Nvidia Quadro

The Nvidia Quadro series[1] of AGP, PCI, and PCI Express graphics cards comes from the NVIDIA Corporation. Their designers aimed to accelerate CAD (Computer-Aided Design) and DCC (digital content creation), and the cards are usually featured in workstations. (Compared to the NVIDIA GeForce product line, which specifically targets computer gaming). Competing products include the FireGL line of workstation graphics cards by ATI Technologies, Inc.. Companies such as Matrox and Avid also focus on specialized hardware accelerated graphics cards intended primarily for DCC.

Contents

History

The Quadro line of GPU cards emerged in an effort at market segmentation by NVIDIA. In introducing Quadro, NVIDIA was able to charge a premium for essentially the same graphics hardware in professional markets, and direct resources to properly serve the needs of those markets. To differentiate their offerings, NVIDIA used driver software and firmware to enable features vital to segments of the workstation market; e.g., high performance anti-aliased lines and two-sided lighting were reserved for the Quadro product. In addition, improved support through a certified driver program was put in place. These features were of little value in the gaming markets that NVIDIA's products already sold to, but prevented high end customers from using the less expensive products. This practice continues even today although some products use higher capacity faster memory.

There are parallels between the market segmentation used to sell the Quadro line of products to Workstation (DCC) markets and the Tesla line of products to engineering and HPC markets.

In a settlement of a patent infringement lawsuit between SGI and NVIDIA, SGI acquired rights to speed binned NVIDIA graphics chips which they shipped under the VPro product label. These designs were completely separate from the SGI Odyssey based VPro products initially sold on their IRIX workstations which used a completely different bus. SGI's NVIDIA-based VPro line included the VPro V3 (Geforce 256), VPro VR3 (Quadro), VPro V7 (Quadro2 MXR), and VPro VR7 (Quadro2 Pro).[2][3]

Quadro (SGI VPro VR3) Quadro2 Pro (ELSA GLoria III) Quadro DCC (ELSA GLoria DCC) Quadro4 980 XGL
Quadro FX 1300 Quadro FX 2000 Quadro FX 4000 Quadro FX 5600

Quadro Plex

Video cards

GeForce

Many of these cards use the same core as the game- and action-oriented GeForce video cards by NVIDIA. Those cards that are identical to the desktop cards can be software modified to identify themselves as the equivalent Quadro cards and this allows optimized drivers intended for the Quadro cards to be installed on the system. While this may not offer all of the performance of the equivalent Quadro card, it can improve performance in certain applications, but may require installing the MAXtreme driver for comparable speed.

The performance difference comes in the firmware controlling the card. Given the importance of speed in a game, a system used for gaming can shut down textures, shading, or rendering after only approximating a final output—in order to keep the overall frame rate high. The algorithms on a CAD-oriented card tend rather to complete all rendering operations, even if that introduces delays or variations in the timing, prioritising accuracy and rendering quality over speed.

