AMD Radeon RX 6800 vs AMD Radeon RX Vega M GH Comparison

The AMD Radeon RX 6800 and the AMD Radeon RX Vega M GH represent two vastly different generations of AMD graphics technology, with the former built for desktop performance and the latter designed as an integrated part of a mobile platform. While the RX 6800 is a discrete, high-end add-in board, the RX Vega M GH is a compact package intended for laptops. Benchmark results show a split decision based on the API used, but the underlying architecture and performance capacity reveal a clear hierarchy. The data indicates that the RX 6800 is the overwhelmingly more powerful GPU in modern workloads, while the RX Vega M GH holds a narrow lead in one specific legacy compute test.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The direct comparison between these two cards is limited to two specific benchmark tests, and the results are starkly contrasting. In the Geekbench OpenCL test, the AMD Radeon RX Vega M GH surprisingly takes the win. It scores 27,125 points, which is 9.6% higher than the RX 6800's score of 24,508. This is a notable result, as it suggests that in this particular compute workload, the older Vega M architecture is more efficient or better optimized, despite its significantly smaller hardware footprint. This win for the Vega M GH is its only victory in the head-to-head data, but it demonstrates that raw specifications do not always translate directly to performance in every scenario.

The second test, Geekbench Vulkan, paints a completely different picture that aligns more closely with the expected performance gap. Here, the AMD Radeon RX 6800 delivers a crushing blow, scoring 115,107 points against the RX Vega M GH's 31,268 points. This results in a massive 268.1% advantage for the RX 6800. This enormous delta highlights the RX 6800's superior ability to handle modern, low-level graphics APIs, which are critical for current and future gaming titles. The Vulkan score confirms the architectural advancements and raw compute power of the RDNA 2.0 design, leaving the older GCN 4.0 architecture far behind in this arena.

When looking at the broader benchmark landscape, the average benchmark score further emphasizes the RX 6800's dominance. The RX 6800 boasts an average benchmark score of 30,095, putting it in the 75th percentile of all GPUs. Its nearest rival, the AMD Radeon RX 6700, scores slightly higher at 30,433, a delta of -1.1%, showing that the RX 6800 is positioned at the top of its performance tier. In contrast, the RX Vega M GH has an average benchmark score of 29,197, placing it in the 74th percentile. Its closest competitor is the AMD FirePro W8000 with a score of 29,211, a negligible 0% delta, indicating that the Vega M GH sits in a much lower performance class, competing with entry-level discrete GPUs.

The difference in percentile ranking is small, with only one percentile point separating the two, but the gap in average score is nearly 900 points. This is because the RX 6800's scores are bolstered by a wide range of tests including its massive Vulkan score, while the Vega M GH's average is only derived from its two Geekbench results. The data clearly shows that while the Vega M GH can hold its own in a specific OpenCL workload, the RX 6800 is in a different league for overall graphics performance, particularly in API-heavy tasks like those found in DirectX 12 and Vulkan.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU is faster in the Geekbench Vulkan benchmark?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 6800 is significantly faster, scoring 115,107 points compared to the RX Vega M GH's 31,268 points, a 268.1% advantage.

Q: Does the AMD Radeon RX Vega M GH win any benchmark?

A: Yes, it wins the Geekbench OpenCL test with a score of 27,125, which is 9.6% higher than the RX 6800's score of 24,508.

Q: How does the average benchmark score of the RX 6800 compare to its nearest rival, the RTX 3070 Ti?

A: The RX 6800's average benchmark score is 30,095, which is 0.5% higher than the RTX 3070 Ti's score of 29,945.

Q: What is the performance difference between the RX Vega M GH and the AMD Radeon RX 470?

A: The RX Vega M GH has an average score of 29,197, which is 0.7% higher than the RX 470's average score of 28,996, making them very close in overall performance.

Q: Which GPU supports the newer DirectX version?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 6800 supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), while the RX Vega M GH supports an older DirectX 12 (12_0).

Q: What is the percentile ranking for each GPU among all GPUs?

A: The RX 6800 is in the 75th percentile, while the RX Vega M GH is in the 74th percentile of all GPUs.

Architecture Differences

The two GPUs are built on fundamentally different architectures and manufacturing processes, explaining their vast performance differences. The AMD Radeon RX 6800 is based on the RDNA 2.0 architecture and uses the Navi 21 chip, manufactured on a 7 nm process at TSMC. This advanced node allows for a massive 26,800 million transistors on a 520 mm² die, resulting in a high transistor density of 51.5M per mm². The RX Vega M GH, in contrast, uses the older GCN 4.0 architecture with the Polaris 22 chip, built on a 14 nm process at GlobalFoundries. It contains only 5,000 million transistors on a 208 mm² die, with a much lower density of 24.0M per mm².

