Can I put a GTX 960 graphics card into my Dell XPS 630i??

[MeMe71]

Hi, I have been a long time fan of this forum, it has helped me MANY times!! -- I hope it can help with this issue. I have a Dell XPS 630i and I would like to upgrade the graphics card to a GTX 960. --- Can this system handle it? Is it compatible?

I have tried installing the GTX 960 and as soon as I turn the computer on all I get is a shrill / high pitch (very loud) sound like I am killing the computer lol (no screen, no boot, nothing comes up). --- My goal is to take out both of the old 8800 GT cards, put the GTX 960 in and hook a 4k TV up to the PC. I am NOT gaming, merely trying to replace my four (very old) 17 inch monitors with a big 40+ inch 4K TV @60hz for multi-use (my work requires a lot of screen space and multi-monitors...and NOT gaming).

My system:
Dell XPX 630i
Win 7 Pro
4 GB RAM
PSU 750W stock
500gb sata hd
two SLI GT 8800 vid cards
BIOS 1.0.12 which came installed on the PC.

If you have any other questions, feel free to ask. Thanks in advance.

P.S. I realize there is a new BIOS version on the Dell website for this system (1.0.13), but before upgrading I would like to know if this installation is even possible first (never upgraded BIOS before, and no sense in doing it if not compatible). Thanks.

 

[Sinistercr0c]

Just to confirm - your title says GTX690 (which is a monster dual core GPU pulling 300w at full load) but your post says GTX960....which one is it?

 

[MeMe71]

Sorry thanks for noticing...I just edited it. It is a GTX 960

 

[Sinistercr0c]

OK, given you have GT8800's, then you motherboard has the requisite PCIE slots so you should be fine with a single GTX960 (even tho the card is PCI-E 3.0 and your motherboard is potentially PCI-E 2.0 the card is backwards compatible). You have a sufficiently powerful PSU and I assume you are hooking up the 6 pin GPU connector from your PSU.

You must uninstall the NVIDIA driver first then physically un-install the 8800's before installing the 960. I assume your getting a continuous beep on boot and as I'm at work and most sites are blocked I can't tell you what that suggests but google 'dell xps 630i continuous beep'....there are several tech forums that appears to resolve (or at least state) what this issue is.

 

[MeMe71]

Thanks for your quick response! --- I did use the 6 pin to 8 pin adapter that came with the card. I actually hooked both 6 pins (that went into the 2 GT8800s) into the adapter ... the other 8 pin end went into the GTX 960.

I will do as you suggest on googling the continuous beep and uninstalling the drivers. Then taking out the GT8800s. Do I need to take both 8800s out? (i.e. if I left one in with no power connected to it, would that matter? .. does it matter which slot the GTX 960 goes in (top or bottom PCI)?

Thanks in advance

 

[Sinistercr0c]

Take both 8800's out (the card can still draw power from the PCIE slot). As a rule you should always install a GPU in the top PCIE slot.

Your explanation of the connectivity for the card is confusing me though.

A GTX960 should (I believe) have a single 6 pin connector, so you should just be able to connect the 6 pin PCIE-cable from your PSU (which previously went into one of your 8800's) directly into your new card. What make/model is your new card?

 

[MeMe71]

The card has a 8 pin connector and came with a 8 pin (which then splits off into two 6 pin connectors) adapter. The model number on the bottom of the card says: P/N: 04G-P4-3965-KR

 

[Sinistercr0c]

OK, your GPU is this:

http://www.evga.com/Products/Product.aspx?pn=04G-P4-3965-KR

I understand the connectivity now thanks. Did you leave one of the 8800's in when you installed the 960? If so I suspect that's what the motherboard was complaining about.

 

[MeMe71]

Yes that is the card. I just took both cards out (I have not uninstalled the drivers...yet but will put the 8800GTs back in and do that) ... I put the GTX 960 in again. This time I got 5 short beeps...break...5 short beeps break...again and again of this. This is different than the previous attempts where it was just one constant longggg shrill beep.

 

[Sinistercr0c]

I'm away home and won't be online til this evening....I'll try to look up this beep code but again, google is your friend....;-)

 

[MeMe71]

ok thanks so much for your help. I have a gut feeling even after uninstalling the drivers and trying again...I am still going to get the beeps, lol. But it's worth a shot. I will post an update after I do that.

 

[MeMe71]

Yep I knew it...same 5 beeps, split second break, 5 beeps...etc. I will google and see if there is a solution. I have a feeling it is a compatibility issue with mobo

 

[MeMe71]

After googling it looks like other people have incurred this issue with Dell 8700 desktops. However, a couple were able to resolve by upgrading BIOS to A10 or A11. Unfortunately I have a XPS 630i, and my BIOS only goes to 1.0.13 (I am at 1.0.12 now) ... I don't even know where on the scale that is....or what that even means

 

[sizzling]

Have come across this before, Dell and HP do limit what you'd and other hardware can be used on some of their motherboards. If the BIOS detects a component which is not effectively pre approved the system won't boot.

 

[MeMe71]

I was afraid of that. Is there any graphics card that will run in a XPS 630i system that still has capability of 4k @ 60hz? --- I am getting the feeling, the answer is no. --- On a separate note out of curiosity, if I wait to upgrade my entire system in the near future will there be tech (in near future; i.e. in the next year) that can run a 4k TV as monitor at 75hz+? (I remember how 60hz use to look in the old days, on really old monitors, 75hz or above is ideal for me personally).

 

[King_V]

I'm coming in late to this thread, but have recently gotten an old 630i myself.

I've come across the my630i.com website, which seems to have quite a bit of info. Unfortunately, I've tried to join it both from home and from work, and it says my IP is blocked - so I guess there's something funky going on with their site.

In any case, I know in searching those forums, they say the original motherboard will support a GTX 660. I don't know if it would make a difference, but I have NOT seen whether it supports the GTX 660Ti.

In various searching I've seen people inquiring about whether the system will support the GTX 7xx or 9xx series, but no solid conclusions/answers.

I'm trying to find more info about ideal BIOS settings, and so forth.

Mine's a Q9550 with the Radeon HD 4870, and I have a clear install of Windows 10 Pro on it. Oddly, it came with dual 250GB hard drives, but I opted not to go for a RAID setup (not sure if it was RAID with the previous owner, the partitions were trashed when I got it)