDP, requires a dual-slot cooler, and needs two 6-pin power connectors. The Radeon Pro WX 5100 sips power by comparison, with a 75 W TDP, a single-slot design, and no external power connectors required. This makes the WX 5100 a far more practical card for dense workstations. The interface also advances from PCIe 2.0 x16 on the GTX 465 to PCIe 3.0 x16 on the WX 5100.

FAQ

Q: Which card is faster in the only directly comparable benchmark?

A: The AMD Radeon Pro WX 5100 is significantly faster in the Geekbench OpenCL test, scoring 24,217 compared to the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 465's 9,294. This represents a delta of -61.6% for the GTX 465, meaning the AMD card is over 2.5 times faster in this specific compute workload.

Q: Does the older NVIDIA card have any performance advantage?

A: The data indicates the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 465 holds a higher percentile ranking at 46th versus the AMD card's 44th among all GPUs. This suggests that its average performance across a broader set of benchmarks, including older DirectX tests, is relatively closer to its contemporaries than the WX 5100's average is to its own peers.

Q: How do their memory configurations compare?

A: The Radeon Pro WX 5100 has a significant advantage with 8 GB of GDDR5 memory compared to the GTX 465's 1 GB. While both use a 256-bit memory bus, the WX 5100 also has higher bandwidth at 160.0 GB/s versus 102.7 GB/s.

Q: What are the key architectural differences?

A: The GTX 465 is built on NVIDIA's Fermi architecture using a 40 nm process, while the WX 5100 uses AMD's GCN 4.0 architecture on a 14 nm process. The WX 5100 has 1,792 shading units and 112 TMUs, far more than the GTX 465's 352 shading units and 44 TMUs.

Q: Which card is more power-efficient?

A: The Radeon Pro WX 5100 is far more power-efficient. It has a 75 W TDP and requires no external power connectors, while the GeForce GTX 465 has a 200 W TDP and requires two 6-pin power connectors. The WX 5100 also has a lower suggested PSU of 250 W versus 550 W.

Q: What is the difference in their API support?

A: The WX 5100 supports DirectX 12 (12_0) and Vulkan 1.3, while the GTX 465 only supports up to DirectX 12 (11_0) and has no listed Vulkan support. Both support OpenGL 4.6.

Specification Differences

The specification sheets for these two cards diverge on nearly every key metric. The process node is a major difference, with the GTX 465 using a 40 nm process and the WX 5100 using a 14 nm process. This leads to a massive difference in die size and transistor count: the GTX 465 has a 529 mm² die with 3,100 million transistors, while the WX 5100 has a 232 mm² die with 5,700 million transistors. The clock speeds also differ, with the GTX 465 listing only a memory clock of 802 MHz (3.2 Gbps effective), while the WX 5100 has a base clock of 713 MHz and a boost clock of 1086 MHz, with memory at 1250 MHz (5 Gbps effective).

Memory is another clear differentiator. The GTX 465 has 1024 MB of memory, while the WX 5100 has 8 GB. Both use GDDR5 on a 256-bit bus, but bandwidth differs at 102.7 GB/s for NVIDIA and 160.0 GB/s for AMD. The core configuration is also vastly different, with the WX 5100 featuring 1,792 shading units and 112 TMUs versus the GTX 465's 352 shading units and 44 TMUs. Both have 32 ROPs. The compute throughput is a major gap: the GTX 465 offers 855.4 GFLOPS FP32, while the WX 5100 offers 3.892 TFLOPS, with the AMD card also supporting FP16 at the same rate.

Physical and power specifications are almost opposites. The GTX 465 has a 200 W TDP, a dual-slot width, and requires 2x 6-pin power connectors. The WX 5100 has a 75 W TDP, a single-slot width, and requires no power connectors. The suggested PSU is 550 W for the NVIDIA card and 250 W for the AMD card. The GTX 465 is also longer at 241 mm compared to the WX 5100's 173 mm. Display outputs differ as well, with the GTX 465 offering 2x DVI and 1x mini-HDMI 1.3a, while the WX 5100 offers 4x DisplayPort 1.4a. The bus interface is PCIe 2.0 x16 for the GTX 465 and PCIe 3.0 x16 for the WX 5100.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The sole head-to-head benchmark result is a decisive victory for the AMD Radeon Pro WX 5100. In the Geekbench OpenCL test, the WX 5100 scores 24,217, while the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 465 scores 9,294. The deltaPct of -61.6% indicates the GTX 465's score is 61.6% lower than the AMD card's score. This is not a marginal win; it represents a fundamental performance gap in compute capability.

This single data point is powerful because Geekbench OpenCL is a proxy for real-world GPU compute tasks like rendering, physics simulation, and data processing. The WX 5100's superior core count and modern architecture allow it to process far more parallel instructions per cycle. The GTX 465, despite its high percentile ranking, simply cannot match the raw compute throughput of the newer card in this demanding workload.

The absence of other head-to-head results is itself informative. The GTX 465's benchmark suite only includes the Geekbench OpenCL test, while the WX 5100 has a broader set including Metal, Vulkan, and multiple Passmark tests. The GTX 465's higher percentile (46 vs 44) is therefore based on a single score, suggesting its relative strength is in that specific OpenCL test when compared against all other GPUs, not necessarily in other workloads. The WX 5100's average score of 8,863 is lower than its OpenCL score, indicating its performance in other tests like Passmark DirectX 9 (88) and G2D (777) is significantly lower, which drags down its average.

The Verdict

For a user prioritizing raw compute performance in modern applications, the choice is clear from the data: the AMD Radeon Pro WX 5100 is the superior card. Its Geekbench OpenCL score of 24,217 is more than double that of the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 465. Its 8 GB of memory, support for DirectX 12 (12_0) and Vulkan 1.3, and much lower power requirements (75 W TDP, no power connectors) make it a far more capable and practical component for a modern system, particularly in a professional workstation context where reliability and efficiency are paramount.

The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 465, however, is not entirely without merit based on the data. Its higher percentile ranking (46th vs 44th) and close proximity to rivals like the GeForce GTX 960 (0.2% delta) suggest that its performance is still in the same ballpark as some mid-range cards from a later generation. This could make it a curiosity for retro or legacy system builds where its specific feature set, such as 2x DVI output, is needed. However, its 1 GB memory, lack of Vulkan support, and high power draw make it a poor choice for any modern workload.

The verdict is a generational one. The data shows the AMD Radeon Pro WX 5100 is the clear winner for anyone needing compute performance, modern API support, and efficiency. The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 465 remains a historical artifact whose performance, while surprisingly competitive in percentile terms, is anchored to an older era of graphics processing. Its 0 wins in the head-to-head comparison against the WX 5100's 1 win tells the definitive story.