Colton - PC Builds On A Budget

How To Install Windows 11 On Your New PC Build

by Colton

If you’re getting ready to build a new PC, you’ll need to know how to get the latest version of the Windows OS running on it. I’m here to guide you through installing Windows 11, ensuring you start on the right foot! Windows 11’s system requirements will be the first checkpoint. I’ll help you understand … Read more…

A Guide To Selecting The Right Motherboard For Your PC Build

by Colton

Choosing the right motherboard for your PC build can be quite confusing at first.

How do you know which motherboard is compatible with the rest of your PC build’s components?

What should you look for in a motherboard?

What are the most important parts of a motherboard for your specific rig?

From all of the different slots on a board, the difference between form factors, ensuring compatibility with your CPU choice, to the most important types of expansion for future upgrades – this article aims to help you understand how to choose the right motherboard for your PC build and to guide you through understanding what to look for when choosing a compatible board for your rig.

Fifine BM88 Review, A Solid Low-Profile Boom Arm?

by Colton

I’ve been using the BM88 boom arm mic stand for a good while now and figured it was time to share a proper review of it.

I have been using it with both the AM8 mic and the K688 mic and, although there are a couple of issues I’ve got to share about the mic arm itself, it still works great overall – especially with these mics!

This review will go over my overall experience with this boom arm sharing what it’s good at versus what it’s not good at to help you get a better idea if it’s the right boom arm for you to get as well.

With that, let’s get to the review.

Fifine K688 Mic Review, High-End Performance At A Low Cost?

by Colton

After extensive use of the Fifine K688 microphone, I wanted to share a full review of the mic on how well it performs and how easy it is to use as a daily mic.

The K688 is positioned as a high-end choice from Fifine while staying at a highly competitive price point, staying under the $75 price point compared to the $90+ in the same category.

I was using the Fifine AM8 microphone for a while before switching over to this mic, and there are some big differences not just in overall recording quality but also in what all the mic is able to pick up from a distance and how easy it is to use, especially using this with a boom arm.

So, this review is going to focus on my experience of what it’s like making the jump from a nice budget mic over to something higher-end and using a boom arm.

With that, let’s get to the review.

How To Optimally Upgrade From A GTX 1070

by Colton

Upgrading from the GTX 1070? This post will show you how to upgrade from the GTX 1070 to an optimal GPU for higher FPS rates and future-proof performance.

You can’t just buy any new GPU on the market today, throw it into your PC build and be good to go. You also need to ensure that it makes sense to upgrade based on your monitor’s refresh rate, to ensure that you aren’t shelling out cash for a subpar level of performance boost and that your PC can provide enough power for an upgrade.

In this post, we’ll go over everything you need to know before venturing into the multiple GPU choices that you could upgrade to and help you understand the most optimal upgrade options on the market.

How To Upgrade From An Intel i3 or i5 CPU to i7 or i9: Ensuring Compatibility When Upgrading

by Colton

Looking to upgrade from an Intel Core i3 or i5 CPU to a more powerful i7 or even i9 CPU? This post will show you how to ensure compatibility for any upgrade!

It’s not as simple as throwing in a new i7 or i9 CPU in place of your current CPU and calling it a day… You have to ensure that whichever CPU you are looking to upgrade towards is compatible with your current PC build which is exactly what this post is about – ensuring compatibility and upgrading the right way!

Odds are, if you’re looking to upgrade, then your CPU is from an older generation… If that’s the case, then there are more steps involved in upgrading to an i7 or i9 when you’re upgrading to a newer generation processor.

By following everything in this post, you should be able to ensure compatibility with the right parts and have a CPU upgrade that’s worthy of your PC rig.

Fifine H6 Gaming Headset Review: Noise-Canceling On A Budget?

by Colton

After using the Fifine H6 headset for a while, I figured it was time to give it a full review. In this review, I’ll go over its value as a daily gaming headset.

The main selling points of this headset are the price for the type of audio quality, how comfortable it is to use, and that it has a mic that’s actually clear.

There are a few things I’ve noticed while using this headset and comparing it to others – some good things, some not so good…

Which is why I decided to share it here and go over everything that it has to offer. Whether or not it’s a viable headset for you is going to depend on your overall use case, as I don’t think this headset is for everyone.

With that, let’s get to the review.

Fifine AM8 RGB Mic Review, Is It Worth Getting As A Budget Mic?

by Colton

I’ve been using the Fifine AM8 RGB mic for a while now and figured it was time to give it a proper review. Let’s see if it really is a budget mic worth getting.

I’ve been waiting to come across a decent studio mic to replace the mic that came with my wireless headset and decided to give this mic from Fifine a whirl.

Hearing a higher-quality sound from friends while gaming together in Discord has always given me the itch to get something higher quality, but I also didn’t want to break the bank on a “super” studio mic.

After using this for a while… a few things have surprised me about the mic which is why I wanted to give this a full lookover and share it with all of you.

With that, let’s get to the review.

How To Upgrade From A GTX 1060 The Right Way

by Colton

Looking to upgrade from the GTX 1060? This post will show you how to upgrade from the GTX 1060 for higher frame rates and ray-tracing support with an RTX GPU.

There’s more to upgrading your GPU than simply replacing the card with a shinier, newer GPU… You need to ensure that your PC has enough power, that you’re not overspending for something sub-optimal, and that you understand the type of performance difference that you’ll be having with a GPU upgrade.

That’s exactly what I would like to share with this post! We’ll go over the best upgrades for the GTX 1060, what kind of performance you should expect, and how to tell if it’s actually time to upgrade your GPU.

Does It FINALLY Make Sense To Build A Gaming PC?

by Colton

Two years…

Two years is about how long it has been since the PC hardware market went complete bonkers where there was hardly any hardware that was fairly priced for builders.

From the crypto mining craze to the pandemic affecting chip manufacturers and everything else in between… It all started about two years ago.

So now begs the question…

Is it finally a good time to build a gaming PC? Does it make sense now?

Is the graphics card market back to normal?

Are manufacturers able to keep up with the high demand?

In this post, I’d like to discuss the topic overall, to get into whether or not it makes sense to do a gaming PC build of your own now, and what the near future of hardware has in store for those of us that want to get a new build going.