Step 4 of 10
Build a gaming PC step 4 of 10: Fit the cooler
Squeeze a dot of thermal paste no bigger than a grain of rice onto the middle of the processor. Peel the clear film off the cooler’s base. With its fan unclipped, set the cooler on and tighten its four screws a little at a time in a cross pattern, so it presses down evenly and spreads the paste; a long screwdriver reaches them past the fins. Then clip the fan back on.
Tools: none, just your hands
Common mistake: leaving the film on the cooler’s base. Most coolers come with a clear plastic film over their base to protect it. Left on, it sits between the paste and the metal and stops the heat getting into the cooler: the processor runs far too hot and slows itself down to protect itself. Peel the film off before the cooler goes on. The switch in the player shows what goes wrong.
All 10 steps
What you need
- Phillips screwdrivers · a long No. 2, and a No. 0 for the M.2 screw
- A big table · not on carpet
- The motherboard’s manual · for its slots and connectors
- Cable ties · to tidy the cables
Questions
Which slots do two memory sticks go in?
On most boards the second and fourth from the processor, A2 and B2, as ASUS’s FAQ says for its boards. Check your board’s manual: it marks the slots to use.
How much thermal paste should I use?
Intel’s guide says a dot no bigger than a grain of rice in the middle of the processor: the cooler’s pressure spreads it.
How many standoffs does an ATX motherboard need?
An ATX board usually takes nine screws, so nine standoffs where its holes are, and no extra ones under it.
Where do I plug the monitor in?
Into the graphics card’s ports, at the back in the row of slots, not the video port on the motherboard’s panel.
Do I need force to fit the processor?
No. Intel’s guide says it fits only one way and needs no force; only the socket’s lever may need a firm push.
Safety
Unplug the power supply before you work inside the case, and never open a power supply: it holds a charge. Static can damage the parts: work on a hard floor and touch the case’s bare metal before you handle them.
About this guide
This guide shows an ATX motherboard with an LGA socket, two DDR5 sticks, an M.2 NVMe drive, a tower cooler, a graphics card and a modular power supply in a mid-tower case. The steps follow Intel’s guide to building a gaming PC; the memory slots are the ones ASUS’s FAQ gives for two sticks on its boards. Your board’s manual has the final word on its own slots and connectors.
The temperatures on the readings are illustrative.
Sources: Intel: How to build a gaming PC, ASUS FAQ: which memory slots to use.
The 3D models, drawings and text are our own.