Radeon PRO W6400 vs Radeon R9 290 / 390

AMD

Radeon PRO W6400

2022Core: 2331 MHzBoost: 2331 MHz
Similar parts
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VS
AMD

Radeon R9 290 / 390

2015Boost: 1000 MHz
Similar parts
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Radeon PRO W6400 vs Radeon R9 290 / 390 Performance Spectrum

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.

Radeon PRO W6400 vs Radeon R9 290 / 390 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.

Radeon PRO W6400 vs Radeon R9 290 / 390: Pros, Cons & Final Verdict

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

Radeon PRO W6400

2022

Why buy it

  • Costs $100 less on MSRP ($229 MSRP vs $329 MSRP).
  • Delivers 48.6% more G3D Mark for each dollar spent, at 36.8 vs 24.8 G3D/$ ($229 MSRP vs $329 MSRP).
  • Better long-term bet: RDNA 2.0 (2020−2025) on 6nm gives it a newer hardware base for upcoming games.
  • Draws 50W instead of 300W, a 250W reduction.
  • Measures 168mm instead of 275mm, a 107mm shorter card that is more SFF-friendly.

Trade-offs

  • Lower average FPS than Radeon R9 290 / 390 across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.

Radeon R9 290 / 390

2015

Why buy it

  • 29.5% more average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data.

Trade-offs

  • 2015 hardware with 4 GB of VRAM already sits in legacy territory for modern games.
  • 43.7% HIGHER MSRP
    $329 MSRPvs$229 MSRP
  • Lower G3D Mark per dollar, at 24.8 vs 36.8 G3D/$ ($329 MSRP vs $229 MSRP).
  • 500% higher power demand at 300W vs 50W.
  • 63.7% longer card at 275mm vs 168mm.

Quick Answers

Which GPU is faster for gaming right now?
Radeon R9 290 / 390 is the faster gaming card right now. In our data, it leads by 29.5% in average FPS across 50 tracked games in our benchmark data. PassMark G3D leans toward Radeon PRO W6400 instead at 8,428 vs 8,150, so for this question the real-game FPS result matters more than the synthetic split.
Which GPU is the safer long-term pick for 2026 and beyond?
Radeon PRO W6400 is the safer long-term pick for 2026 and beyond. The case is simple: a 6nm process instead of 28nm, 12 vs 0 ray-tracing units, and a newer 2022 generation instead of 2015. That gives it the more rounded hardware package for newer games.
Which GPU is the better buy today?
Radeon PRO W6400 makes the most sense to buy today. It is $100 cheaper on MSRP at $229 vs $329, and it leads G3D-per-dollar by 48.6% (36.8 vs 24.8), which is enough to swing the recommendation its way. Radeon R9 290 / 390 still makes more sense if max raw gaming performance matters more than value.

Radeon PRO W6400 vs Radeon R9 290 / 390 Technical Specifications

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

AMD

Radeon PRO W6400

The Radeon PRO W6400 is manufactured by AMD. It was released in January 19 2022. It features the RDNA 2.0 architecture. The core clock ranges from 2331 MHz to 2331 MHz. It has 768 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 50W. Manufactured using 6 nm process technology. It features 12 dedicated ray tracing cores for enhanced lighting effects. G3D Mark benchmark score: 8,428 points.

AMD

Radeon R9 290 / 390

The Radeon R9 290 / 390 is manufactured by AMD. It was released in June 18 2015. It features the GCN 2.0 architecture. The boost clock speed is 1000 MHz. It has 2560 shading units. The thermal design power (TDP) is 300W. Manufactured using 28 nm process technology. G3D Mark benchmark score: 8,150 points. Launch price was $329.

Graphics Performance

The Radeon PRO W6400 scores 8,428 and the Radeon R9 290 / 390 reaches 8,150 in the G3D Mark benchmark — just a 3.4% difference, making them near-identical in rasterization performance. The Radeon PRO W6400 is built on RDNA 2.0 while the Radeon R9 290 / 390 uses GCN 2.0, both on 6 nm vs 28 nm. Shader units: 768 (Radeon PRO W6400) vs 2,560 (Radeon R9 290 / 390). Raw compute: 3.58 TFLOPS (Radeon PRO W6400) vs 5.12 TFLOPS (Radeon R9 290 / 390). Boost clocks: 2331 MHz vs 1000 MHz.

