AMD Radeon Pro WX 9100 vs NVIDIA Quadro GP100 Comparison

NVIDIA Quadro GP100 and AMD Radeon Pro WX 9100 are both professional workstation graphics cards aimed at compute-heavy and visualization tasks, and both are now end-of-life products. While they share a dual-slot form factor, 16 GB of HBM2 memory, and a PCIe 3.0 x16 interface, their underlying architectures and benchmark results show distinct performance profiles. The database records a single head-to-head OpenCL benchmark, where the NVIDIA card holds a decisive lead, but the AMD card offers a broader set of measured API scores. This analysis draws exclusively from the recorded specifications and test data.

FAQ

Q: Which card has the higher average benchmark score?

A: The NVIDIA Quadro GP100 has an average benchmark score of 87,445, placing it in the 93rd percentile of all GPUs. The AMD Radeon Pro WX 9100 has an average score of 64,212, placing it in the 89th percentile.

Q: How large is the performance gap in the head-to-head OpenCL test?

A: In the recorded Geekbench OpenCL test, the NVIDIA Quadro GP100 scored 87,445 against the AMD Radeon Pro WX 9100's 66,605, giving the NVIDIA card a 31.3% advantage.

Q: Does the AMD card have any benchmark where it wins?

A: The head-to-head data shows only one benchmark test, Geekbench OpenCL, and the AMD card did not win any of the recorded comparisons. The database lists 1 win for NVIDIA and 0 wins for AMD.

Q: What are the nearest rivals for each card according to the database?

A: For the NVIDIA Quadro GP100, the nearest rivals are the AMD Radeon PRO W7600 (average score 87,108, 0.4% behind), the NVIDIA CMP 40HX (85,637, 2.1% behind), the NVIDIA RTX A4500 Mobile (91,134, 4% ahead), and the NVIDIA RTX A4500 (91,671, 4.6% ahead). For the AMD Radeon Pro WX 9100, the nearest rivals are the NVIDIA CMP 30HX (63,842, 0.6% ahead), the AMD Radeon RX 9060 XT LP (63,830, 0.6% ahead), the AMD Radeon RX 7600M (63,775, 0.7% ahead), and the AMD Radeon Pro Vega 56 (63,693, 0.8% ahead).

Q: Do both cards use the same process node?

A: No. The NVIDIA Quadro GP100 is built on a 16 nm process at TSMC, while the AMD Radeon Pro WX 9100 uses a 14 nm process at GlobalFoundries.

Q: What is the launch MSRP for the AMD card?

A: The AMD Radeon Pro WX 9100 has a launch MSRP of 1,599 USD. The NVIDIA Quadro GP100 has no recorded launch MSRP.

Architecture Differences

The two cards are built on fundamentally different architectures from separate manufacturers. The NVIDIA Quadro GP100 uses the Pascal architecture, specifically the GP100 chip, and belongs to the Quadro Pascal generation. In contrast, the AMD Radeon Pro WX 9100 uses the GCN 5.0 architecture, built around the Vega 10 chip, and belongs to the Radeon Pro Polaris generation. These architectural foundations drive many of the measurable differences in compute resources and memory design.

The manufacturing processes differ as well. The NVIDIA chip is produced by TSMC on a 16 nm node, while the AMD chip is produced by GlobalFoundries on a 14 nm node. Despite the smaller node on the AMD side, the transistor counts are higher on the NVIDIA chip. The GP100 packs 15,300 million transistors on a 610 mm² die, giving a transistor density of 25.1 million transistors per square millimeter. The Vega 10 chip contains 12,500 million transistors on a 495 mm² die, resulting in a slightly higher density of 25.3 million transistors per square millimeter.

