NVIDIA RTX 6000D vs NVIDIA RTX A5500 Comparison

NVIDIA’s workstation GPU lineup spans two very different eras, and the RTX 6000D versus RTX A5500 matchup is a textbook generational clash. The newer card wins the only shared benchmark by a massive margin, but the older one is no slouch in its own right. Here is the data-driven breakdown.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The only benchmark both cards share is Geekbench OpenCL, and the result is not close. The RTX 6000D scores 388,405, while the RTX A5500 scores 174,637. That is a delta of 122.4% in favor of the RTX 6000D, meaning the newer card delivers more than double the raw compute performance in this workload. For context, this is not a marginal improvement; it is a full generational leap that dwarfs typical year-over-year gains.

Looking at the broader benchmark averages, the gap narrows but remains decisive. The RTX 6000D averages 195,964 across its tested suite, while the RTX A5500 averages 165,217. That translates to roughly an 18.6% advantage for the RTX 6000D in overall scoring, even though the RTX A5500’s suite includes a Vulkan result (155,797) that has no RTX 6000D counterpart. The RTX 6000D’s single OpenCL score of 388,405 is so dominant that it pulls its average far above the A5500’s two-test average.

The RTX 6000D also sits in the 98th percentile of all GPUs, versus the 97th percentile for the RTX A5500. While both are elite-tier performers, the RTX 6000D’s percentile ranking reflects its position among the absolute fastest cards ever tested. In the nearest-rival comparison, the RTX 6000D is 0.8% ahead of the Tesla V100S PCIe 32 GB, 4.7% ahead of the A100 SXM4 40 GB, and 6.1% ahead of the RTX 5000 Ada Generation, but 5.4% behind the A100 PCIe 80 GB. The RTX A5500, by contrast, is 0.2% ahead of the Radeon PRO W7800, 1.7% ahead of the A100 PCIe 40 GB, and 2% behind the Radeon Pro W6900X, while trailing the RTX 4500 Ada Generation by 0.5%. The RTX 6000D’s closest competition is data-center silicon, whereas the A5500 trades blows with mid-range workstation cards.

Architecture Differences

The RTX 6000D is built on NVIDIA’s Blackwell 2.0 architecture, specifically the GB202 chip, fabricated on a 5 nm process at TSMC. It packs 92,200 million transistors into a 750 mm² die, yielding a transistor density of 122.9 million per square millimeter. The RTX A5500, in contrast, uses the older Ampere architecture with the GA102 chip, made on Samsung’s 8 nm process. It contains 28,300 million transistors on a 628 mm² die, giving it a density of just 45.1 million per square millimeter. The density difference is stark: the RTX 6000D crams roughly 2.7 times more transistors into only 1.2 times the die area, which explains much of its performance advantage.

Memory is another major divergence. The RTX 6000D ships with 84 GB of GDDR7 on a 448-bit bus, delivering 1.40 TB/s of bandwidth. The RTX A5500 has 24 GB of GDDR6 on a 384-bit bus, capped at 768.0 GB/s. That is a 3.5x capacity increase and an 82% bandwidth increase for the newer card. The RTX 6000D’s memory clocks at 1560 MHz (25 Gbps effective), while the A5500 runs at 2000 MHz (16 Gbps effective). The bus width is wider on the A5500 (384-bit vs 448-bit), but the RTX 6000D’s faster memory type and higher effective speed more than compensate.

Compute resources tell a similar story. The RTX 6000D has 19,968 shading units, 624 TMUs, 192 ROPs, 156 RT cores, and 624 tensor cores. The RTX A5500 has 10,240 shading units, 320 TMUs, 96 ROPs, 80 RT cores, and 320 tensor cores. In every category, the RTX 6000D has roughly 95-100% more units, doubling the parallel processing capacity. Peak FP32 throughput is 97.04 TFLOPS for the RTX 6000D versus 34.10 TFLOPS for the A5500, a 2.85x difference. Both cards offer 1:1 FP16-to-FP32 ratios, but the raw numbers remain in the newer card’s favor.

Power and connectivity also differ. The RTX 6000D has a 600 W TDP, requires a 1000 W suggested PSU, and uses a single 16-pin connector. The RTX A5500 draws 230 W, needs a 550 W PSU, and uses an 8-pin connector. Both are dual-slot cards, but the RTX 6000D is larger: 304 mm long and 137 mm tall versus 267 mm and 112 mm for the A5500. The RTX 6000D runs on PCIe 5.0 x16, while the A5500 uses PCIe 4.0 x16. Display outputs are also newer on the RTX 6000D, with 4x DisplayPort 2.1b versus the A5500’s 4x DisplayPort 1.4a.

