Research methodology

This page explains where our hardware data comes from, how compatibility is determined, and what our figures can and cannot tell you.

Where hardware data comes from

Component specifications are recorded from manufacturer sources: product pages, technical documentation, and published standards. Each record in our database stores the source URL, the source name, and the date the figures were last checked against that source.

We record factual specifications only. We do not copy product descriptions, marketing text, retailer copy or reviews. Where a component page carries a description, that description was written here.

Missing and uncertain data

When we cannot confirm a specification, the field is left empty rather than filled with an estimate. An empty field displays as “Specification not currently verified”, and any compatibility rule that depends on it reports that it could not verify the check.

This is deliberate and it is the most important decision in the whole system. A guessed dimension that turns out to be wrong causes someone to buy a graphics card that does not fit their case. An honest gap causes them to check the manufacturer page, which is what they should do anyway.

Graphics card length is the clearest example. Partner cards using the same chip can differ by more than 50 mm, so a reference figure would be actively misleading. Our records for these carry no length, and the builder tells you to check the dimensions of the exact card you intend to buy.

How compatibility is determined

The compatibility engine runs sixteen independent rules. Each one examines the selected components, decides whether it has enough information, and returns one of four results.

Compatible means the requirement is met on the evidence available. Compatibility note means it will work but there is something worth understanding first. Potential conflict means the evidence indicates these parts will not work together as selected. Unknown means a specification we need is missing, so we are making no claim either way.

Rules cover socket matching, firmware advisories, memory generation and slot count, memory speed support, motherboard form factor against case support, graphics card length against case clearance, cooler socket support, cooler height, cooler thermal capacity, radiator size against case mounting, power supply capacity, power connectors, power supply format and depth, storage interface availability, and whether the build can produce a display output at all.

How power estimates are calculated

The estimate adds the published power figures for the processor and graphics card, plus allowances for the motherboard, memory, drives, fans and any pump. That total is multiplied by a headroom factor, currently 1.35, and rounded up to the next 50 W.

The headroom covers three things: brief power spikes that exceed the sustained figure, the fact that supplies are most efficient near half load rather than at full load, and capacity lost as a unit ages. Where a graphics card manufacturer publishes a recommended supply capacity and that figure is higher than our arithmetic produces, we use theirs. We do not tell anyone a smaller supply is sufficient than the card manufacturer advises.

This is an estimate built from published figures, not a measurement. We have not metered any of these systems. Transient loads, overclocking, peripherals drawing from the board, and future upgrades all change the real requirement. The builder shows the full arithmetic so you can check it against your own parts.

How build guides are put together

Each build guide starts from a budget and a purpose, and every component is chosen to serve that purpose. The complete selection is run through the same compatibility engine the public builder uses before the guide is published.

Guides explain the reasoning for each choice, say what the build gives up at its price, and identify which component to upgrade first. Where a cheaper or more expensive alternative would make sense for a slightly different use, we name it.

Budget figures are targets rather than live totals. Component prices move constantly, and a guide that met a budget when written may sit above or below it today. Every guide says so, and we recommend checking current prices before ordering.

On pricing

We do not display live prices, because we do not have a reliable live pricing feed and inventing one would be worse than having none. Where a price appears, it is either a manufacturer suggested price or a figure entered by hand, and it carries the date it was recorded.

A price with no date is not information you can act on. If you see one on this site without a date, that is a bug, and we would like to hear about it.

What we have not done

We have not physically tested the hardware discussed on this site. There is no test bench, no thermal chamber, no power analyser, and no set of review samples. We have not measured a frame rate, a temperature, a noise level or an efficiency curve.

Our analysis is specification-based, informed by practical experience assembling machines. When you need measured performance comparisons, publications that run controlled tests are the right source, and we link to them rather than paraphrasing their numbers as though they were ours.