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AMD FirePro M5950 vs AMD FirePro M8900

AMD FirePro M5950

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The AMD FirePro M5950 is an upper middle-class mobile workstation graphics card with DirectX 11 support. It is based on the Whistler architecture found in the Radeon HD 6600M/6700M series. The clock rates and GDDR5 memory are identical to that of the Radeon HD 6770M.

Compared to the Radeon consumer line, the FirePro offers certified drivers for professional 3D applications. Due to optimizations and some unlocked features, the performance when using professional applications is more efficient with the FirePro M5950.

The integrated 480 Stream processors of the FirePro M5950 are based on the "old" 5D architecture similar to that of the Radeon 5000 series. Due to the different architecture, the core count is not directly comparable to the 1D cores found in current Nvidia GPUs. General tessellation performance of the M5950 should be similar to the desktop 6800 series.

The Stream processors can be used with DirectX 11, OpenGL 4.1, DirectCompute 11 and OpenCL. The latter two frameworks allow the M5950 to process general computations.

The theoretical performance is similar to its consumer counterpart, the Radeon HD 6770M. However, due to the professional drivers, games may generally run a bit slower.  The 6770M is able to run modern games in medium-high settings and resolutions fluently (see benchmarks on the HD 6770M page or below).

The professional performance in SPECviewperf 11 positions the M5950 between the Quadro 1000M (10% slower) and the Nvidia Quadro 2000M (about 20% faster).

The UVD3 video decoder supports the decoding of MPEG-4 AVC/H.264, VC-1, MPEG-2, Flash and now also Multi-View Codec (MVC) and MPEG-4 part 2 (DivX, xVid) HD videos on the graphics card.

Furthermore, the FirePro M5950 integrates a HD audio controller to transmit HD Audio (TrueHD or DTS Master Audio) over HDMI and DisplayPort (e.g. für Blu-Ray videos).

The AMD HD3D Technology offers support for Blu-Ray 3D and 3D displays, both integrated and external. The solution, however, is not as mature as Nvidia's 3D Vision with regards to drivers and general software support.

Thanks to Eyefinity, the M5950 graphics chip is able to theoretically drive up to 5 monitors simultaneously. Note that this will only work if the laptop features enough DisplayPort outputs to begin with.

The power consumption of the M5950 chip should be similar to the Radeon HD 6770M (~30 Watts). As a result, the graphics card can usually be found in 15" or larger laptops with adequate cooling solutions.

AMD FirePro M8900

► remove from comparison

The AMD FirePro M8900 is a high-end graphics card for mobile workstations. It is based on the same chip as the Radeon HD 6970M (Blackcomb XT) and therefore offers UVD3 decoding and slightly improved Tessellation performance compared to cards found in the previous generation (e.g., Radeon 6800 series).

Compared to the Radeon consumer line, the FirePro offers certified drivers for professional 3D applications. Due to optimizations and some unlocked features, the performance when running professional applications is highly improved.

The 960 Stream processors should be still based on the "old" 5D architecture, similar to the 5000 series. Due to the different architecture of the FirePro M8900, however, the core count cannot be directly compared to the 1D cores of current Nvidia GPUs. The Stream processors can be used with DirectX 11, OpenGL 4.1, DirectCompute 11 and OpenCL. With the later two, the cores can also be used for general computations like transcoding videos.

The theoretical performance of the FirePro M8900 is similar to the consumer counterpart, the Radeon HD 6970M. However, due to the specialized professional drivers, games may run a bit slower.  The 6970M is able to run modern games in high settings and resolutions fluently (see benchmarks on the HD 6970M page).

The new UVD3 video decoder supports the decoding of MPEG-4 AVC/H.264, VC-1, MPEG-2, Flash and now also Multi-View Codec (MVC) and MPEG-4 part 2 (DivX, xVid) HD videos on the graphics card.

Furthermore, the FirePro M8900 integrates a HD audio controller to transmit HD Audio (TrueHD or DTS Master Audio) over HDMI or DisplayPort (e.g., for Blu-Ray videos).

The AMD HD3D Technology offers support for Blu-Ray 3D and 3D displays (integrated and external). However, the solution is not as mature as Nvidia's 3D Vision.

Thanks to Eyefinity, the M8900 graphics chip is able to theoretically drive up to 5 monitors simultaneously. However, this only works if the laptop features enough DisplayPort outputs.

The power consumption of the chip should be similar to the HD 6970M and is therefore best suited for large laptops (17-inch or greater) with good cooling solutions.

