Gaming PC Tips & Advice
Straight answers from the PC Madness workshop in Midland on gaming PC faults, upgrades, cooling and custom builds.
We repair, upgrade and build gaming and desktop PCs every day at our Midland workshop. This blog collects the questions we hear most at the counter: why a graphics card is glitching, why a PC won't POST or stutters in games, whether a power supply can take a new card, and whether an older PC is worth upgrading or due for a rebuild. There are also buying guides for custom gaming PCs and business workstations.
Each post explains what's going on in plain terms, the checks you can safely do yourself, and when it's time to bring the PC in. If you'd rather skip the reading, our bottleneck checker suggests which upgrade to look at first, and our gaming PC repairs page lists the faults we fix.
Latest posts
Gaming PC won't POST? How to read the debug LEDs
Fans spin and the lights come on, but there's no picture and it never reaches Windows. The little LEDs on your motherboard usually point at the part to check first.
Why is my gaming PC stuttering when the FPS looks fine?
A high frame rate that still feels choppy is one of the most frustrating gaming PC faults. Here's what stutter actually is, what causes it and how to narrow it down.
CPU or GPU bottleneck? How to tell which part is holding you back
Every gaming PC is limited by something. Two quick tests tell you whether it's the processor or the graphics card, so your upgrade money goes on the right part.
Custom vs prebuilt gaming PC: what's the real difference?
Two PCs with the same processor and graphics card can be very different machines. Here's where prebuilts and custom builds really differ, and what to check before you buy.
How to split a gaming PC budget between the parts
The same budget can buy a great gaming PC or a lopsided one. This guide shows roughly what share each part should get, and how to adjust it for the games you play.
Should you upgrade your older gaming PC or rebuild it?
A new graphics card can give an older gaming PC years more life, or be held back by everything around it. Here's how to tell which way your PC falls.
What workstation specs do CAD and video editing need?
CAD and video editing push a PC in different ways, so the right workstation for one can be the wrong one for the other. Here's where the money should go for each.
Gaming PC overheating under load? Here's what to check
Fans roaring, frame rates dropping after twenty minutes, or a PC that switches itself off mid-game? Here is how to tell if heat is the cause and what fixes it.
Will your power supply handle a new graphics card?
A new graphics card is the biggest gaming upgrade most PCs can get, but it is also the part most likely to outgrow your power supply. Check these four things first.
GPU artifacting: what it means and what to check
Strange coloured squares, lines or flickering textures in games usually point at the graphics card, but not always. These checks help narrow it down.
Want to see the builds behind the advice? Browse our custom PC case studies.
Looking for laptop or everyday home computer advice? That lives on our sister site, midlandpcrepair.com.au.