Switching from ATI to Nvidia

GoogalyMoogaly · 26 Apr 2011 at 17:16

Hi,

I'm planning to upgrade my rubbish, slow single 5870

to 570 SLI.
I don't want to have to do a fresh install of the OS, so what's the best way to deal with the drivers?
Is it as simple as just uninstalling the ATI/AMD drivers, turning the PC off, switching the cards and then installing the Nvidia drivers when the pc restarts?

Or do I need to use some driver cleaner?
I've heard these can cause more problems than they solve?
If I should, which one is best?

Thanks.

d_brennen · 26 Apr 2011 at 17:18

I'd do as you suggest, uninstall the ATI drivers, shut down, install cards and install the NV drivers. I know bog all about SLI though

RJC · 26 Apr 2011 at 17:19

I have always just uninstalled the old drivers, rebooted with new card then install new drivers.

What motherboard are you using.

Marvin · 26 Apr 2011 at 17:40

I changed from a 5970 to GTX460 SLI recently, and just uninstalled all the AMD drivers, changed the cards over, then booted and installed the Nvidia drivers. Very easy. You shouldn't need to bugger about with driver sweeper.

GoogalyMoogaly · 26 Apr 2011 at 17:42

RJC said:
What motherboard are you using.

MSI P55-GD65 (I think)

RJC · 26 Apr 2011 at 18:07

GoogalyMoogaly said:
MSI P55-GD65 (I think)

Cheers, thought I ask just to double check the board can take SLI

GoogalyMoogaly · 26 Apr 2011 at 18:36

I'm planning to remove the stock HSF from the (reference design, Sapphire) 5870 and attach an EK waterblock.
It seems like there could be quite a lot of scope for things to go wrong, anyone got any tips?

Thanks.

angela · 27 Apr 2011 at 00:05

went from ati to NV recently- Uninstalled all ati drivers, cleaned reg edit, plugged NV card and installed new NV drivers!

tommybhoy · 27 Apr 2011 at 08:19

GoogalyMoogaly said:
I'm planning to upgrade my rubbish, slow single 5870 to 570 SLI.

2 X 2GB 6950 ref 1 unlocked to 6970 shaders/sclocks are faster/scale better and much cheaper than 570 sli.

6950 xfire V 570 sli:

6950 can then be unlocked and oc, 570 can be oc too.

GoogalyMoogaly · 27 Apr 2011 at 12:34

tommybhoy said:
2 X 2GB 6950 ref 1 unlocked to 6970 shaders/sclocks are faster/scale better and much cheaper than 570 sli.

You say that but you don't know how much I paid for my 570s.
Also, I already have the 570s so using them is cheaper than buying 6950s.
Also, when I got my 570s there was a lot of talk around the heat and the noise of the 69X0 cards. The 570s seemed to be reported to run cooler and quieter.

If I was buying them now, I'd probably look into a couple ref 1 6950s with 3rd part coolers.

trickycurve · 27 Apr 2011 at 12:54

Just run the ATI uninstall manager and choose "Express Uninstall". Did it when swapping out my old HD4890 for a GTX470 and everything ran flawlessly the moment I booted up for the first time with the new card.

Anyway, driver cleaners could cause issues.

Xelene · 27 Apr 2011 at 12:57

If you are running W7, there's no real need to remove the drivers. They will happily coexist.

as905 · 27 Apr 2011 at 13:49

i have a Q to those who moved from ATi to Nvidia:

did you notice any difference in image quality ? years ago when i moved from Nvidia to ATi i noticed right away that the ATi card has noticeably better image quality for games & movies,is this still the case now ?

i have also noticed xbox360 (which uses ATi) has richer smoother image than Ps3 (which uses Nvidia gpu). so i'm thinking its still the same.

Marvin · 27 Apr 2011 at 14:03

as905 said:
i have a Q to those who moved from ATi to Nvidia:

did you notice any difference in image quality ? years ago when i moved from Nvidia to ATi i noticed right away that the ATi card has noticeably better image quality for games & movies,is this still the case now ?

i have also noticed xbox360 (which uses ATi) has richer smoother image than Ps3 (which uses Nvidia gpu). so i'm thinking its still the same.

Remember the PS3 and Xbox use way outdated GPUs, so the difference could be there because of that. Also remember that most games on consoles are developed with the Xbox as lead platform, then ported to the PS3 and PC.

And, no I don't think there's a difference.

pv123 · 27 Apr 2011 at 15:22

as905 said:
i have a Q to those who moved from ATi to Nvidia:

did you notice any difference in image quality ? years ago when i moved from Nvidia to ATi i noticed right away that the ATi card has noticeably better image quality for games & movies,is this still the case now ?

i have also noticed xbox360 (which uses ATi) has richer smoother image than Ps3 (which uses Nvidia gpu). so i'm thinking its still the same.

Nope it isn't. No such difference to be honest, it's just a question of tweaking and resolutions.

straxusii · 27 Apr 2011 at 15:55

I recently went from 5870 and sadly it was never right until I reinstalled the o/s. Tried driver cleaner, uninstalled all ATI software.

tommybhoy · 27 Apr 2011 at 15:59

GoogalyMoogaly said:
You say that but you don't know how much I paid for my 570s.

Were they cheaper than £192 each?

GoogalyMoogaly said:
Also, I already have the 570s so using them is cheaper than buying 6950s.

GoogalyMoogaly said:
Also, when I got my 570s there was a lot of talk around the heat and the noise of the 69X0 cards. The 570s seemed to be reported to run cooler and quieter.

If I was buying them now, I'd probably look into a couple ref 1 6950s with 3rd part coolers.

Like I have done, AC extreme 5870 coolers doing a stunning job on my 6950>70's

GoogalyMoogaly · 27 Apr 2011 at 17:28

tommybhoy said:
Were they cheaper than £192 each?

No, but I bought them a while ago, before the VAT change I think. so not sure you'd get new AMD 6950s for £192 either. I think they were around £220 at the time.

tommybhoy said:
Like I have done, AC extreme 5870 coolers doing a stunning job on my 6950>70's

Or even just the ones that come with the Twin Frozr II or something like that.

as905 · 27 Apr 2011 at 17:45

ok thanks for the reply guys thats good to know

but i have decided to stick with ATi (hd 5850 costs nearly half the price of a similar performance Nvidia card) even though i would have liked to try Nvidia's 3D.

IF bulldozer is WORTH upgrading to then i might get a Nvidia card for my bulldozer upgrade.

tommybhoy · 27 Apr 2011 at 19:13

How much did yours cost? Just curious how much you got them for.

GoogalyMoogaly said:
not sure you'd get new AMD 6950s for £192 either.

You can get the Asus one today only for £192 if you have a look, you can get the 2 Gb 6950 nearly every other day at that price or there about.

It cost me £412 for my xfire, the lowest I've seen the 2 Gb 6950 go for is £176 each.

On the subject of driver removal, I still have nvidia drivers installed as I was using hybrid physx and I don't have any problems at all.