These architectural and process differences lead to significant disparities in core configuration. The RX 6800 is equipped with 3,840 shading units, 240 texture mapping units (TMUs), and 96 render output units (ROPs). It also features 60 dedicated ray tracing cores, a hallmark of the RDNA 2.0 generation. The RX Vega M GH is far more modest, with 1,536 shading units, 96 TMUs, and 64 ROPs, and it lacks dedicated ray tracing cores entirely. This difference in core count directly translates to compute performance, with the RX 6800 offering 16.17 TFLOPS of FP32 performance versus the Vega M GH's 3.656 TFLOPS, a nearly 4.5x difference.

Memory subsystems also differ drastically. The RX 6800 uses 16 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus, delivering a bandwidth of 512.0 GB/s. The RX Vega M GH uses 4 GB of HBM2 memory on a much wider 1024-bit bus, but its bandwidth is only 204.8 GB/s due to lower clock speeds (800 MHz). The clock speeds themselves are also telling: the RX 6800 has a base clock of 1700 MHz and a boost clock of 2105 MHz, while the RX Vega M GH operates at a much lower 1063 MHz base and 1190 MHz boost. The RX 6800's higher clocks, combined with its superior architecture, allow it to achieve a pixel rate of 202.1 GPixel/s and a texture rate of 505.2 GTexel/s, dwarfing the Vega M GH's 76.16 GPixel/s and 114.2 GTexel/s.

The Verdict

Based strictly on the benchmark data, the choice between these two GPUs is clear for most use cases. The AMD Radeon RX 6800 is the superior product for any modern graphics workload. Its 268.1% lead in the Geekbench Vulkan test is a decisive indicator of its ability to handle contemporary game engines and graphics APIs. Its support for DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2) and Vulkan 1.4, compared to the Vega M GH's DirectX 12 (12_0) and Vulkan 1.3, ensures future compatibility with the latest titles. Gamers or content creators looking for high performance should unequivocally choose the RX 6800.

The AMD Radeon RX Vega M GH, however, is not without merit. Its 9.6% victory in the Geekbench OpenCL test is an interesting data point, suggesting that for specific compute tasks that favor OpenCL, it can outperform the larger card. This could be relevant for professionals with legacy software that relies heavily on this API. However, this single win is insufficient to recommend it as a general-purpose graphics solution. Its performance class, as indicated by its average benchmark score of 29,197, places it in the same tier as the AMD Radeon RX 470 and Intel Arc A370M, which are entry-level to mid-range components. Its role as an integrated graphics processor (IGP) for portable devices means it serves a completely different market segment, prioritizing power efficiency over raw performance, with a 100 W TDP versus the RX 6800's 250 W.

Specification Differences

The following table highlights the key specifications where the two AMD GPUs differ, based on the data provided.

| Specification | AMD Radeon RX 6800 | AMD Radeon RX Vega M GH |

|:--- |:--- |:--- |

| Architecture | RDNA 2.0 | GCN 4.0 |

| Process Node | 7 nm | 14 nm |

| Transistors | 26,800 million | 5,000 million |

| Die Size | 520 mm² | 208 mm² |

| Base Clock | 1700 MHz | 1063 MHz |

| Boost Clock | 2105 MHz | 1190 MHz |

| Memory Size | 16 GB | 4 GB |

| Memory Type | GDDR6 | HBM2 |

| Memory Bus | 256 bit | 1024 bit |

| Memory Bandwidth | 512.0 GB/s | 204.8 GB/s |

| Shading Units | 3840 | 1536 |

| TMUs | 240 | 96 |

| ROPs | 96 | 64 |

| Ray Tracing Cores | 60 | None |

| Pixel Rate | 202.1 GPixel/s | 76.16 GPixel/s |

| Texture Rate | 505.2 GTexel/s | 114.2 GTexel/s |

| FP32 Performance | 16.17 TFLOPS | 3.656 TFLOPS |

| TDP | 250 W | 100 W |

| DirectX Version | 12 Ultimate (12_2) | 12 (12_0) |

| Vulkan Version | 1.4 | 1.3 |

| Bus Interface | PCIe 4.0 x16 | IGP |

| Slot Width | Dual-slot | IGP |

| Release Date | 2020-10-27 | 2018-01-31 |