TechFuel HQMake the next hardware or homelab decision with the receipts open.
First-party benchmarks, long-term ownership notes, browser tools, and source-linked guides — with the buying route kept next to the verdict instead of buried in filler.
By Lowell K. Wood IV — 13-year homelabber & PC builder in St. Louis
What are you trying to decide?
Each route pairs an answer with the evidence, calculator, or current retailer check that supports it.
How We Test
From 2024 through early 2026 I ran a home test bench in St. Louis County, MO — measuring idle power draw at the wall, logging thermals under sustained load, and benchmarking on hardware I bought with my own money. Most of that gear has since been sold or retired (see About and Colophon for the full timeline). Today the site combines my hands-on history with a synthesis of cited third-party benchmarks — ServeTheHome, Phoronix, Tom’s Hardware, TechPowerUp — plus original first-party runs on the rigs I still own (most recently the ASUS ROG Astral RTX 5080 OC dataset). No vendor samples, no sponsored content, no paid placement.
First-Party Data & Tools →
Original benchmark data and free calculators you will not find anywhere else.
ASUS ROG Astral RTX 5080 OC — First-Party Bench Dataset
First-party 3DMark Time Spy, clocks, thermals, board power, DLSS 4 MFG, and 4K native gaming results from the ASUS ROG Astral RTX 5080 OC by TechFuelHQ.
ToolPC Builder: Parts Picker with Compatibility Checks
Interactive PC build picker with socket, chipset, RAM, PSU, and case-clearance checks, plus current Amazon and Newegg searches. CC BY 4.0 parts dataset.
GuidePSU Calculator: Power Supply Wattage Calculator
A free PSU calculator that sizes your power supply from your actual parts. Pick your CPU and GPU to see peak system draw, the minimum PSU wattage, and the size that lands you in the efficiency sweet spot.
Hardware Reviews →
Long-term reviews of gear I bought, ran, and measured myself.
ROG Astral RTX 5080 OC Review: First-Party 4K Benchmarks
ASUS ROG Astral RTX 5080 OC review with TechFuelHQ benchmarks: 3DMark, Cyberpunk 4K path tracing, DLSS 4 MFG, plus power and thermals across three profiles.
ReviewRyzen 7 7800X3D Review (2026): Still the Gaming CPU Standard
Ryzen 7 7800X3D review from 3 years of daily use: is it still good in 2026? 3D V-Cache gaming lead, where the gap to the 9800X3D/9850X3D actually closes, real thermals, live pricing, and buy advice.
ReviewNZXT Kraken 360 Review: Long-Term on a Ryzen 7 7800X3D (2026)
Long-term NZXT Kraken 360 review from a Ryzen 7 7800X3D build: AM5 install, NZXT CAM software, 3D V-Cache thermals, pump noise, and is the LCD worth it.
Homelab Guides →
Run a home server the smart way: Proxmox, TrueNAS, NAS builds, and mini-PCs.
Proxmox vs TrueNAS vs Unraid: ZFS, btrfs, and Homelab IOPS
Unraid vs TrueNAS vs Proxmox in 2026: which storage platform to pick, how their ZFS and btrfs backends really differ, and the homelab IOPS, redundancy, and rebuild tradeoffs.
HomelabBest Mini PC for a Homelab 2026: MS-01, NUC, SFF
The best mini PC for a homelab in 2026, ranked by budget: MS-01 for dual 10GbE, ASUS NUC 14 for 8W idle, used OptiPlex under $200. Real idle watts and picks.
HardwareHow to Set Up Proxmox on a Mini PC: First VM in Under an Hour
Set up Proxmox VE on a mini PC step by step -- install, storage, networking, and your first VM in under an hour (works on the MS-01, NUC 14 Pro, or EliteDesk 800 G4).
PC Hardware & Builds →
Parts picks and full build guides, from a budget AM5 box to a flagship 4K rig.
The $1,500 RTX 5060 Ti Mid-Range 1440p Build for 2026
The RTX 5060 Ti 16GB / Ryzen 7 7700 1440p build, repriced honestly for the 2026 memory shortage: what was $1,498 in May now runs about $2,050, and here is exactly which three parts moved.
Build GuideDDR5 RAM Buying Guide 2026: What It Actually Costs Now
What DDR5 actually costs in August 2026 during the AI-driven memory shortage: live 32GB, 64GB and per-GB kit prices, the multiplier off the pre-shortage floor, the CL30 sweet spot, and which kit to buy for Ryzen or Intel.
Build GuideAORUS FO48U Review (2026): 48-inch 4K OLED Gaming Monitor
AORUS FO48U review: 48-inch 4K 120Hz OLED with DisplayPort 1.4, two HDMI 2.1, and a built-in KVM. First-hand daily-driver take, real pricing, pros and cons.