AMD FirePro M5950AMD FirePro M8900
FirePro M Series
FirePro M6100 compare 768 @ 1.1 GHz128 Bit @ 6000 MHz
FirePro M8900 960 @ 0.68 GHz256 Bit @ 900 MHz
FirePro M6000 compare 640 @ 0.75 GHz128 Bit @ 4500 MHz
FirePro M5100 compare 640 @ 0.73 - 0.78 GHz128 Bit @ 4500 MHz
FirePro M4000 compare 512 @ 0.6 GHz128 Bit @ 4500 MHz
FirePro M4100 compare 384 @ 0.67 GHz128 Bit @ 4000 MHz
FirePro M5950 480 @ 0.73 GHz128 Bit @ 900 MHz
FirePro M2000 compare 480 @ 0.5 GHz64 Bit @ 3200 MHz
FirePro M6100 compare 768 @ 1.1 GHz128 Bit @ 6000 MHz
FirePro M8900 960 @ 0.68 GHz256 Bit @ 900 MHz
FirePro M6000 compare 640 @ 0.75 GHz128 Bit @ 4500 MHz
FirePro M5100 compare 640 @ 0.73 - 0.78 GHz128 Bit @ 4500 MHz
FirePro M4000 compare 512 @ 0.6 GHz128 Bit @ 4500 MHz
FirePro M4100 compare 384 @ 0.67 GHz128 Bit @ 4000 MHz
FirePro M5950 480 @ 0.73 GHz128 Bit @ 900 MHz
FirePro M2000 compare 480 @ 0.5 GHz64 Bit @ 3200 MHz
CodenameWhistler-XTBlackcomb XT
ArchitectureTerascale 2Terascale 2
Pipelines480 - unified960 - unified
Core Speed725 MHz680 MHz
Memory Speed900 MHz900 MHz
Memory Bus Width128 Bit256 Bit
Memory TypeGDDR5GDDR5
Max. Amount of Memory1024 MB2048 MB
Shared Memorynono
APIDirectX 11, Shader 5.0, OpenGL 4.1DirectX 11, Shader 5.0
Transistors715 Million1.7 Billion
technology40 nm40 nm
FeaturesOpenCL 1.1, Type A MXM
Notebook Sizemedium sizedlarge
Date of Announcement13.04.2011 12.04.2011
Link to Manufacturer Pagewww.amd.com
Power Consumption75 Watt

Benchmarks

3DMark 11 - 3DM11 Performance Score
1500 Points (2%)
3DMark 11 - 3DM11 Performance GPU
1350 Points (1%)
3DMark Vantage
3DM Vant. Perf. total + AMD FirePro M5950
3DMark Vantage - 3DM Vant. Perf. total
6257 Points (2%)
3DM Vant. Perf. GPU no PhysX + AMD FirePro M5950
3DMark Vantage - 3DM Vant. Perf. GPU no PhysX
5560 Points (3%)
3DMark 03 - 3DMark 03 - Standard
31792 Points (17%)
3DMark 05 - 3DMark 05 - Standard
19971 Points (22%)
3DMark 06 3DMark 06 - Score Unknown Settings + AMD FirePro M5950
3DMark 06
7137 Points (9%)
3DMark 06 - Score Unknown Settings + AMD FirePro M8900
16703 Points (22%)
3DMark 06 - Standard 1280x1024 + AMD FirePro M5950
3DMark 06
10592 Points (14%)
Unigine Heaven 2.1 - Heaven 2.1 high
17.9 fps (3%)
SPECviewperf 11
specvp11 snx-01 + AMD FirePro M5950
SPECviewperf 11 - specvp11 snx-01
19.6 fps (12%)
specvp11 tcvis-02 + AMD FirePro M5950
SPECviewperf 11 - specvp11 tcvis-02
16.5 fps (9%)
specvp11 sw-02 + AMD FirePro M5950
SPECviewperf 11 - specvp11 sw-02
38.9 fps (30%)
specvp11 proe-05 + AMD FirePro M5950
SPECviewperf 11 - specvp11 proe-05
4.7 fps (6%)
specvp11 maya-03 + AMD FirePro M5950
SPECviewperf 11 - specvp11 maya-03
49.3 fps (37%)
specvp11 lightwave-01 + AMD FirePro M5950
SPECviewperf 11 - specvp11 lightwave-01
48.6 fps (52%)
specvp11 ensight-04 + AMD FirePro M5950
SPECviewperf 11 - specvp11 ensight-04
15.5 fps (7%)
specvp11 catia-03 + AMD FirePro M5950
SPECviewperf 11 - specvp11 catia-03
16.8 fps (9%)
Windows 7 Experience Index - Win7 Gaming graphics
6.7 Points (85%)
Windows 7 Experience Index - Win7 Graphics
6.7 Points (85%)
Cinebench R10 Cinebench R10 Shading (32bit) + AMD FirePro M5950
Cinebench R10 - Cinebench R10 Shading (32bit)
7975 Points (6%)
Cinebench R11.5 Cinebench R11.5 OpenGL 64 Bit + AMD FirePro M5950
Cinebench R11.5 - Cinebench R11.5 OpenGL 64 Bit
50.1 fps (17%)