PCI Express

Quadro
GPU
Core Core clock
(MHz)
Memory clock
(MHz)
Memory size
(MiB)
Memory type Memory
bandwidth
(GiB/s)
3-pin
stereo
connector
CUDA
cores
Power
consumption
(W)
Notes WEI (Windows 7)
Quadro FX 330 NV37GL 250 200 64 64-bit DDR 3.2 No 21 Chip also used in GeForce PCX 5300, Shader Model 2.0
Quadro FX 350 G72GL 550 405 128 64-bit DDR2 6.48 No 21 Chip also used in GeForce 7300LE
Quadro FX 370 G84GL 360 400 256 64-bit DDR2 6.4 No 16 35 1× Dual-link DVI-I & 1 single-link DVI, Shader Model 4.0 OpenGL 3.3/DirectX 10
Quadro FX 370 LP G98 540 500 256 64-bit DDR2 8 No 8 25 DMS-59
Quadro FX 380 G96 450 700 256 128-bit GDDR3 22.4 No 16 34 2× Dual-link DVI-I, , GeForce 9400 based (similar specs on wikipedia)
Quadro FX 380 LP GT218GL 550 800 512 64-bit DDR3 12.8 No 16 28 1x Dual-link DVI-I , 1x DisplayPort
Quadro FX 540 NV43GL 300 275 128 128-bit GDDR 8.8 No 35 Chip also used in GeForce 6600LE (4 PS/3 VS)
Quadro FX 550 NV43GL 360 400 128 128-bit GDDR3 12.8 No 25 2× dual-link DVI (will only do 2048×1536, not up to 2560×1600)
Quadro FX 560 G73GL 350 600 128 128-bit GDDR3 19.2 No 30 Chip also used in GeForce 7600, 1× Dual-link DVI
Quadro FX 570 G84GL 460 400 256 128-bit DDR2 12.8 No 16 38 2× Dual-link DVI-I, Shader Model 4.0, OpenGL 3.3, DirectX 10
Quadro FX 580 G96 450 (OC650) 400 512 128-bit GDDR3 25.6 No 32 40 1× Dual-link DVI-I, 2× DisplayPort, GeForce 9500 based (similar specifications on wikipedia)
Quadro FX 1300 NV38GL 350 275 128 256-bit DDR 17.6 Yes 55 Chip also used in GeForce PCX 5950, 2× Single-link DVI
Quadro FX 1400 NV41GL 350 300 128 256-bit DDR 19.2 Yes 70 Chip also used in GeForce 6800 (8 PS/5 VS), 2× Single-link DVI
Quadro FX 1500 G71GL 325 625 256 256-bit GDDR3 40.0 No 65 Chip also used in GeForce 79xx, clocked down/pipe disabled (16 pixel, 6 vertex), 2× Dual-link DVI
Quadro FX 1700 G84GL 460 400 512 128-bit DDR2 12.8 No 32 42 Chip also used in GeForce 8600GT, 2× Dual-link DVI-I/TV Out, Shader Model 4.0, OpenGL 3.3, DirectX 10.
Quadro FX 1800 G94 550 (shader clock 1375) 800 768 192-bit DDR3 38.4 No 64 59 Dual Display port, single dvi depending on model, Shader Model 4.0, OpenGL 3.3, DirectX 10.
Quadro FX 3400 NV45GL 350 450 256 256-bit GDDR3 28.8 Yes 101 Chip also used in GeForce 6800, 2× Dual-link DVI
Quadro FX 3450 NV42GL 425 500 256 256-bit GDDR3 32.0 Yes 83 Chip also used in GeForce 6800, 2× Dual-link DVI
Quadro FX 3500 G71GL 450 660 256 256-bit GDDR3 42.2 Yes 80 Based on same core as the Quadro 5500, but with only 20 pixel, 7 vertex units, and 256 MiB RAM.
Quadro FX 3700 G92 500 800 512 256-bit GDDR3 51.2 Yes 112 78 Chip also used in GeForce 8800GT and 8800GTS 512, 112 streaming processors, PCI Express 2.0, Energy Star 4.0 compliant (consumes less than 80 watts of power)
Quadro FX 3800 G200GL 600 800 1024 256-bit GDDR3 51.2 Yes 192 107 Stereo requires the purchase of an optional 3 pin S Bracket