FeatureRadeon PRO W6400Radeon R9 290 / 390
G3D Mark Score
8,428+3%
8,150
Architecture
RDNA 2.0
GCN 2.0
Process Node
6 nm
28 nm
Shading Units
768
2560+233%
Compute (TFLOPS)
3.58 TFLOPS
5.12 TFLOPS+43%
Boost Clock
2331 MHz+133%
1000 MHz
ROPs
32
64+100%
TMUs
48
160+233%
L1 Cache
256 KB
640 KB+150%
L2 Cache
1 MB
1 MB
Frame Generation
FSR upscaling + RSR
FSR upscaling

Advanced Features (DLSS/FSR)

FeatureRadeon PRO W6400Radeon R9 290 / 390
Upscaling Tech
FSR Upscaling / FSR 4
FSR Upscaling / FSR 4
Frame Generation
Not Supported
Not Supported
Ray Reconstruction
No
No
Low Latency
AMD Anti-Lag
AMD Anti-Lag
💾

Video Memory (VRAM)

Both cards ship with 4 GB of video memory. Memory bus width is 256-bit on the Radeon PRO W6400 and 512-bit on the Radeon R9 290 / 390.

FeatureRadeon PRO W6400Radeon R9 290 / 390
VRAM Capacity
4 GB
4 GB
Memory Type
GDDR6
GDDR5
Bus Width
256-bit
512-bit+100%
L2 Cache
1 MB
1 MB
🖥️

Display & API Support

DirectX support: 12.2 (Radeon PRO W6400) vs 12.0 (Radeon R9 290 / 390). Vulkan: 1.2 vs 1.2. OpenGL: 4.6 vs 4.6. Maximum simultaneous displays: 2 vs 6.

FeatureRadeon PRO W6400Radeon R9 290 / 390
DirectX
12.2+2%
12.0
Vulkan
1.2
1.2
OpenGL
4.6
4.6
Max Displays
2
6+200%
🎬

Media & Encoding

Hardware encoder: VCN 3.0 (Radeon PRO W6400) vs VCE 2.0 (Radeon R9 290 / 390). Decoder: VCN 3.0 vs UVD 4.2. Supported codecs: MPEG-2,H.264,HEVC,VP9,AV1 (Decode) (Radeon PRO W6400) vs MPEG-2,H.264,VC-1 (Radeon R9 290 / 390).

FeatureRadeon PRO W6400Radeon R9 290 / 390
Encoder
VCN 3.0
VCE 2.0
Decoder
VCN 3.0
UVD 4.2
Codecs
MPEG-2,H.264,HEVC,VP9,AV1 (Decode)
MPEG-2,H.264,VC-1
🔌

Power & Dimensions

The Radeon PRO W6400 draws 50W versus the Radeon R9 290 / 390's 300W — a 142.9% difference. The Radeon PRO W6400 is more power-efficient. Recommended PSU: 500W (Radeon PRO W6400) vs 750W (Radeon R9 290 / 390). Power connectors: PCIe-powered vs 6-pin + 8-pin. Card length: 168mm vs 275mm, occupying 1 vs 2 slots. Typical load temperature: 70°C vs 95°C.

FeatureRadeon PRO W6400Radeon R9 290 / 390
TDP
50W-83%
300W
Recommended PSU
500W-33%
750W
Power Connector
PCIe-powered
6-pin + 8-pin
Length
168mm
275mm
Height
69mm
109mm
Slots
1-50%
2
Temp (Load)
70°C-26%
95°C
Perf/Watt
168.6+520%
27.2
💰

Value Analysis

At launch, the Radeon PRO W6400 came in at $229, while the Radeon R9 290 / 390 launched at $329. On MSRP, Radeon PRO W6400 was 30.4% cheaper ($100 less). Performance per dollar on MSRP (G3D Mark / MSRP): 36.8 (Radeon PRO W6400) vs 24.8 (Radeon R9 290 / 390) — the Radeon PRO W6400 offers 48.4% better value. The newer card here is Radeon PRO W6400 (2022 vs 2015).

FeatureRadeon PRO W6400Radeon R9 290 / 390
MSRP
$229-30%
$329
Performance per Dollar
36.8+48%
24.8
Codename
Navi 24
Grenada
Release
January 19 2022
June 18 2015
Ranking
#308
#296

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