FirePro W5000 vs Radeon HD 6990

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.

FirePro W5000 vs Radeon HD 6990 FPS Benchmarks

Predicted gaming performance across popular games. Tested paired with Ryzen 7 9800X3D to isolate GPU performance.

Search any supported game below to compare 1080p FPS for both components.

FirePro W5000 vs Radeon HD 6990: Pros, Cons & Final Verdict

See where each GPU makes more sense in practice: raw FPS, VRAM, features, power draw, pricing, and long-term headroom.

FirePro W5000

2012

Why buy it

✅Costs $100 less on MSRP ($599 MSRP vs $699 MSRP).
✅Delivers 14.9% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 5.0 vs 4.3 G3D/$ ($599 MSRP vs $699 MSRP).
✅Draws 75W instead of 375W, a 300W reduction.
✅Measures 183mm instead of 310mm, a 127mm shorter card that is more SFF-friendly.

Trade-offs

❌2012 hardware with 2 GB of VRAM is already well past its comfortable zone for modern gaming, so it is hard to recommend now.

Radeon HD 6990

2011

Why buy it

✅FirePro W5000 is already obsolete for modern gaming, so Radeon HD 6990 is the less risky modern option long term.

Trade-offs

❌2011 hardware with 2 GB of VRAM is already well past its comfortable zone for modern gaming, so it is hard to recommend now.
❌
16.7% HIGHER MSRP
$699 MSRPvs$599 MSRP
❌Lower G3D Mark per dollar, at 4.3 vs 5.0 G3D/$ ($699 MSRP vs $599 MSRP).
❌400% higher power demand at 375W vs 75W.
❌69.4% longer card at 310mm vs 183mm.

Quick Answers

Which GPU is faster for gaming right now?

Radeon HD 6990 is the faster gaming card right now based on the synthetic data we have. It leads by 1.6% in PassMark G3D (3,014 vs 2,967), which is the best performance signal available in this matchup.

Which GPU is the safer long-term pick for 2026 and beyond?

Radeon HD 6990 is the safer long-term pick for 2026 and beyond. The case is simple: the newer upscaling stack, FSR Upscaling / FSR 4 (2025) instead of no meaningful modern upscaling stack. That still leaves it as the safer long-term option on hardware alone.

Which GPU is the better buy today?

FirePro W5000 makes the most sense to buy today. It is $100 cheaper on MSRP at $599 vs $699, and it leads G3D-per-dollar by 14.9% (5.0 vs 4.3), which is enough to swing the recommendation its way. If you are mainly targeting 1080p and some 1440p, FirePro W5000 is the easier value choice. If you care more about 1080p and some 1440p headroom, Radeon HD 6990 has the stronger long-term case.

FirePro W5000 vs Radeon HD 6990 Technical Specifications

Side-by-side specs, architecture details, clocks, memory, power, and platform differences.

FirePro W5000

The FirePro W5000 is manufactured by AMD. It was released in August 7 2012. It features the GCN 1.0 architecture. The core clock speed is 825 MHz. It has 768 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 75W. Manufactured using 28 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 2,967 points. Launch price was $599.

Radeon HD 6990

The Radeon HD 6990 is manufactured by AMD. It was released in March 8 2011. It features the TeraScale 3 architecture. The core clock speed is 830 MHz. It has 1536 ×2 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 375W. Manufactured using 40 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 3,014 points. Launch price was $699.

⚡

Graphics Performance

The FirePro W5000 scores 2,967 and the Radeon HD 6990 reaches 3,014 in the G3D Mark benchmark — just a 1.6% difference, making them near-identical in rasterization performance. The FirePro W5000 is built on GCN 1.0 while the Radeon HD 6990 uses TeraScale 3, both on 28 nm vs 40 nm. Shader units: 768 (FirePro W5000) vs 1,536 (Radeon HD 6990). Raw compute: 1.267 TFLOPS (FirePro W5000) vs 2.55 TFLOPS ×2 (Radeon HD 6990).