Quadro FX 4000 SDI NV42GL 425 500 256 256-bit GDDR3 32.0 Yes FX 4000 with 2× SDI HDTV outputs + digital and analog genlock (using external controllers)
Quadro FX 4400 NV45GL 400 525 512 256-bit GDDR3 33.6 Yes 109 Chip also used in GeForce 6800 PCI-E, 2× dual-link DVI
Quadro FX 4500 G70GL 470 525 512 256-bit GDDR3 33.6 Yes 109 Chip also used in GeForce 7800GTX, 2× dual-link DVI
Quadro FX 4500 SDI G70GL 470 525 512 256-bit GDDR3 33.6 Yes 116 Chip also used in GeForce 7800GTX, 1× dual-link DVI, 2× SDI HDTV outputs + analog and digital genlock
Quadro FX 4500 X2 G70GL 500 600 512 ×2 256-bit ×2 GDDR3 33.6 ×2 Yes 145 Two Quadro FX 4500 GPU units on the same PCI-Express card, 4× dual-link DVI.
Quadro FX 5500 G71GL 650 500 1024 256-bit DDR2 32 Yes 96 Chip also used in GeForce 7900GTX, 2× dual-link DVI, 24 pixel units and 8 vertex units.
Quadro FX 5500 SDI G71GL 650 500 1024 256-bit DDR2 32 Yes 104 FX 5500 with SDI, genlock/frame lock support (via external hardware)
Quadro FX 4600 G80GL 400 700 768 384-bit GDDR3 67.2 Yes 112 134 Chip also used in GeForce 8800GTX, 2× dual-link DVI.
Quadro FX 4600 SDI G80GL 400 700 768 384-bit GDDR3 67.2 Yes 154 FX 4600 with SDI, genlock/frame lock support (via external hardware)
Quadro FX 4700 X2 G92 500 800 512 ×2 256-bit ×2 GDDR3 51.2 ×2 Yes 226 Two Quadro FX 3700 GPU units on the same PCI-Express card, 2× dual-link DVI (DVI-I ×4), S-Video output.
Quadro FX 5600 G80GL 600 800 1536 384-bit GDDR3 76.8 Yes 128 171 Chip also used in GeForce 8800 Ultra, requires two 6-pin supplementary power connectors.
Quadro FX 4800 D10U-20 (GT200GL) 602 800 1536 384-bit GDDR3 77 Yes 192 150 Chip also used in 55 nm version of GeForce GTX 260 (192 shaders). Quadro CX without Elemental Technologies' CS4 plug-in.
Quadro FX 5800 D10U-30 (GT200GL) 650 1632 4096 512-bit GDDR3 102 Yes 240 189 Chip also used in GeForce GTX 285 (240 shaders).
Quadro CX D10U-20 (GT200GL) 602 800 1536 384-bit GDDR3 76.8 Yes 192 150 Chip also used in 55 nm version of GeForce GTX 260 (192 shaders), Display Port and dual-link DVI Output, optimised for Adobe Creative Suite 4.
Quadro VX 200 G92 512 GDDR3 51.2 HDTV and 2× Dual-link DVI, optimised for Autodesk AutoCAD.
Quadro 400 512 64-bit DDR3 12.3 No 48 32 1x Dual-link DVI-I , 1x DisplayPort
Quadro 600 GF108GL 640 800 1024 128-bit GDDR3 25.6 No 96 40 1× Dual-link DVI-I, 1× DisplayPort
Quadro 2000 GF106GL 625 1300 1024 128-bit GDDR5 41.6 No 192 62 1× Dual-link DVI-I, 2× DisplayPort
Quadro 2000 D GF106GL 625 1300 1024 128-bit GDDR5 41.6 No 192 62 2× Dual-link DVI-I
Quadro 4000 GF100 475 700 2048 256-bit GDDR5 89.6 Yes 256 142 Based on the new Fermi architecture.
Quadro 5000 GF100 513 750 2536 320-bit GDDR5 120 Yes 352 152 Based on the new Fermi architecture.
Quadro 6000 GF100 574 750 6144 384-bit GDDR5 144 Yes 448 204 Based on the new Fermi architecture.
Quadro
GPU
Core Core clock
(MHz)
Memory clock
(MHz)
Memory size
(MiB)
Memory type Memory
bandwidth
(GiB/s)
3-pin
stereo
connector
CUDA
cores
Power
consumption
(W)
Notes WEI (Windows 7)