Memory architecture is a major differentiator. Both cards feature 16 GB of HBM2 memory, but the NVIDIA Quadro GP100 uses a 4096-bit memory bus, whereas the AMD card uses a 2048-bit bus. This wider bus on the NVIDIA side directly translates to the memory bandwidth: the NVIDIA card reaches 732.2 GB/s, while the AMD card achieves 483.8 GB/s. The memory clock settings also differ. The NVIDIA card runs at 715 MHz, with an effective data rate of 1430 Mbps. The AMD card runs at 945 MHz, with an effective data rate of 1890 Mbps. Even though the AMD memory operates at a higher clock, the much narrower bus limits the overall bandwidth compared to the NVIDIA card.

Compute unit counts also diverge. The AMD Radeon Pro WX 9100 has more shading units (4096 versus 3584) and more texture mapping units (256 versus 224), but the NVIDIA card has more render output units (96 versus 64). This influences the pixel and texture fill rates. The NVIDIA GP100 produces 138.5 GPixel/s and 323.2 GTexel/s, while the AMD card produces 96.00 GPixel/s and 384.0 GTexel/s. The AMD card leads in texture fill rate due to its higher TMU count and clock, but the NVIDIA card leads in pixel fill rate due to its higher ROP count.

Both cards list the same API support for DirectX 12 (12_1), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.3. Neither card has dedicated ray tracing cores or tensor cores. The power profiles are similar: the NVIDIA GP100 has a TDP of 235 W, and the AMD card has a TDP of 230 W. The power connector requirements differ, with the NVIDIA card using a single 8-pin connector, while the AMD card requires a 6-pin plus an 8-pin connector. Both cards suggest a 550 W power supply.

The display output configuration differs as well. The NVIDIA Quadro GP100 provides 1x DVI and 4x DisplayPort 1.4a outputs, while the AMD Radeon Pro WX 9100 provides 6x mini-DisplayPort 1.4a outputs. Physical dimensions are identical: both are 267 mm long (10.5 inches) and 111 mm tall (4.4 inches), both dual-slot cards.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The database records only one head-to-head benchmark test between these two cards, and that is Geekbench OpenCL. In this test, the NVIDIA Quadro GP100 delivered a score of 87,445, while the AMD Radeon Pro WX 9100 scored 66,605. The delta is 31.3% in favor of the NVIDIA card. This is a substantial margin, indicating that in OpenCL compute workloads, the NVIDIA card offers a clear performance advantage.

To put the NVIDIA score in context, its nearest rivals in the database are all relatively close. The AMD Radeon PRO W7600 scores 87,108, which is only 0.4% lower. The NVIDIA CMP 40HX scores 85,637, which is 2.1% lower. The NVIDIA RTX A4500 Mobile and RTX A4500 score 91,134 and 91,671, respectively, which are 4% and 4.6% higher. Thus, the GP100's OpenCL score sits comfortably above its direct AMD competitor and is within a small margin of some higher-end NVIDIA mobile and desktop parts.

For the AMD Radeon Pro WX 9100, the OpenCL score of 66,605 is far below its average benchmark score of 64,212, but the average includes multiple tests. The AMD card also has recorded Geekbench Metal and Vulkan scores: 71,319 for Metal and 54,711 for Vulkan. These are not directly comparable to the NVIDIA card because the database does not list Metal or Vulkan results for the Quadro GP100. Therefore, the only clean head-to-head comparison available shows the NVIDIA card with a 31.3% lead.

The AMD card's nearest rivals in the overall database rankings have average scores around 63,700 to 63,800. Its own average score of 64,212 puts it just 0.6% ahead of the NVIDIA CMP 30HX and the AMD Radeon RX 9060 XT LP, and 0.7% ahead of the AMD Radeon RX 7600M. The AMD Radeon Pro Vega 56 is 0.8% behind. This suggests that the WX 9100, despite its high-end positioning, has compute performance that is validated by the database, but the OpenCL head-to-head shows it lagging the GP100 by a wider margin.

The NVIDIA GP100's percentile rank of 93rd versus the AMD's 89th percentile reinforces the higher absolute performance. The 31.3% delta in OpenCL is the largest comparative gap observed anywhere in the data for these cards.

