To state the obvious, PC hardware is the most important part of our computers. Without a solid set of components, our software and gaming experiences will be sloooow. This section covers a range of articles I’ve written about PC hardware, with a particular focus (so far) on:
Part of building a new PC is chasing the highest possible specs. However, with great performance comes great responsibility. The quest for high stats can cause serious heating issues inside your PC. Today’s high-end SSDs and GPUs get packed in tightly on a performance motherboard. This is a recipe for overheating and the risk of … Read more
The world of DIY PC Building is full of debates. However, none of them seem to cause as many sparks as whether or not you can use split or pigtail PSU cables on a graphics card. In general, you should tend to avoid using split or pigtail PSU cables to connect a 2 pin graphics … Read more
So, you’re ready to make a GPU upgrade, but will that new GDDR6X GPU work with your older DDR4 mobo? After all, DDR5 RAM can’t work in a DDR4 motherboard – so is graphic card memory any different? If so, why? Well the gist is: You can use GDDR5, GDDR6, and GDDR6X GPUs with a DDR4 … Read more
There’s a new standard when it comes to the memory in your graphics card: GDDR6 (well, technically GDDR7 is due out ‘soon’ – but with ongoing chip shortages, ‘soon’ might mean in a few years!). This means people are asking whether or not GDDR6 or GDDR6X is better? At the end of the day, both … Read more
Finding the right graphics card is one of the biggest challenges in putting together a custom PC. This has only gotten more difficult as the cost of graphics cards has gone through the roof. NVIDIA has recently started doing something interesting by releasing their own, Founders Edition graphics cards, but are they worth it? Founders … Read more
Graphics cards have never been at a higher premium. We’re using them for everything from creative software to high on gaming. With all of this workload, how can you keep your graphics card cool? You have plenty of options when it comes to keeping your graphics card cool. Passive cooling is the quietest and most … Read more
CPU fans are the unsung heroes of modern PC builds. Eclipsed by fancy liquid cooling systems and never considered unless they are causing a problem, CPU fans are often left out of the conversation. However, if your Ryzen CPU fan is demanding to be heard, how can we address these noisy issues and get this … Read more
Setting your own clock speed has gotten easier than ever thanks to performance tools like AMD Radeon, but what happens when you want to disable some of these built-in performance boosting presets? You can disable AMD Precision Boost by entering into your BIOS menu and disabling this feature in the Advanced menu. You can also … Read more
Your CPU is the brain of your computer, but when you’re flexing your brain as a student, how do you pick the right CPU? Intel Pentium Gold is ideal for students who need average processor power on a budget. Students who just need basic web surfing and document editing can enjoy the long battery life … Read more
If you’ve got your eyes set on a brand-new NVidia GPU, but you’ve got an AMD or Intel CPU, will it work? What about AMD and Intel? Can those long-time rivals be combined into one PC? You can combine any brand graphics card with any brand CPU without worrying about compatibility problems. Currently, all brands … Read more
