welcome to another episode of how to here on Linus tech tips today we're
going to be doing our first how-to basics video where we show you how to
install a graphics card into your computer a lot of newer system builders
and computer novices can get a little bit nervous when installing a GPU since
it can be one of the more expensive parts of your pc but don't worry the
process is actually quite straightforward as long as you keep a
few points in mind
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before you do anything it is vital to make sure that your parts are compatible
in terms of both size and power make sure that your case is large enough to
accommodate your graphics card particularly if you're going with a
higher end model and that you have a power supply that has both the right
connections and can put out enough watts virtually all graphics cards these days
use a six pin or six plus two pin pci express power connector which looks like
this some cards might only have one connector while others will have two or
even more so verify that your psu has the right cables before you pull the
trigger as far as wattage goes most 500 to 600 watt power supplies from
reputable companies can handle one graphics card with no issues but if
you'll be running more graphics cards like two or three you might need to look
into something more check out reviews to see how much your card actually needs
sometimes power requirements on spec sheets are vastly overestimated so don't
be too disheartened if you only have something like a 450 watt power supply
as it may end up working just fine as long as it's a good one there's a great
thread on the Linus tech tips forum that covers which makes and models are
considered good you can check that out in the link in the description down below so let's get right to it and
remember to be careful when handling computer components either use an
anti-static wristband or the easier method of just touching a metal part of
your case from time to time especially after moving your feet to avoid damaging
stuff with static electricity first to decide where on your motherboard your
card is going to go modern graphics cards can go on a pci express x16 slot
which are the longest ones on your motherboard in the expansion slot area
generally it's a good idea to install the card in the topmost slot that is
closest to the CPU to ensure you're running it at full speed but check your
motherboard manual to confirm it's best
to use whatever slot your manual shows as being 16x but using an 8x slot will
work fine as well you may not be able to avoid this if you're using multiple
cards like sli or crossfire and that's okay
most cases will have bracket covers for unused expansion slots unscrew and
remove the covers that correspond with where your card needs to go and then
line up the bottom of the card with the slot i recommend holding it by the
cooler and avoiding touching the sensitive contacts on the bottom or the
traces on the back the slot is keyed so it's impossible to insert the card
backwards so don't worry about that push down with a firm but steady pressure on
each end of the card until you hear an audible click
also notice that once the card is in the retention clip at the end of the slot
will help hold it in place some motherboards have clips that you have to
squeeze or push sideways on to release the card with others you can just push
the clip down be sure to release the clip if you ever need to remove the card
otherwise you could really damage both the card and the board if you try to rip
it out once you've got your card in the slot screw it into the case being sure
to lift the card a bit as you screw it in so it won't droop later on then find
the pci express cables attached to your power supply and plug them into the card
usually the connectors will be around the card's right hand corner and are
keyed to keep you from installing them upside down route your cable up to the
card preferably using the cable management holes of your case that is
hopefully there and just push the cable in until it clips into place so that's
it for the hardware install now it's time to install drivers even if you were
not using a standalone graphics card before i strongly recommend using the
free display driver uninstaller also known as ddu a favorite program of ours
here at the office to completely remove any remnants of old drivers from your
system first as they can cause issues later if not properly removed just run
the program which will automatically boot into safe mode select whether you
want to remove NVIDIA AMD or Intel
drivers and reboot this is a good idea even if you just built a new system as
Windows will often install display drivers that are out of date once you
get back into Windows head to either NVIDIA or AMD's website entering your
GPU model and operating system and snag the latest drivers don't bother using
either the driver disk that came with your card or any drivers from Windows
update as these tend to be out of date by the time you actually install your
card run the installation program and select custom installation to tell the
system whether you want drivers only or if you want any additional software from
NVIDIA or AMD wait for it to finish and you're all done open up your games crank
up the settings and do your thing rackspace is a top-tier managed cloud
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description down below thanks for watching guys if this video
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shop on amazon buying a cool t-shirt like this one or with a digital direct
monthly contribution to the forum now that we're done doing all of that kind
of stuff you're probably wondering what to watch next so if this little video movie thing was too simple
for you and you're like dude i know how to install a graphics card check out
this video up here where we do some more advanced things