Should I Get Latest Nvidia Drivers for GPU I Just Bought?

Adeno · 06-16-12 at 01:32 PM

Hi there! I just recently bought a Gigabyte GTX 550 Ti 1GB card (which should arrive in a few days). I'm upgrading from an old ATI Radeon 2600 XT card. It's actually going to be the first time that I replace a video card, so I just want to know if I have the right idea on what to do when the new card arrives.

Here's my plan:

1. Download the latest Nvidia drivers for the GTX 550 Ti card, which is the 301.42 driver (as far as I can tell).
2. Uninstall all ATI drivers.
3. Use Driver Sweeper to hunt down the last remnants of ATI drivers and kill them.
4. Restart PC and run Driver Sweeper again to see if there are really no more ATI driver stuff that's been left behind.
5. Unplug computer, touch some metal, remove ATI Radeon 2600 XT card from computer.
6. Insert GTX 550 Ti card and plug the wires for the power supply (a 6-pin/hole thing).
7. Plug the PC back in and restart the computer.
8. Install the 301.42 driver.

Is this how it's supposed to be done, or should I just install the drivers that I believe should come with the GTX 550 Ti card's disc?

Thanks in advance

**kolewan** · 06-16-12 at 01:45 PM

Download the drivers for sure. Take your time! Otherwise, your plan looks about perfect.

However, the 2600xt is quite old... Will your power supply be powerful enough to run the newer 550 ti

lemkethor · 06-16-12 at 01:49 PM

When you buy a new video card, especially one that was recently released, it's always best to download the latest drivers and install those.

Soothsayerlive · 06-16-12 at 04:28 PM

If you restart after removing the drivers, it will just reload them. The fastest way is to just disable the video card and its' drivers. Shut the computer off put the new card in then let the computer load the new drivers. After it is done remove the drivers you don't use. Then go find the newest drivers.

Adeno · 06-16-12 at 06:21 PM

Thanks for the tips! Yup, my power supply "should" be able to handle it, the card says it needs 400 watts and I have 500.

I didn't know that the system will reload the old drivers if I restarted, oh well I at least I got the new drivers ready to install when the card arrives

**curb193** · 06-17-12 at 02:22 AM

You don't need to worry so much about driver sweeping and whatnot. Just swap the cards and download/install the new nvidia drivers.

Notorious_dog · 06-17-12 at 06:01 AM

You forgot a step, Between step 4 and step 5, you need to scratch your bum, other than that your plan seems ok with me. When I changed my graphic card (ages ago) I never even un-installed the old drivers from the other GPU. But there is no point keeping them.

**karlosr** · 06-17-12 at 10:30 AM

Quote: Originally Posted by Adeno

Thanks for the tips! Yup, my power supply "should" be able to handle it, the card says it needs 400 watts and I have 500.

I didn't know that the system will reload the old drivers if I restarted, oh well I at least I got the new drivers ready to install when the card arrives

Be careful with the Wattage assumption as that is what I did with my new graphics card I just bought (Geforce GTX 560 TI 448).

Thought my power supply was sufficient at 550W when it said it needed 500W but it turned out that my psu was a cheap one and the amount of Amps it could handle on the main rail was nowhere near what my card required.

The computer kept crashing and restarting whenever trying to play a game or do the windows score test thingy.

Bought a new XFX Pro Series 650W psu and that solved it straightaway.

Which make and model PSU do u have at the moment?

LSD · 06-17-12 at 02:33 PM

when swapping out an different brand theres more to it than just removing old drivers.
to get a stable system you will need to do a minimum of a repair install so your hal is rewritten with the correct proprietary drivers that windows uses to boot the system b4 it loads up the ati/nvidia 1s.
you can just try and replace the hal via the cmd prompt but i found this to be difficult for less experienced users.
to do the basic repair install you will need a copy of you o.s disk, just boot off it and select custom follow the on screen prompts till you finish... not that hard...
if you dont bother you will risk system stability. you will after a while start getting random bsods and constant driver has stopped working messages. you can keep em at bay with reg cleaning but its short term fix. so best do the repair install or the hal fix as soon as you replace the card.
i know this is an issue when you swap from nvidia to ati but im not sure how bad it is when you swap from ati back to nvidia.
see how it goes but at least you know where to start if the system does become unstable...

Adeno · 06-18-12 at 01:02 AM

Here's my current power supply:

Silverstone Element ST50EF-PLUS 500W ATX12V 24PIN Power Supply W/120MM Fan Active PFC 80PLUS RoHS

It's interesting to hear that the repair thing from the OS disc might be needed. I believe this is the first time I've learned that switching graphics cards might have a little trouble. Thanks for the heads up, if weird crashes happen, I know the next thing to try

akbisw_p · 06-19-12 at 10:10 PM

You are totally fine with that power supply. And 550 Ti is very low power. You system will probably pull 300 watts power at a time. so u are good to go.

