Installing a Video Card - How To: Basics
Linus Tech Tips
·Linus Tech Tips
·2016-05-06
·
1,338 words · ~6 min read
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welcome to another episode of how to here on Linus tech tips today we're
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going to be doing our first how-to basics video where we show you how to
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install a graphics card into your computer a lot of newer system builders
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and computer novices can get a little bit nervous when installing a GPU since
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it can be one of the more expensive parts of your pc but don't worry the
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process is actually quite straightforward as long as you keep a
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few points in mind
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the gtx 980 ti vr edition from evga provides an industry-leading graphics
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experience as well as a five and a quarter inch bay with easy access inputs
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for your vr device learn more at the link in the video description
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before you do anything it is vital to make sure that your parts are compatible
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in terms of both size and power make sure that your case is large enough to
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accommodate your graphics card particularly if you're going with a
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higher end model and that you have a power supply that has both the right
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connections and can put out enough watts virtually all graphics cards these days
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use a six pin or six plus two pin pci express power connector which looks like
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this some cards might only have one connector while others will have two or
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even more so verify that your psu has the right cables before you pull the
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trigger as far as wattage goes most 500 to 600 watt power supplies from
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reputable companies can handle one graphics card with no issues but if
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you'll be running more graphics cards like two or three you might need to look
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into something more check out reviews to see how much your card actually needs
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sometimes power requirements on spec sheets are vastly overestimated so don't
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be too disheartened if you only have something like a 450 watt power supply
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as it may end up working just fine as long as it's a good one there's a great
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thread on the Linus tech tips forum that covers which makes and models are
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considered good you can check that out in the link in the description down below so let's get right to it and
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remember to be careful when handling computer components either use an
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anti-static wristband or the easier method of just touching a metal part of
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your case from time to time especially after moving your feet to avoid damaging
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stuff with static electricity first to decide where on your motherboard your
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card is going to go modern graphics cards can go on a pci express x16 slot
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which are the longest ones on your motherboard in the expansion slot area
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generally it's a good idea to install the card in the topmost slot that is
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closest to the CPU to ensure you're running it at full speed but check your
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motherboard manual to confirm it's best
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to use whatever slot your manual shows as being 16x but using an 8x slot will
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work fine as well you may not be able to avoid this if you're using multiple
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cards like sli or crossfire and that's okay
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most cases will have bracket covers for unused expansion slots unscrew and
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remove the covers that correspond with where your card needs to go and then
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line up the bottom of the card with the slot i recommend holding it by the
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cooler and avoiding touching the sensitive contacts on the bottom or the
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traces on the back the slot is keyed so it's impossible to insert the card
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backwards so don't worry about that push down with a firm but steady pressure on
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each end of the card until you hear an audible click
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also notice that once the card is in the retention clip at the end of the slot
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will help hold it in place some motherboards have clips that you have to
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squeeze or push sideways on to release the card with others you can just push
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the clip down be sure to release the clip if you ever need to remove the card
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otherwise you could really damage both the card and the board if you try to rip
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it out once you've got your card in the slot screw it into the case being sure
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to lift the card a bit as you screw it in so it won't droop later on then find
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the pci express cables attached to your power supply and plug them into the card
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usually the connectors will be around the card's right hand corner and are
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keyed to keep you from installing them upside down route your cable up to the
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card preferably using the cable management holes of your case that is
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hopefully there and just push the cable in until it clips into place so that's
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it for the hardware install now it's time to install drivers even if you were
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not using a standalone graphics card before i strongly recommend using the
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free display driver uninstaller also known as ddu a favorite program of ours
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here at the office to completely remove any remnants of old drivers from your
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system first as they can cause issues later if not properly removed just run
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the program which will automatically boot into safe mode select whether you
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want to remove NVIDIA AMD or Intel
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drivers and reboot this is a good idea even if you just built a new system as
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Windows will often install display drivers that are out of date once you
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get back into Windows head to either NVIDIA or AMD's website entering your
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GPU model and operating system and snag the latest drivers don't bother using
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either the driver disk that came with your card or any drivers from Windows
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update as these tend to be out of date by the time you actually install your
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card run the installation program and select custom installation to tell the
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system whether you want drivers only or if you want any additional software from
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NVIDIA or AMD wait for it to finish and you're all done open up your games crank
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up the settings and do your thing rackspace is a top-tier managed cloud
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provide you with downloads to reference architectures ebooks and white papers on
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the sessions landing pages it's live and active participation go ask your
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questions and interact with them some of the next sessions are on moving to the
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cloud and leaving your vmware deployment behind and stuff like performance
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requirements improving operational efficiency see details in the video
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description down below thanks for watching guys if this video
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sucked you know what to do but if it was awesome get subscribed hit the like
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shop on amazon buying a cool t-shirt like this one or with a digital direct
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monthly contribution to the forum now that we're done doing all of that kind
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of stuff you're probably wondering what to watch next so if this little video movie thing was too simple
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for you and you're like dude i know how to install a graphics card check out
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this video up here where we do some more advanced things