The Verdict

Based on the recorded data, the NVIDIA Quadro GP100 is the stronger choice for OpenCL-based compute workloads. Its head-to-head score is 31.3% higher than the AMD Radeon Pro WX 9100, and it occupies a higher percentile rank among all GPUs (93rd versus 89th). The NVIDIA card also has a wider memory bus yielding significantly higher memory bandwidth, which can be decisive in memory-bound tasks.

The AMD Radeon Pro WX 9100, however, is not without its merits. It has more shading units and texture mapping units, which show up in a higher texture rate of 384.0 GTexel/s compared to 323.2 GTexel/s for the NVIDIA card. It also has a lower TDP of 230 W versus 235 W, a minor but measurable difference. The AMD card provides additional benchmark scores in Metal and Vulkan, which may be relevant for users working within those API ecosystems, although the NVIDIA card does not have recorded results for those tests in the database.

The verdict from the data is clear for pure compute performance: the NVIDIA Quadro GP100 wins the only head-to-head test and has the higher average score. The AMD card, while offering more shading units and faster texture processing, does not translate that into a higher OpenCL score. Users prioritizing OpenCL throughput should select the NVIDIA card. Users who require Metal or Vulkan results, or who prefer the AMD card's lower power draw and higher TMU count, may still consider the AMD Radeon Pro WX 9100, but they would be accepting a substantial OpenCL deficit. The AMD card has a recorded launch MSRP of 1,599 USD, while the NVIDIA card has no recorded launch MSRP.

Specification Differences

| Specification | NVIDIA Quadro GP100 | AMD Radeon Pro WX 9100 |

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

| Manufacturer | NVIDIA | AMD |

| Chip | GP100 | Vega 10 |

| Architecture | Pascal | GCN 5.0 |

| Generation | Quadro Pascal (Px000) | Radeon Pro Polaris (WX x100) |

| Process Node | 16 nm | 14 nm |

| Foundry | TSMC | GlobalFoundries |

| Transistors | 15,300 million | 12,500 million |

| Die Size | 610 mm² | 495 mm² |

| Transistor Density | 25.1M / mm² | 25.3M / mm² |

| Base Clock | 1304 MHz | 1200 MHz |

| Boost Clock | 1443 MHz | 1500 MHz |

| Memory Clock | 715 MHz (1430 Mbps effective) | 945 MHz (1890 Mbps effective) |

| Memory Bus Width | 4096 bit | 2048 bit |

| Memory Bandwidth | 732.2 GB/s | 483.8 GB/s |

| Shading Units | 3584 | 4096 |

| TMUs | 224 | 256 |

| ROPs | 96 | 64 |

| Pixel Rate | 138.5 GPixel/s | 96.00 GPixel/s |

| Texture Rate | 323.2 GTexel/s | 384.0 GTexel/s |

| FP32 Performance | 10.34 TFLOPS | 12.29 TFLOPS |

| FP16 Performance | 20.69 TFLOPS (2:1) | 24.58 TFLOPS (2:1) |

| TDP | 235 W | 230 W |

| Power Connectors | 1x 8-pin | 1x 6-pin + 1x 8-pin |

| Display Outputs | 1x DVI, 4x DisplayPort 1.4a | 6x mini-DisplayPort 1.4a |

| Release Date | 2016-09-30 | 2017-07-09 |

| Predecessor | Quadro Maxwell | Radeon Pro GCN |

| Successor | Quadro Volta | Radeon Pro Vega |

| Launch MSRP | None recorded | 1,599 USD |

| Max API Support | DirectX 12 (12_1), OpenGL 4.6, Vulkan 1.3 | Same as NVIDIA |

Both cards share the same dimensions (267 mm length, 111 mm height), dual-slot width, 16 GB of HBM2 memory, PCIe 3.0 x16 interface, and suggested power supply of 550 W. Neither card has ray tracing cores or tensor cores. The AMD card has a slightly higher FP32 performance (12.29 TFLOPS versus 10.34 TFLOPS) and FP16 performance (24.58 versus 20.69), but this does not reflect in the OpenCL head-to-head, where the NVIDIA card dominates.