Nvidia launches new Blackwell workstation GPU with 84 GB VRAM

Nvidia has quietly expanded its Blackwell workstation GPU line-up with a new RTX Pro 5500, which sits between the RTX Pro 5000 and flagship RTX Pro 6000. However, it is closer to the latter in several areas, primarily thanks to its enormous VRAM memory pool and maximum power consumption. The GPU is listed as “coming soon”, with no release date listed. 

Specifications published by PNY shed more light on the hardware. The RTX Pro 5500 uses a 750 mm² Blackwell GPU (likely a cut-down GB202) with 92.2 billion transistors and 21,760 CUDA cores. That is the same CUDA core count as the GeForce RTX 5090. By comparison, the RTX Pro 6000 has 24,064 CUDA cores, while the RTX Pro 5000 makes do with 14,080.

The RTX Pro 5500 Blackwell's spec sheet has some inaccuracies

Its memory configuration is arguably more interesting. PNY says the RTX Pro 5500 comes with 84 GB of GDDR7 with ECC and quotes 1,398 GB/s of bandwidth. It additionally lists a 416-bit memory interface, although those specifications are inherently incompatible. A 416-bit interface corresponds to thirteen conventional 32-bit memory channels, making 84 GB an awkward capacity to achieve.

Conversely, fourteen 6 GB GDDR7 packages would yield exactly 84 GB and correspond to a 448-bit bus. The interface operating at roughly 25 Gbps would also provide around 1,400 GB/s of bandwidth, almost exactly matching Nvidia's quoted 1,398 GB/s figure. This raises the possibility that the currently published 416-bit specification is erroneous.

Elsewhere, the RTX Pro 5500 supports PCIe 5.0 x16 and up to four DisplayPort 2.1b outputs. It includes three ninth-generation Nvenc encoders and three sixth-generation Nvdec decoders, while MIG lets the GPU run as either one 84 GB instance or two isolated 42 GB instances.

Power consumption can reach 600 W under full load. At that Wattage, it likely uses Nvidia's troublesome 12VHPWR connector that has been known to fail under taxing conditions, something an AI-centric card is expected to operate under.

The RTX Pro 5500 is primarily for rack-mounted workstation deployments and not conventional desktop systems. The standard card measures 4.4 × 11.1 inches and occupies two slots with active air cooling. Nvidia says a liquid-cooled variant will also be available later. 

Nvidia has not specified a price at the time of writing. Regardless of what Nvidia charges, prices will almost certainly balloon into the low five figures, where the RTX Pro 6000 Blackwell has been sitting for a while.