NVIDIA PG506-232 vs NVIDIA RTX A5500 Comparison

# Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The benchmark data offers a single head-to-head comparison between the NVIDIA PG506-232 and the NVIDIA RTX A5500: Geekbench OpenCL. In this test, the PG506-232 delivers a score of 225,124, while the RTX A5500 scores 174,637. That represents a 28.9% advantage for the PG506-232. This is a substantial margin, positioning the server-oriented card clearly ahead in raw compute throughput as measured by this workload.

Contextualizing these scores against their respective competitive fields adds further depth. The PG506-232's score places it in the 99th percentile of all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 225,124 across its tested workloads. Its nearest rivals in the database include the AMD Radeon PRO W7900D, which scores 219,827 (2.4% behind the PG506-232), and the NVIDIA A100 PCIe 80 GB, which scores 207,124 (8.7% behind). Interestingly, the NVIDIA L20 outpaces the PG506-232 with a score of 251,147, a 10.4% advantage. The RTX 6000D trails at 195,964, sitting 14.9% behind.

The RTX A5500, by contrast, holds a 97th percentile ranking with an average benchmark score of 165,217. Its nearest rivals show a much tighter cluster of results. The AMD Radeon PRO W7800 scores 164,894, a mere 0.2% deficit. The NVIDIA RTX 4500 Ada Generation scores 166,094, which is 0.5% ahead of the A5500. The NVIDIA A100 PCIe 40 GB sits at 162,504 (1.7% behind), and the AMD Radeon Pro W6900X leads that group at 168,574 (2.0% ahead).

These deltas tell a clear story. The PG506-232 does not just edge out its rival; it wins decisively in the only direct benchmark available, with a nearly 30% lead. Meanwhile, the RTX A5500's own competitive position is far more precarious, with its nearest rivals all within a couple of percentage points. The data suggests that in OpenCL compute, the PG506-232 is a significantly more potent compute device, while the RTX A5500 competes in a tighter performance band.

# Architecture Differences

The two cards share the Ampere architecture name, but they are built on fundamentally different silicon and process technologies. The PG506-232 uses the GA100 chip, fabricated on a 7 nm process at TSMC. The RTX A5500 uses the GA102 chip, built on an 8 nm process at Samsung. This process difference is reflected in the transistor counts: the GA100 packs 54,200 million transistors on a 826 mm² die, yielding a transistor density of 65.6 million per mm². The GA102 contains 28,300 million transistors on a 628 mm² die, for a density of 45.1 million per mm². The PG506-232's larger, denser die is a core reason for its compute advantage.

Memory architecture is another major divergence. The PG506-232 features 24 GB of HBM2 memory on a 3072-bit bus, delivering 933.1 GB/s of bandwidth. The RTX A5500 also has 24 GB, but uses GDDR6 on a 384-bit bus, with 768.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The PG506-232 offers roughly 21.5% more memory bandwidth, which is critical for data-intensive server workloads. The memory clocks also differ: the PG506-232 runs at 1215 MHz (2.4 Gbps effective), while the RTX A5500 runs at 2000 MHz (16 Gbps effective). Despite the GDDR6's higher effective clock, its narrower bus cannot match HBM2's aggregate throughput.

Core configurations differ substantially. The PG506-232 has 3584 shading units, 224 texture mapping units (TMUs), and 96 render output units (ROPs). It includes 224 tensor cores but no dedicated ray tracing (RT) cores. The RTX A5500, in contrast, boasts 10,240 shading units, 320 TMUs, and 96 ROPs. It also has 320 tensor cores and 80 RT cores. The RTX A5500's shading unit count is nearly three times higher, yet its FP32 throughput is 34.10 TFLOPS versus the PG506-232's 10.32 TFLOPS. That is a 3.3x difference in raw FP32 compute, which appears counterintuitive given the benchmark results. The explanation lies in workload characteristics: OpenCL scores may favor memory bandwidth or different execution paths than pure FP32 peak throughput.

Clock speeds also tell a story. The PG506-232 has a base clock of 930 MHz and a boost clock of 1440 MHz. The RTX A5500 runs higher, with a 1080 MHz base and 1665 MHz boost. The RTX A5500's higher clocks contribute to its superior pixel rate (159.8 GPixel/s vs 138.2 GPixel/s) and texture rate (532.8 GTexel/s vs 322.6 GTexel/s). The PG506-232's pixel rate is lower despite the same ROP count, due to lower clocks. Its texture rate is also lower, reflecting fewer TMUs and lower clocks.

Power draw and physical characteristics differ as well. The PG506-232 has a TDP of 165 W and requires an 8-pin EPS connector, with a suggested PSU of 450 W. The RTX A5500 has a TDP of 230 W, uses a single 8-pin connector, and suggests a 550 W PSU. Both are dual-slot cards with identical dimensions: 267 mm in length and 112 mm in height. The PG506-232 has no display outputs, while the RTX A5500 offers 4x DisplayPort 1.4a. The RTX A5500 also supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4, while the PG506-232 lists no API support in its data. The PG506-232 was released in April 2021, while the RTX A5500 followed in March 2022. Both are now end-of-life products.

# Where Each One Wins

The PG506-232 wins decisively in the Geekbench OpenCL benchmark, with a 28.9% lead. This suggests it is the stronger choice for general-purpose compute workloads that exercise OpenCL routines, especially those that benefit from the HBM2 memory's higher bandwidth. The PG506-232's 99th percentile ranking versus the RTX A5500's 97th percentile further underscores its overall compute superiority in this database. For server deployments, AI inference, or scientific computation that relies on OpenCL, the PG506-232 is the clear performance leader based on this data.