Zero_Desu · 06-20-12 at 02:22 AM

Be careful the power supply might not be enough and just cut out or your fans need more power since most of the power would be directed to the video card and overheat ur pc

06-16-12 at 01:45 PM	#2
kolewan The Perseverant Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: Canada Posts: 737	Download the drivers for sure. Take your time! Otherwise, your plan looks about perfect. However, the 2600xt is quite old... Will your power supply be powerful enough to run the newer 550 ti Last edited by kolewan; 06-16-12 at 01:48 PM.

06-16-12 at 01:49 PM	#3
lemkethor Newcomer Join Date: Mar 2011 Posts: 20	When you buy a new video card, especially one that was recently released, it's always best to download the latest drivers and install those.

06-16-12 at 04:28 PM	#4
Soothsayerlive Apprentice Join Date: Aug 2010 Posts: 272	If you restart after removing the drivers, it will just reload them. The fastest way is to just disable the video card and its' drivers. Shut the computer off put the new card in then let the computer load the new drivers. After it is done remove the drivers you don't use. Then go find the newest drivers.

06-16-12 at 06:21 PM	#5
Adeno Master Join Date: Jul 2010 Posts: 1,218	Thanks for the tips! Yup, my power supply "should" be able to handle it, the card says it needs 400 watts and I have 500. I didn't know that the system will reload the old drivers if I restarted, oh well I at least I got the new drivers ready to install when the card arrives

06-17-12 at 02:22 AM	#6
curb193 Apprentice Join Date: Apr 2008 Posts: 277	You don't need to worry so much about driver sweeping and whatnot. Just swap the cards and download/install the new nvidia drivers.

06-17-12 at 06:01 AM	#7
Notorious_dog Elder Join Date: Feb 2009 Posts: 3,974	You forgot a step, Between step 4 and step 5, you need to scratch your bum, other than that your plan seems ok with me. When I changed my graphic card (ages ago) I never even un-installed the old drivers from the other GPU. But there is no point keeping them.

06-17-12 at 10:30 AM	#8
karlosr Newcomer Join Date: Nov 2007 Posts: 67	Quote: Originally Posted by Adeno Thanks for the tips! Yup, my power supply "should" be able to handle it, the card says it needs 400 watts and I have 500. I didn't know that the system will reload the old drivers if I restarted, oh well I at least I got the new drivers ready to install when the card arrives Be careful with the Wattage assumption as that is what I did with my new graphics card I just bought (Geforce GTX 560 TI 448). Thought my power supply was sufficient at 550W when it said it needed 500W but it turned out that my psu was a cheap one and the amount of Amps it could handle on the main rail was nowhere near what my card required. The computer kept crashing and restarting whenever trying to play a game or do the windows score test thingy. Bought a new XFX Pro Series 650W psu and that solved it straightaway. Which make and model PSU do u have at the moment?

06-17-12 at 02:33 PM	#9
LSD Apprentice Join Date: Mar 2011 Posts: 328	when swapping out an different brand theres more to it than just removing old drivers. to get a stable system you will need to do a minimum of a repair install so your hal is rewritten with the correct proprietary drivers that windows uses to boot the system b4 it loads up the ati/nvidia 1s. you can just try and replace the hal via the cmd prompt but i found this to be difficult for less experienced users. to do the basic repair install you will need a copy of you o.s disk, just boot off it and select custom follow the on screen prompts till you finish... not that hard... if you dont bother you will risk system stability. you will after a while start getting random bsods and constant driver has stopped working messages. you can keep em at bay with reg cleaning but its short term fix. so best do the repair install or the hal fix as soon as you replace the card. i know this is an issue when you swap from nvidia to ati but im not sure how bad it is when you swap from ati back to nvidia. see how it goes but at least you know where to start if the system does become unstable...

06-18-12 at 01:02 AM	#10
Adeno Master Join Date: Jul 2010 Posts: 1,218	Here's my current power supply: Silverstone Element ST50EF-PLUS 500W ATX12V 24PIN Power Supply W/120MM Fan Active PFC 80PLUS RoHS It's interesting to hear that the repair thing from the OS disc might be needed. I believe this is the first time I've learned that switching graphics cards might have a little trouble. Thanks for the heads up, if weird crashes happen, I know the next thing to try

06-19-12 at 10:10 PM	#11
akbisw_p Novice Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Ohio Posts: 155	You are totally fine with that power supply. And 550 Ti is very low power. You system will probably pull 300 watts power at a time. so u are good to go.

06-20-12 at 02:22 AM	#12
Zero_Desu Apprentice Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Holy Empire Posts: 340	Be careful the power supply might not be enough and just cut out or your fans need more power since most of the power would be directed to the video card and overheat ur pc