Alright, so while I love the concept of a Steam Machine, this isn’t actually a Steam Machine from Valve. Instead, it’s more like a custom-built Windows PC designed to run Steam Big Picture Mode for a console-like gaming experience.
The idea behind this setup is to combine the flexibility of a Windows gaming PC with the user-friendly, couch-friendly interface of Steam’s Big Picture Mode. This allows for easy controller-based navigation, full access to my Steam library, and the ability to run non-Steam games or emulators, all while maintaining the power and customization options that a traditional gaming PC offers.
So, while it doesn’t have the official SteamOS experience, it still delivers that living-room gaming feel, but with the added benefits of Windows compatibility and customization.
Lets start off with the parts list
PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/2lc0n
CPU: AMD FX-8320 3.5GHz 8-Core Processor $129.99
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-78LMT-USB3 Micro ATX AM3+ Motherboard $49.99
Memory: G.Skill Sniper Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory $52.99
Storage: Kingston SSDNow V300 Series 120GB 2.5″ Solid State Disk $79.99
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5″ 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive $39.99
Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 670 2GB Video Card $199.99
Case: Lian-Li PC-V351B MicroATX Desktop Case $89.99
Power Supply: Antec TruePower Classic 550W 80+ Gold Certified ATX Power Supply $49.99
Total: $692.92 (post rebate prices)
All the parts

Side view did my best to organize the cables

Ah video card! Its a really big card to fit in this small case.

Hard to see, but I had to cut part of the case so the video card heat pipes could fit.

Motherboard came this way, the northbridge heatsink was not latched down, I found the clip and spring, and attached it. No problems so far.

Final product installed in the entertainment center. Even though its an enclosed space, it doesn’t overheat. The fans on the GPU are pretty loud though and they kick into high gear.

3d Mark Benchmark http://www.3dmark.com/3dm/1893385
Overall this build has provided me many hours of gaming from my living room. If I were to do it again, I would look for some more energy efficient products like the CPU and GPU.
very nice on the GTX 670. I did a 660 for my steam box. What compelled you to use AMD CPU over an Intel?
I bought the AMD because it was really cheap, only $129.99, normally $159. To get an Intel with about the same processing, they were $175-$200. While Intels in that price range are better at single threaded applications, benchmark wise they were about the same multi-threaded.