AGP

Quadro
chip
Core Core clock
(MHz)
Memory clock
(effective) (MHz)
Memory size
(MiB)
Memory type Memory
bandwidth
(GiB/s)
Interface 3-pin
stereo
connector
Notes
Quadro NV10GL 135 166 64 128-bit SDR 2.66 Chip also used in GeForce 256
Quadro2 MXR NV11GL 200 183 128-bit SDR 2.93 Chip also used in GeForce 2 MX
Quadro2 EX NV11GL 175 166 Chip also used in GeForce 2 MX
Quadro2 Pro NV15GL 250 400 6.4 Chip also used in GeForce 2 GTS
Quadro DCC NV20GL 128-bit DDR 7.3 Chip also used in GeForce 3/Ti
Quadro4 380 XGL NV18GL 275 513 64 128-bit DDR 8.2
Quadro4 500 XGL NV17GL 128-bit SDR
Quadro4 550 XGL NV17GL 270 400 64 128-bit DDR 6.4 No
Quadro4 580 XGL NV18GL 64 128-bit DDR No Chip also used in GeForce 4 MX 440
Quadro4 700 XGL NV25GL 275 550 64 128-bit DDR Chip also used in GeForce 4 Ti 4200
Quadro4 750 XGL NV25GL 275 550 128 128-bit DDR Yes Chip also used in GeForce 4 Ti 4400
Quadro4 780 XGL NV28GL Yes Chip also used in GeForce 4 Ti 4200 (AGP 8×)
Quadro4 900 XGL NV25GL 300 650 128 128-bit DDR 10.4 Yes Chip also used in GeForce 4 Ti 4600
Quadro4 980 XGL NV28GL 300 650 128 128-bit DDR 10.4 Yes Chip also used in GeForce 4 Ti 4800
Quadro FX 500 NV34GL 270 243 128 128-bit DDR 7.7 No Chip also used in GeForce FX 5200
Quadro FX 700 NV31GL 275 275 128 128-bit DDR 8.8 No Chip also used in GeForce FX 5600
Quadro FX 1000 NV30GL 300 300 128 128-bit GDDR2 9.6 Yes Chip also used in GeForce FX 5800
Quadro FX 1100 NV36GL 425 325 128 128-bit DDR 10.4 Yes Chip also used in GeForce FX 5700
Quadro FX 2000 NV30GL 400 400 128 128-bit GDDR2 12.8 Yes Chip also used in GeForce FX 5800, One Dual-Link DVI
Quadro FX 3000 NV35GL 400 425 256 256-bit DDR 27.2 Yes Chip also used in GeForce FX 5900, 1× Dual-link DVI (via external controller)
Quadro FX 3000G NV35GL 400 425 256 256-bit DDR 27.2 Yes has external stereo frame sync connector, 1× Dual-link DVI (via external controller)
Quadro FX 4000 NV40GL 375 500 256 256-bit GDDR3 32.0 Yes Chip also used in GeForce 6800, 2× Dual-link DVI (2nd link using external TMDS transmitter)
Quadro FX 4000 SDI NV40GL 375 500 256 256-bit GDDR3 32.0 Yes FX 4000 with 2× SDI HDTV outputs + digital and analog genlock (using external controllers)

PCI

Quadro
chip
Core Core clock
(MHz)
Memory clock
(effective) (MHz)
Memory size
(MiB)
Memory type Memory
bandwidth
(GB/s)
3-pin
stereo
connector
Notes
Quadro FX 600 PCI NV34GL 270 243 256 128-bit DDR 7.8 Yes Chip also used in GeForce 5200 Ultra

For business

The NVIDIA Quadro NVS graphics processing units (GPUs) provide business graphics solutions for manufacturers of small, medium, and enterprise-level business workstations. The NVIDIA Quadro NVS desktop solutions enable multi-display graphics for businesses such as financial traders.

Quadro
chip
Max. resolution
(digital)
Interface Display
connectors
Displays
supported
Power
consumption
(W)
Notes
Quadro NVS 50 1600×1200 AGP 8× / PCI DVI-I, S-Video 1 NV18
Quadro NVS 100 2048×1536 AGP 4× / PCI 2x DVI-I, VGA, S-Video 2 NV17(A5)?
Quadro NVS 200 1280×1024 AGP 4× / PCI LFH-60 2 NV17
Quadro NVS 210s 1920x1200 Onboard (nForce 430) DVI + VGA  ? no PureVideoHD, only SD
Quadro NVS 280 1600×1200 PCI-Express ×16/AGP 8× / PCI DMS-59 2 12 NV18GL/NV34
Quadro NVS 285 1920×1200 PCI-Express ×1/×16 DMS-59 2 13/18 NV44
Quadro NVS 290 1920×1200 PCI-Express ×1/×16 DMS-59 2 21 G86
Quadro NVS 295 2560×1600 PCI-Express 2× DisplayPort or 2× DVI-D 2 23 G98
Quadro NVS 400 1280×1024 PCI 2× DMS-59 4 2× NV17
Quadro NVS 420 2560×1600 PCI-Express ×1/×16 VHDCI (4× DisplayPort or 4× DVI-D) 4 40 2× G98
Quadro NVS 440 1920×1200 PCI-Express ×1/×16 2× DMS-59 4 31 2× NV43
Quadro NVS 450 2560×1600 PCI-Express ×16 4× DisplayPort 4 35 2× G98
Quadro NVS 300 2560×1600 PCI-Express DMS-59 2 17.5 GT218