The Verdict

The data makes the choice straightforward for anyone who needs maximum compute. The RTX 6000D wins the only head-to-head benchmark by 122.4%, has more than double the FP32 throughput, nearly triple the memory bandwidth, and 3.5x the memory capacity. It also carries a launch MSRP of 8,565 USD. The RTX A5500, meanwhile, is end-of-life, while the RTX 6000D is still in active production.

However, the RTX A5500 is not without merit. Its 230 W TDP means far lower power draw, and its 267 mm length fits in smaller chassis. It is also a 97th-percentile GPU, meaning it outperforms the vast majority of cards ever made. For workloads that fit within 24 GB of memory and do not require Blackwell-specific features, the A5500 remains a capable option. The RTX 6000D’s 600 W TDP and 304 mm length are significant physical requirements that some systems cannot accommodate.

From a pure performance-per-watt standpoint, the RTX 6000D delivers 97.04 TFLOPS at 600 W, or roughly 0.162 TFLOPS per watt. The RTX A5500 delivers 34.10 TFLOPS at 230 W, or roughly 0.148 TFLOPS per watt. The newer card is slightly more efficient despite its massive power envelope. The RTX 6000D also benefits from a newer PCIe generation and DisplayPort standard, making it more future-proof for both compute and display workloads.

Specification Differences

| Specification | NVIDIA RTX 6000D | NVIDIA RTX A5500 |

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

| Architecture | Blackwell 2.0 | Ampere |

| Process Node | 5 nm | 8 nm |

| Foundry | TSMC | Samsung |

| Transistors | 92,200 million | 28,300 million |

| Die Size | 750 mm² | 628 mm² |

| Transistor Density | 122.9M / mm² | 45.1M / mm² |

| Base Clock | 1992 MHz | 1080 MHz |

| Boost Clock | 2430 MHz | 1665 MHz |

| Memory Clock | 1560 MHz (25 Gbps effective) | 2000 MHz (16 Gbps effective) |

| Memory Size | 84 GB | 24 GB |

| Memory Type | GDDR7 | GDDR6 |

| Memory Bus Width | 448 bit | 384 bit |

| Memory Bandwidth | 1.40 TB/s | 768.0 GB/s |

| Shading Units | 19968 | 10240 |

| TMUs | 624 | 320 |

| ROPs | 192 | 96 |

| RT Cores | 156 | 80 |

| Tensor Cores | 624 | 320 |

| Pixel Rate | 466.6 GPixel/s | 159.8 GPixel/s |

| Texture Rate | 1,516.3 GTexel/s | 532.8 GTexel/s |

| FP32 | 97.04 TFLOPS | 34.10 TFLOPS |

| FP16 | 97.04 TFLOPS (1:1) | 34.10 TFLOPS (1:1) |

| TDP | 600 W | 230 W |

| Power Connector | 1x 16-pin | 1x 8-pin |

| Suggested PSU | 1000 W | 550 W |

| Bus Interface | PCIe 5.0 x16 | PCIe 4.0 x16 |

| Display Outputs | 4x DisplayPort 2.1b | 4x DisplayPort 1.4a |

| Dimensions (LxH) | 304 mm x 137 mm | 267 mm x 112 mm |

FAQ

Q: How much faster is the RTX 6000D than the RTX A5500 in Geekbench OpenCL?

A: The RTX 6000D scores 388,405 versus 174,637 for the RTX A5500, a 122.4% difference in favor of the newer card.

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

A: The RTX 6000D has 84 GB of GDDR7, while the RTX A5500 has 24 GB of GDDR6. That is a 3.5x capacity advantage for the RTX 6000D.

Q: Which card has a higher FP32 compute throughput?

A: The RTX 6000D delivers 97.04 TFLOPS, compared to 34.10 TFLOPS for the RTX A5500, making the newer card roughly 2.85x faster in FP32 operations.

Q: Are both cards still in production?

A: No. The RTX 6000D is listed as Active, while the RTX A5500 is End-of-life.

Q: What is the power consumption difference?

A: The RTX 6000D has a 600 W TDP with a 1000 W suggested PSU, while the RTX A5500 has a 230 W TDP with a 550 W suggested PSU.

Q: How do the two cards compare to their nearest rivals?

A: The RTX 6000D is 0.8% ahead of the Tesla V100S PCIe 32 GB and 6.1% ahead of the RTX 5000 Ada Generation, but 5.4% behind the A100 PCIe 80 GB. The RTX A5500 is 0.2% ahead of the Radeon PRO W7800 and 1.7% ahead of the A100 PCIe 40 GB, but 2% behind the Radeon Pro W6900X.