Average Benchmarks AMD FirePro M5950 → 100% n=1

Average Benchmarks AMD FirePro M8900 → 234% n=1

- Range of benchmark values for this graphics card
- Average benchmark values for this graphics card
* Smaller numbers mean a higher performance
1 This benchmark is not used for the average calculation

Game Benchmarks

The following benchmarks stem from our benchmarks of review laptops. The performance depends on the used graphics memory, clock rate, processor, system settings, drivers, and operating systems. So the results don't have to be representative for all laptops with this GPU. For detailed information on the benchmark results, click on the fps number.

Anno 2070

Anno 2070

2011
med. 1366x768
100%
FirePro M5950:
45.1  fps
high 1366x768
100%
FirePro M5950:
29.2  fps
ultra 1920x1080
100%
FirePro M5950:
15  fps
med. 1366x768
100%
FirePro M5950:
43.5  fps
high 1366x768
100%
FirePro M5950:
30.9  fps
ultra 1920x1080
100%
FirePro M5950:
16  fps
med. 1366x768
100%
FirePro M5950:
29.5  fps
high 1366x768
100%
FirePro M5950:
23.1  fps
Fifa 12

Fifa 12

2011
med. 1024x768
100%
FirePro M5950:
167  fps
high 1360x768
100%
FirePro M5950:
104.2  fps
ultra 1920x1080
100%
FirePro M5950:
64.3  fps
F1 2011

F1 2011

2011
med. 1024x768
100%
FirePro M5950:
65  fps
high 1366x768
100%
FirePro M5950:
55  fps
ultra 1920x1080
100%
FirePro M5950:
20  fps
high 1366x768
100%
FirePro M5950:
48.4  fps
ultra 1920x1080
100%
FirePro M5950:
21.6  fps
Dirt 3

Dirt 3

2011
med. 1024x768
100%
FirePro M5950:
82.4  fps
high 1360x768
100%
FirePro M5950:
56.1  fps
ultra 1920x1080
100%
FirePro M5950:
18.2  fps
Crysis 2

Crysis 2

2011
med. 1024x768
100%
FirePro M5950:
64.9  fps
high 1366x768
100%
FirePro M5950:
48.3  fps
ultra 1920x1080
100%
FirePro M5950:
16  fps
med. 1024x768
100%
FirePro M5950:
75.7  fps
high 1360x768
100%
FirePro M5950:
63.2  fps
ultra 1920x1080
100%
FirePro M5950:
43.8  fps
Mafia 2

Mafia 2

2010
med. 1024x768
100%
FirePro M5950:
55.3  fps
high 1360x768
100%
FirePro M5950:
46.8  fps
ultra 1920x1080
100%
FirePro M5950:
28.9  fps
med. 1360x768
100%
FirePro M5950:
67.4  fps
high 1360x768
100%
FirePro M5950:
47.2  fps
ultra 1920x1080
100%
FirePro M5950:
29.7  fps
med. 1360x768
100%
FirePro M5950:
45.7  fps
high 1600x900
100%
FirePro M5950:
24.2  fps
ultra 1920x1080
100%
FirePro M5950:
8.7  fps
World in Conflict - Benchmark

World in Conflict - Benchmark

2007
med. 1024x768
100%
FirePro M5950:
96  fps

Average Gaming AMD FirePro M5950 → 100%

Average Gaming 30-70 fps → 100%

AMD FirePro M5950lowmed.highultraQHD4K
Anno 207045.129.215
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim43.530.916
Battlefield 329.523.1
Fifa 12167104.264.3
F1 2011655520
Deus Ex Human Revolution48.421.6
Dirt 382.456.118.2
Crysis 264.948.316
Call of Duty: Black Ops75.763.243.8
Mafia 255.346.828.9
StarCraft 267.447.229.7
Metro 203345.724.28.7
World in Conflict - Benchmark96
< 30 fps
< 60 fps
< 120 fps
≥ 120 fps



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Redaktion, 2017-09- 8 (Update: 2023-07- 1)