Mobile applications

Quadro FX M

Quadro chip Core Fab (nm) Bus interface Memory(MiB) Core clock (MHz) Shader clock (MHz)q Memory clock (MHz) Config core Fillrate Memory Processing Power (GFLOPs) API support TDP (watts)
Pixel (GP/s) Texture (GT/s) Bandwidth (GB/s) Type Bus width (bit) Single precision DirectX OpenGL
Quadro FX 350M G72GLM 90 PCI-E 1.0 ×16 256 450 450 900 3:4:4:2 0.9 1.8 14.4 GDDR3 128 9.0c 2.1 15
Quadro FX 360M G86GLM 80 PCI-E 1.0 ×16 256 400 800 1200 16:8:4 1.6 3.2 9.6 GDDR2 64 38.4 10 2.1 17
Quadro FX 370M G98GLM 65 PCI-E 2.0 ×16 256 550 1400 1200 8:4:4 2.2 2.2 9.6 GDDR3 64 33.6 10 2.1 20
Quadro FX 380M GT218GLM 40 PCI-E 2.0 ×16 512 625 1530 1600 16:8:4 2.5 5 12.8 GDDR3 64 73.44 10.1 3.2 25
Quadro FX 540M NV43GL 110 PCI-E 1.0 ×16 128 300 300 550 4:8:8:8 2.4 2.4 8.8 GDDR3 128 9.0c 2.1 42
Quadro FX 550M G73GLM 90 PCI-E 1.0 ×16 512 480 480 1000 5:12:12:8 4 6 19.2 GDDR3 128 9.0c 2.1 35
Quadro FX 560M G73GLM 90 PCI-E 1.0 ×16 512 500 500 1200 5:12:12:8 4 6 19.2 GDDR3 128 9.0c 2.1 35
Quadro FX 570M G84GLM 80 PCI-E 1.0 ×16 512 475 950 1400 32:16:8 3.8 7.6 22.4 GDDR3 128 91.2 10 2.1 45
Quadro FX 770M G96GLM 65 PCI-E 2.0 ×16 512 500 1250 1600 32:16:8 4 8 25.6 GDDR3 128 25.6 10 2.1 35
Quadro FX 880M GT216GLM 40 PCI-E 2.0 ×16 1024 550 1210 1600 48:16:8 4.4 8.8 25.6 GDDR3 128 174.24 10.1 3.2 35
Quadro FX 1500M G71GLM 90 PCI-E 1.0 ×16 512 375 375 1000 8:24:24:16 6 9 32 GDDR3 256 9.0c 2.1 45
Quadro FX 1600M G84GLM 80 PCI-E 1.0 ×16 512 625 1250 1600 32:16:8 5 10 25.6 GDDR3 128 120 10 2.1 50
Quadro FX 1700M G96GLM 65 PCI-E 2.0 ×16 512 625 1550 1600 32:16:8 5 10 25.6 GDDR3 128 148.8 10 2.1 50
Quadro FX 1800M GT215GLM 40 PCI-E 2.0 ×16 1024 450 1080 1600
2200
72:24:8 3.6 10.8 25.6
35.2
GDDR3
GDDR5
128 233.28 10.1 3.2 45
Quadro FX 2500M G71GLM 90 PCI-E 1.0 ×16 512 500 500 1200 8:24:24:16 8 12 38.4 GDDR3 256 9.0c 2.1 45
Quadro FX 2700M G94GLM 65 PCI-E 2.0 ×16 512 530 1325 1600 48:24:16 8.48 12.72 51.2 GDDR3 256 190.8 10.0 2.1 65
Quadro FX 2800M G92GLM 55 PCI-E 2.0 ×16 1024 500 1250 2000 96:48:16 8 16 64 GDDR3 256 360 10 3.2 75
Quadro FX 3500M G71GLM 90 PCI-E 1.0 ×16 512 575 575 1200 8:24:24:16 9.2 13.8 38.4 GDDR3 256 9.0c 2.1 45
Quadro FX 3600M G92GLM 65 PCI-E 2.0 ×16 1024 500 1250 1600 64:32:16
96:48:16
8
8
16
24
51.2 GDDR3 256 240
360
10 2.1 70
Quadro FX 3700M G92GLM 65 PCI-E 2.0 ×16 1024 550 1375 1600 128:64:16 8.8 35.2 51.2 GDDR3 256 528 10 2.1 75
Quadro FX 3800M G92GLM 55 PCI-E 2.0 ×16 1024 675 1688 2000 128:64:16 10.8 43.2 64 GDDR3 256 648.192 10 3.2 100
Quadro 1000M GF108GLM 40 PCI-E 2.0 ×16 2048 700 1400 1800 96:?:? ? ? 28.8 GDDR3 128 11 4.1 45
Quadro 2000M GF106GLM 40 PCI-E 2.0 ×16 2048 550 1100 1800 192:?:? ? ? 28.8 GDDR3 128 11 4.1 55
Quadro 3000M GF110GLM 40 PCI-E 2.0 ×16 2048 450 900 2500 240:?:? ? ? 80 GDDR5 256 11 4.1 75
Quadro 4000M GF110GLM 40 PCI-E 2.0 ×16 2048 475 950 2400 336:?:? ? ? 80 GDDR5 256 11 4.1 100
Quadro 5000M GF104GLM 40 PCI-E 2.0 ×16 2048 405 810 2400 320:40:32 13 18 76.8 GDDR5 256 11 4.1 100
Quadro 5010M GF110GLM 40 PCI-E 2.0 ×16 4096 450 900 2600 384:?:? ? ? 83.2 GDDR5 256 11 4.1 100