Feature	FirePro W5000	Radeon HD 6990
G3D Mark Score	2,967	3,014+2%
Architecture	GCN 1.0	TeraScale 3
Process Node	28 nm	40 nm
Shading Units	768	1536 ×2+100%
Compute (TFLOPS)	1.267 TFLOPS	2.55 TFLOPS ×2+101%
ROPs	32	32 ×2
TMUs	48	96 ×2+100%
L1 Cache	192 KB	384 KB+100%
L2 Cache	512 KB	512 KB

✨

Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)

Feature	FirePro W5000	Radeon HD 6990
Upscaling Tech	Upscaling support	FSR Upscaling / FSR 4
Frame Generation	Not Supported	Not Supported
Ray Reconstruction	No	No
Low Latency	Standard	AMD Anti-Lag

💾

Video Memory (VRAM)

Both cards ship with 2 GB of GDDR5. Memory bus width is 64-bit on the FirePro W5000 and 128-bit on the Radeon HD 6990.

Feature	FirePro W5000	Radeon HD 6990
VRAM Capacity	2 GB	2 GB
Memory Type	GDDR5	GDDR5
Bus Width	64-bit	128-bit+100%
L2 Cache	512 KB	512 KB

🖥️

Display & API Support

DirectX support: 12 (FirePro W5000) vs 11.2 (Radeon HD 6990). Vulkan: 1.2.170 vs None. OpenGL: 4.6 vs 4.4. Maximum simultaneous displays: 6 vs 5.

Feature	FirePro W5000	Radeon HD 6990
DirectX	12+7%	11.2
Vulkan	1.2.170	None
OpenGL	4.6+5%	4.4
Max Displays	6+20%	5

🎬

Media & Encoding

Hardware encoder: VCE 1.0 (FirePro W5000) vs None (Radeon HD 6990). Decoder: UVD 4.0 vs UVD 3.0. Supported codecs: H.264,MPEG-2,VC-1 (FirePro W5000) vs H.264,VC-1,MPEG-2,MPEG-4 (Radeon HD 6990).

Feature	FirePro W5000	Radeon HD 6990
Encoder	VCE 1.0	None
Decoder	UVD 4.0	UVD 3.0
Codecs	H.264,MPEG-2,VC-1	H.264,VC-1,MPEG-2,MPEG-4

🔌

Power & Dimensions

The FirePro W5000 draws 75W versus the Radeon HD 6990's 375W — a 133.3% difference. The FirePro W5000 is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 350W (FirePro W5000) vs 750W (Radeon HD 6990). Power connectors: PCIe-powered vs 2x 8-pin. Card length: 183mm vs 310mm, occupying 1 vs 2 slots. Typical load temperature: 75°C vs 85.

Feature	FirePro W5000	Radeon HD 6990
TDP	75W-80%	375W
Recommended PSU	350W-53%	750W
Power Connector	PCIe-powered	2x 8-pin
Length	183mm	310mm
Height	111mm	115mm
Slots	1-50%	2
Temp (Load)	75°C-12%	85
Perf/Watt	39.6+395%	8.0

💰

Value Analysis

At launch, the FirePro W5000 came in at $599, while the Radeon HD 6990 launched at $699. On MSRP, FirePro W5000 was 14.3% cheaper ($100 less). Performance per dollar on MSRP (G3D Mark / MSRP): 5.0 (FirePro W5000) vs 4.3 (Radeon HD 6990) — the FirePro W5000 offers 16.3% better value. The newer card here is FirePro W5000 (2012 vs 2011).

Feature	FirePro W5000	Radeon HD 6990
MSRP	$599-14%	$699
Performance per Dollar	5.0+16%	4.3
Codename	Pitcairn	Antilles
Release	August 7 2012	March 8 2011
Ranking	#585	#583

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