The RTX A5500, despite losing the head-to-head, wins in several architectural and feature categories that matter for different use cases. Its FP32 throughput of 34.10 TFLOPS is more than three times the PG506-232's 10.32 TFLOPS, making it the better choice for workloads that are bound by raw FP32 shader compute rather than memory bandwidth. Its higher texture rate (532.8 GTexel/s vs 322.6 GTexel/s) and pixel rate (159.8 GPixel/s vs 138.2 GPixel/s) indicate stronger rasterization and texturing performance, which is relevant for 3D rendering and visualization tasks. The presence of 80 RT cores gives the RTX A5500 hardware ray tracing capability that the PG506-232 completely lacks. For professional 3D applications that use ray tracing, the RTX A5500 is functionally superior.

The RTX A5500 also wins on display connectivity, with 4x DisplayPort 1.4a outputs, while the PG506-232 has no outputs at all. The RTX A5500 supports DirectX 12 Ultimate, OpenGL 4.6, and Vulkan 1.4, enabling modern graphics APIs, while the PG506-232 lists no API support. This makes the RTX A5500 suitable for interactive workstations, virtual reality, and graphics development, whereas the PG506-232 is a headless compute accelerator.

Power efficiency favors the PG506-232, which has a lower TDP of 165 W versus 230 W for the RTX A5500. The PG506-232 also requires a less powerful PSU (450 W vs 550 W). For dense server environments where power is a constraint, the PG506-232's lower draw is an advantage. The PG506-232's memory bandwidth advantage (933.1 GB/s vs 768.0 GB/s) may also give it the edge in memory-bound workloads like large matrix operations or data analytics.

# FAQ

Q: Which GPU has a higher score in the Geekbench OpenCL benchmark?

A: The NVIDIA PG506-232 scores 225,124, which is 28.9% higher than the NVIDIA RTX A5500's 174,637.

Q: Do both cards have the same amount of memory?

A: Yes, both the PG506-232 and the RTX A5500 have 24 GB of memory. However, the PG506-232 uses HBM2 with a 3072-bit bus, while the RTX A5500 uses GDDR6 with a 384-bit bus.

Q: Which card supports ray tracing?

A: The NVIDIA RTX A5500 has 80 RT cores and supports DirectX 12 Ultimate, which includes ray tracing features. The PG506-232 has no RT cores and lists no DirectX support.

Q: How does the PG506-232 compare to its nearest rivals?

A: The PG506-232 is 2.4% ahead of the AMD Radeon PRO W7900D, 8.7% ahead of the NVIDIA A100 PCIe 80 GB, and 14.9% ahead of the NVIDIA RTX 6000D in average benchmark scores. It trails the NVIDIA L20 by 10.4%.

Q: What is the memory bandwidth difference between the two cards?

A: The PG506-232 has a memory bandwidth of 933.1 GB/s, while the RTX A5500 has 768.0 GB/s. The PG506-232 offers approximately 21.5% more bandwidth.

Q: Which card has a higher FP32 compute throughput?

A: The RTX A5500 has an FP32 throughput of 34.10 TFLOPS, which is significantly higher than the PG506-232's 10.32 TFLOPS.

# Specification Differences

| Specification | NVIDIA PG506-232 | NVIDIA RTX A5500 |

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

| Chip | GA100 | GA102 |

| Process Node | 7 nm | 8 nm |

| Foundry | TSMC | Samsung |

| Transistors | 54,200 million | 28,300 million |

| Die Size | 826 mm² | 628 mm² |

| Transistor Density | 65.6M / mm² | 45.1M / mm² |

| Base Clock | 930 MHz | 1080 MHz |

| Boost Clock | 1440 MHz | 1665 MHz |

| Memory Clock | 1215 MHz (2.4 Gbps effective) | 2000 MHz (16 Gbps effective) |

| Memory Type | HBM2 | GDDR6 |

| Memory Bus Width | 3072 bit | 384 bit |

| Memory Bandwidth | 933.1 GB/s | 768.0 GB/s |

| Shading Units | 3584 | 10240 |

| TMUs | 224 | 320 |

| RT Cores | None | 80 |

| Tensor Cores | 224 | 320 |

| Pixel Rate | 138.2 GPixel/s | 159.8 GPixel/s |

| Texture Rate | 322.6 GTexel/s | 532.8 GTexel/s |

| FP32 | 10.32 TFLOPS | 34.10 TFLOPS |

| FP16 | 10.32 TFLOPS (1:1) | 34.10 TFLOPS (1:1) |

| TDP | 165 W | 230 W |

| Power Connectors | 8-pin EPS | 1x 8-pin |

| Suggested PSU | 450 W | 550 W |

| Display Outputs | No outputs | 4x DisplayPort 1.4a |

| DirectX | None | 12 Ultimate (12_2) |

| OpenGL | None | 4.6 |

| Vulkan | None | 1.4 |

| Release Date | 2021-04-11 | 2022-03-21 |

| Predecessor | Tesla Turing | Quadro Turing |

| Successor | Server Ada | Workstation Ada |

| Geekbench OpenCL Score | 225124 | 174637 |

| Percentile vs All GPUs | 99 | 97 |

| Avg Benchmark Score | 225124 | 165217 |