Quadro NVS M

Quadro
chip
Core Core clock speed (MHz) Memory clock speed (MHz) Memory size Memory
type
Memory
bandwidth
CUDA
cores
Max. power
consumption (W)
Interface 3-pin
stereo
connector
Note
Quadro NVS 110M G72M 300 600 128 MiB/256 MiB/512 MiB 64-bit DDR 10 PCI Express Varies Go 7300-based
Quadro NVS 120M G72GLM 450 700 128 MiB/256 MiB/512 MiB 64-bit DDR2 10 PCI Express Varies Also recognized as QuadroFX 350M/Go 7400
Quadro NVS 130M G86M 128 MiB/256 MiB 64-bit 10 PCI Express Varies 8400M-G based
Quadro NVS 135M G86M 400 594 128 MiB/256 MiB 64-bit 9.55 GiB/s 10 PCI Express Varies 8400M-GS based
Quadro NVS 140M G86M 400 600 128 MiB/256 MiB/512 MiB 64-bit 9.66 GiB/s 16 10 PCI Express Varies 8400M-GS based
Quadro NVS 150M G98M 530 700 128 MiB/256 MiB 64-bit 11.22 GiB/s 8 10 PCI Express Varies 8400M-GS based
Quadro NVS 160M G98M 580 700 256 MiB 64-bit 11.22 GiB/s 8 12 PCI Express Varies 9300M-GS based
Quadro NVS 300M G72GLM 450 500 128 MiB/256 MiB/512 MiB 128-bit GDDR3 16.16 GiB/s 16 PCI Express Varies Go 7600-based
Quadro NVS 320M G84M 575 700 128 MiB/256 MiB/512 MiB 128-bit GDDR3 22.55 GiB/s 20 PCI Express Varies 8700M-GT based
Quadro NVS 510M G72GLM 500 600 256 MiB/512 MiB/1 GiB 256-bit GDDR3 38.4 GiB/s 48 35 PCI Express Varies Go 7900 GTX - based

See also

References

  1. ^ NVIDIA Quadro Professional Solutions
  2. ^ Pitts, Martin. "SGI Announces New Additions to SGI VPro Graphics". Linux Today. http://linuxpr.com/releases/3061.html. Retrieved 27 September 2011. 
  3. ^ "NVIDIA Drivers FAQ". Silicon Graphics International Corp.. http://www.sgi.com/products/legacy/multilink/nvidia_faq.html. Retrieved 27 September 2011. 

External links