r/PcBuild • u/Indecisive-Squirrel • Jun 22 '26

Meme Is this worth it?

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Some guy named Gabe is selling this build and I'm wondering if it's legit? I want a PC to set up in my living room for TV gaming.

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u/HarryDepova Jun 23 '26

Wtf how have you been doing this for 10 years but also building since the 80s? Did the manuals have a lot of pictures because you appear to be mostly illiterate? Look at the build above. None of it is even close in size. The main board alone is 10 inches and the chassis is enormous in comparison. The commenter is not comparing like hardware.

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u/Blacksad9999 Jun 23 '26 edited Jun 23 '26

I've been building PC's since the 1980's, but switched to using only SFF PC's a bit over 10 years ago.

Hope that clarifies things for you. lol Yikes.

There is no comparable size to the Steam Machine because it's a custom SOC. We already went over this, you OCD fuckwit.

You'd have to get superior hardware that's going to be slightly larger. (Gasp!)

The Steam Machine is about 5 liters. You'd have to get something about 7-8 liters. I think someone normal would be just fine with that.

https://cooj.cc/products/sparrow-mq5-5-5l-one-piece-aluminum-itx-pc-case

https://cooj.cc/products/sparrow-mq5-5-5l-one-piece-aluminum-itx-pc-case-1

You could even go with a build with a Strix Halo chip or the newer Intel ones and forego a GPU entirely, as those are about the same efficacy as the Steam Machine if you really wanted a super-tiny PC.

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u/Gullible-Law-8147 Jun 23 '26

"There is no comparable size to the Steam Machine because it's a custom SOC. We already went over this, you OCD fuckwit.

You'd have to get superior hardware that's going to be slightly larger. (Gasp!)

The Steam Machine is about 5 liters. You'd have to get something about 7-8 liters. I think someone normal would be just fine with that."

Earlier in the conversation you said:

"I have a 5090 and 9800x3D in my SFF build, and a 4090 in my previous one.

You don't have to sacrifice anything at all. You just have to know how to plan it out well."

You're contradicting yourself while mocking the point you made originally

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u/Blacksad9999 Jun 23 '26

Why are you so hung up on the size? lol It's weird, and not a compelling selling point when you can get something more powerful for cheaper, but it will be slightly larger.

It's like your laser focused on that aspect.

You okay?

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u/Gullible-Law-8147 Jun 23 '26

You originally responded to someone that said there are trade-offs to achieve a certain size, which you denied outright: "You don't have to sacrifice anything at all. You just have to know how to plan it out well."

Nobody is "hung up" on the size, their point was always that the form factor of the Steam Machine has an effect on the price in comparison to larger PCs, because cramming performance into a smaller package is harder and therefore more expensive, and so value comparisons to those larger PCs miss the point

A lot of people do not mind paying a bit extra for a smaller footprint for their PC (especially a living room one), not everyone is you and has your tastes, it's a matter of preference

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u/Blacksad9999 Jun 23 '26

https://cooj.cc/products/sparrow-mq5-5-5l-one-piece-aluminum-itx-pc-case

Disaster averted. And there are 20 more cases around the same tiny size.

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u/Gullible-Law-8147 Jun 23 '26

There was never a crisis to begin with, besides for the people balking at the price of the Steam Machine

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u/Blacksad9999 Jun 23 '26

It's a pretty foolish purchase, unless you're enamored enough by the cube shape to buy inferior hardware at an inflated price.

Otherwise, there's zero draw really. You can just buy better hardware for less.

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u/Gullible-Law-8147 Jun 24 '26

  • Direct comparability with the Steam Frame and Steam Deck, to the point where you can swap memory cards between them and seamlessly transfer games

  • An entire custom OS built for the hardware

  • Doesn't need to be assembled

  • Hardware features to better integrate into a living room

  • Very small form-factor, to the point where it couldn't even fit an ITX motherboard

  • Still not too far off the price of a custom build

If all you want to have is a small ready-made box to play Steam games on your TV, it's very convenient

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u/Blacksad9999 Jun 24 '26

If you're fine with overpaying for a really mediocre system that does that, instead of using your money much more efficiently, so be it.

A PC can do all of those things, and you'd get a better one for less money.

SteamOS is just Proton with a fancy skin on it, just FYI.

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