For first time PC builders, putting together a system can be anxiety inducing. Which is why it is important to be familiar with the components first before proceeding. This guide serves as a basic ...

Operating system patches alone can protect against the nasty Meltdown flaw affecting Intel processors, but fixing Spectre—Meltdown’s nasty sibling, which affects all CPUs—requires firmware updates for ...

For some, installing a CPU is one of the easiest parts of building a new PC. For others, it can be nerve-wracking, especially if they're doing it for the first time. While the basics of securing a CPU ...

Every user who has built their own PC started somewhere. It might be overwhelming at first, but once you get the hang of it, PC assembly is actually quite easy. This guide serves as a basic starter ...

Even accomplished geeks shy away from motherboard upgrades on their main PCs. Years ago, I would often upgrade gaming and test systems in my own basement lab, but keep chugging along with a production ...

Ed: The following is a guest post by Ars CPU & Mobo forum guru Hat Monster. The post is based on an excellent thread on the same topic, which everyone who’s contemplating a motherboard swap should ...

I just put together a cheap computer for a friend (Sempron 2600+, Gigabyte K8VM800M) and I'm consistently getting errors installing software. By software install errors, I mean that the intallation ...

Installing a CPU cooler used to be an extremely easy and straightforward operation until the dawn of third-party coolers.

For a CPU, or processor, to maintain a safe operating temperature, it needs a CPU fan. When properly installed, a CPU fan stays in constant contact with the CPU's metal plate so all the heat generated ...