The best budget CPU coolers, and when the cheap one is enough
Budget CPU coolers that fit: a dual tower for most builds, a slim single tower, and a short 100 mm cooler for small cases and older boards, with socket checks. Keep reading »
Cooling & Thermals
Thermal paste, pads, coolers, liquid metal and temperatures: how heat leaves a CPU and what actually helps.
Latest in Cooling & Thermals
Choosing a CPU air cooler: towers, low-profile and what the numbers mean
How to choose a CPU air cooler: towers, top-down and low-profile designs, heat pipes, fins and fans, noise figures, socket mounts, clearance and when an AIO fits. Keep reading »
CPU coolers that still fit LGA 775
LGA 775 uses 72 mm hole spacing, not the 75 mm of later Intel sockets. How to read socket lists, push pins versus backplates, and height and RAM clearance. Keep reading »
Best thermal paste for a CPU: how to choose, and four sensible picks
The best thermal paste for a CPU is non-conductive, needs no curing and comes in a sensible tube. How to read specs, four picks by use and a liquid metal warning. Keep reading »
Thermal pad vs thermal paste: which one each part of your PC needs
Thermal pad vs thermal paste: paste goes on CPU and GPU dies, pads fill measured gaps over VRAM, VRMs and M.2 drives. How to pick thickness, plus three picks. Keep reading »
Cleaning thermal paste with isopropyl alcohol, step by step
Isopropyl alcohol for cleaning thermal paste: why 90 to 99 percent, which wipes, the CPU lid and cooler base, paste in the socket, liquid metal and drying time. Keep reading »
How much thermal paste on a CPU? Amounts by chip size
How much thermal paste on a CPU: a 4 mm bead for most desktop chips, more for long or large lids, a thin film on laptop dies, and how to check the spread. Keep reading »
Sizing a CPU cooler by TDP: what the watt ratings do and do not tell you
What TDP, PL1, PL2 and PPT really mean, why cooler watt ratings are not a standard, and how to size a cooler for a stock or overclocked CPU, old or new. Keep reading »
Repasting a CPU step by step, from cleanup to the first temperature check
How to repaste a desktop or laptop CPU: when it helps, safe cooler removal, cleaning, paste amount and pattern, even mounting pressure and the first temp check. Keep reading »
Liquid metal vs thermal paste: when the swap is worth the risk
Liquid metal moves heat far better than paste but conducts electricity and attacks aluminium. Where it pays off, where it does not, and how to apply it safely. Keep reading »
How to delid an Intel CPU: tools, risks and what you actually gain
Which Intel chips hide paste or solder under the lid, how delid tools compare with vise and blade methods, how to relid or go direct die, and what it gains. Keep reading »