Upgrading from a GTX 285 to a 560 Ti

[Altephor]

Am currently running a GTX 285 and looking to upgrade since I just bought a larger monitor with higher resolution (27" 1920 x 1200 vs 2x 20" 1680x1050) and the 200 series is starting to get a little dated (bought it new in 2009).

My current system is as follows:

Antec 900 Mid Case
MB GIGABYTE GA-EX58-UD4P 1366 X58 R
VGA EVGA 01G-P3-1281-AR GTX285 1G R
PSU|S75CF 750W RT
CPU INTEL|CORE I7 920 2.66G 45N R
MEM 2Gx3|PATR PVT36G1333LLK R

So just looking to swap the 285 out for the 560 Ti. Just a single card, no SLI, so I believe 750 watts should keep me covered. The card is physically smaller than the 285 (slightly) so it should fit fine in the Antec case.

I am pretty noob when it comes to swapping hardware, so I just want to make sure I have this down. I am planning on doing a fresh Windows 7 install at the same time (because I've cluttered it with so much junk and my original install was a student copy anyway).

So do I reformat and reinstall windows first?
Do I need to uninstall drivers I as using for my 285? I assume no because I am doing a new Windows install.
The actual installation: just take out the 285 and plug in the 560? Do I need to change anything in the BIOS?
Will my system be bottlenecked by the i7 920? If I'm going to get screwed by the processor I may just wait for Ivy Bridge and the GTX 600 series and build a whole new machine.

Sorry, these are probably simple questions but I don't want to mess anything up.

 

[lkkgg72200812]

You don't have to change any BIOS or removing drivers, when you get a new card, it will auto set up for your card, if not you can go on the internet to get driver. get 560Ti or wait for GTX 600 just depend on you. IF you decide to buy 560ti, I recommand gigabyte 560OC for his two big fans and good heat dissipation~~~

 

[amuffin]

Get the new 448 cuda cores 560ti

 

[Helltech]

The 285 and 560 use the same series of drivers, so you don't need to worry about that at all really.

Regardless there is no harm in doing a fresh install for other reasons. Just get the latest drivers from the Nvidia website.

Just switch the cards, no need for a BIOS change.

No you will not be bottlenecked with that card, I would overclock that 920 to at least 3.5 though.

 

[badtaylorx]

this is THE 560 ti....."one ti to rule them all"

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/searchtools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=1319308&SRCCODE=GOOGLEBASE&cm_mmc_o=VRqCjC7BBTkwCjCECjCE

in depth review

http://www.overclock3d.net/reviews/gpu_displays/sparkle_x560_ti_df_calibre_review/10

 

[Altephor]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127608

This is the actual card I was thinking of going with. I would prefer the 2 GB model just to have the extra video RAM.

I would like to OC my processor at least a little bit, but have never OCed before. Also worried since I am only using the stock heatsink which came with the processor, so I fear OCing would make it run a bit hot.

Also, no one has answered: Do I plug in the card first, or reinstall windows first? Or does it really not matter.

 

[badtaylorx]

The 285 and 560 use the same series of drivers, so you don't need to worry about that at all really.

Regardless there is no harm in doing a fresh install for other reasons. Just get the latest drivers from the Nvidia website.

Just switch the cards, no need for a BIOS change.

No you will not be bottlenecked with that card, I would overclock that 920 to at least 3.5 though.

re read this post^^^^^


and do not oc on a stock heat sink.......your worry is well placed!!!

 

[renz496]

So do I reformat and reinstall windows first?

since you're going for fresh windows install it doesn't matter. just swap the card and do fresh windows installation.

Do I need to uninstall drivers I as using for my 285? I assume no because I am doing a new Windows install.

even if you keep your current windows you can just swap GTX560Ti in without the need to uninstall current driver because both GTX285 and GTX560Ti using the same drivers. but it's a different story if you're swapping between nvidia and amd cards.

The actual installation: just take out the 285 and plug in the 560? Do I need to change anything in the BIOS?

yes. your mobo should automatically detect your new card.

Will my system be bottlenecked by the i7 920? If I'm going to get screwed by the processor I may just wait for Ivy Bridge and the GTX 600 series and build a whole new machine.

the answer is no. i think even a single GTX580 will not be bottleneck by your cpu even at it's stock clock. but you shouldn't worry too much about bottleneck. you can always OC your cpu to eliminate the bottlenecking effect. i7 920 is an excellent overclocker

 

[Helltech]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127608

This is the actual card I was thinking of going with. I would prefer the 2 GB model just to have the extra video RAM.

I would like to OC my processor at least a little bit, but have never OCed before. Also worried since I am only using the stock heatsink which came with the processor, so I fear OCing would make it run a bit hot.

Also, no one has answered: Do I plug in the card first, or reinstall windows first? Or does it really not matter.

It doesn't matter at all. I would switch it out before I guess. But it doesn't matter what so ever. You're going to be using the same drivers. Just get the newest drivers from Nvidia.

As for OC'ing, you have an enthusiast processor with a stock cooler on it! TO SHAME I SAY! I'm kidding, but in all seriousness you should look into getting an aftermarket heatsink on that. You can get a Hyper 212+ really cheap and its a damn good cooler for the price that it is.

 

[calad]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127608

This is the actual card I was thinking of going with. I would prefer the 2 GB model just to have the extra video RAM.

The extra video ram only really comes into play with resolutions higher than 1920x1080, afaik

 

[Altephor]

As for OC'ing, you have an enthusiast processor with a stock cooler on it! TO SHAME I SAY! I'm kidding, but in all seriousness you should look into getting an aftermarket heatsink on that. You can get a Hyper 212+ really cheap and its a damn good cooler for the price that it is.

I had a larger heatsink to start, but a friend helped me put together my system and said I wouldn't need it, so I returned it. :-\