
FirePro M5950
Popular choices:

Radeon HD 8790M
Popular choices:
Performance Spectrum - GPU
About G3D Mark
G3D Mark is a standard benchmark that measures graphics performance in real-world gaming scenarios. It simplifies comparing cards from different brands, where higher scores directly correlate with better fps and smoother gaming experiences.
Value Upgrade Path
This is the official ChipVERSUS Value Rating, comparing raw performance (G3D Mark) per dollar. Components placed above yours deliver better value for money. The FirePro M5950 is positioned at rank 181 and the Radeon HD 8790M is on rank 207, so the FirePro M5950 offers better cost-efficiency for playing games.
Avg price is the current average price collected from markets across the web.
Performance Per Dollar FirePro M5950
Performance Per Dollar Radeon HD 8790M
Performance Comparison
About G3D Mark🏆 Chipversus Verdict
🚀 Performance Leadership
The FirePro M5950 is the superior choice for raw performance. It leads with a 0.6% higher G3D Mark score. However, the Radeon HD 8790M offers more VRAM, which may be beneficial for texture-heavy scenarios at higher resolutions.
| Insight | FirePro M5950 | Radeon HD 8790M |
|---|---|---|
| Performance | ✅Leading raw performance (+0.6%) | ❌Lower raw frame rates (-0.6%) |
| Longevity | 🛑Obsolete Architecture (2011 / TeraScale 2 (2009−2015)) | 🛑Obsolete Architecture (2013 / GCN 1.0 (2012−2020)) |
| Ecosystem | Supports FSR Upscaling | Supports FSR Upscaling |
| VRAM | ❌ Less VRAM capacity | ✅ More VRAM (+100%) |
| Efficiency | 💡 Excellent Perf/Watt | ⚡ Higher Power Consumption |
| Case Fit | — | — |
💎 Value Proposition
While current pricing data is unavailable, the FirePro M5950 remains the clear technical winner. Check real-time availability to determine if the performance gap justifies the market price.
Performance Check
Real-world benchmarks and performance projections based on comprehensive hardware analysis and comparative metrics. Values represent expected performance on High/Ultra settings at 1080p, 1440p, and 4K. Modeled using a Ryzen 7 7800X3D reference profile to minimize specific CPU bottlenecks.
Note: Performance behavior can vary per game. Specific architectures may perform better or worse depending on game engine optimizations and API implementation.
Technical Specifications
Side-by-side comparison of FirePro M5950 and Radeon HD 8790M

FirePro M5950
The FirePro M5950 is manufactured by AMD. It was released in January 4 2011. It features the TeraScale 2 architecture. The core clock speed is 725 MHz. It has 480 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 35W. Manufactured using 40 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 1,314 points.

Radeon HD 8790M
The Radeon HD 8790M is manufactured by AMD. It was released in April 1 2013. It features the GCN 1.0 architecture. The core clock ranges from 850 MHz to 900 MHz. It has 384 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 50W. Manufactured using 28 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 1,306 points.
Graphics Performance
The FirePro M5950 scores 1,314 and the Radeon HD 8790M reaches 1,306 in the G3D Mark benchmark — just a 0.6% difference, making them near-identical in rasterization performance. The FirePro M5950 is built on TeraScale 2 while the Radeon HD 8790M uses GCN 1.0, both on 40 nm vs 28 nm. Shader units: 480 (FirePro M5950) vs 384 (Radeon HD 8790M). Raw compute: 0.696 TFLOPS (FirePro M5950) vs 0.6912 TFLOPS (Radeon HD 8790M).
| Feature | FirePro M5950 | Radeon HD 8790M |
|---|---|---|
| G3D Mark Score | 1,314 | 1,306 |
| Architecture | TeraScale 2 | GCN 1.0 |
| Process Node | 40 nm | 28 nm |
| Shading Units | 480+25% | 384 |
| Compute (TFLOPS) | 0.696 TFLOPS | 0.6912 TFLOPS |
| ROPs | 8 | 8 |
| TMUs | 24 | 24 |
| L1 Cache | 48 KB | 96 KB+100% |
| L2 Cache | 256 KB | 256 KB |
Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)
| Feature | FirePro M5950 | Radeon HD 8790M |
|---|---|---|
| Upscaling Tech | FSR 1.0 (Software) | FSR 1.0 (Software) |
| Frame Generation | Not Supported | Not Supported |
| Ray Reconstruction | No | No |
| Low Latency | Standard | AMD Anti-Lag |
Video Memory (VRAM)
The FirePro M5950 comes with 1 GB of VRAM, while the Radeon HD 8790M has 2 GB. The Radeon HD 8790M offers 100% more capacity, crucial for higher resolutions and texture-heavy games. Bus width: 64-bit vs System.
| Feature | FirePro M5950 | Radeon HD 8790M |
|---|---|---|
| VRAM Capacity | 1 GB | 2 GB+100% |
| Memory Type | GDDR5 | Shared |
| Bus Width | 64-bit | System |
| L2 Cache | 256 KB | 256 KB |
Display & API Support
DirectX support: 11.2 (FirePro M5950) vs 11.1 (11_1) (Radeon HD 8790M). Vulkan: None vs 1.2. OpenGL: 4.1 vs 4.6. Maximum simultaneous displays: 5 vs 0.
| Feature | FirePro M5950 | Radeon HD 8790M |
|---|---|---|
| DirectX | 11.2 | 11.1 (11_1) |
| Vulkan | None | 1.2 |
| OpenGL | 4.1 | 4.6+12% |
| Max Displays | 5 | 0 |
Media & Encoding
Hardware encoder: None (FirePro M5950) vs VCE 1.0 (Radeon HD 8790M). Decoder: UVD 3 vs UVD 3.0. Supported codecs: H.264,VC-1,MPEG-2,MPEG-4 Part 2 (FirePro M5950) vs H.264,VC-1,MPEG-2,MPEG-4 (Radeon HD 8790M).
| Feature | FirePro M5950 | Radeon HD 8790M |
|---|---|---|
| Encoder | None | VCE 1.0 |
| Decoder | UVD 3 | UVD 3.0 |
| Codecs | H.264,VC-1,MPEG-2,MPEG-4 Part 2 | H.264,VC-1,MPEG-2,MPEG-4 |
Power & Dimensions
The FirePro M5950 draws 35W versus the Radeon HD 8790M's 50W — a 35.3% difference. The FirePro M5950 is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 350W (FirePro M5950) vs 350W (Radeon HD 8790M). Power connectors: PCIe-powered vs 1x 6-pin. Card length: 0mm vs 0mm, occupying 1 vs 0 slots. Typical load temperature: 75°C vs 75.
| Feature | FirePro M5950 | Radeon HD 8790M |
|---|---|---|
| TDP | 35W-30% | 50W |
| Recommended PSU | 350W | 350W |
| Power Connector | PCIe-powered | 1x 6-pin |
| Length | 0mm | 0mm |
| Height | 0mm | 0mm |
| Slots | 1 | 0-100% |
| Temp (Load) | 75°C | 75 |
| Perf/Watt | 37.5+44% | 26.1 |
Value Analysis
The Radeon HD 8790M is the newer GPU (2013 vs 2011).
| Feature | FirePro M5950 | Radeon HD 8790M |
|---|---|---|
| MSRP | $200 | — |
| Avg Price (30d) | $200 | — |
| Codename | Whistler | Mars |
| Release | January 4 2011 | April 1 2013 |
| Ranking | #795 | #797 |
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