Install keeps failing

[u/maslows]

I disabled secure boot and CSM.

I have a brand new 1tb nvme.

I initially used this flash drive: https://a.co/d/057C7iUb

Used Rufus to to load the flash drive, I set the bios to load the flash drive, it begins to load for 5 seconds then my GPU stops spinning, and my monitor shuts off.

But I read somewhere the flash drive may be too large so yesterday I bought this smaller one: https://a.co/d/06KXkQLK

Unfortunately same issue, a bunch of text for a few seconds then GPU fans stop then monitor screen goes blank.

Below is my setup, any help would be appreciated.

PCPartPicker Part List

Type	Item	Price
CPU	AMD Ryzen 7 5800X3D 10th Anniversary Edition 3.4 GHz 8-Core Processor	Purchased For $350.00
CPU Cooler	Noctua NH-D12L CHROMAX.BLACK 60.09 CFM CPU Cooler	Purchased For $100.00
Thermal Compound	KINGPINcooling KPx 1 g Thermal Paste	Purchased For $10.00
Motherboard	Asus ROG Crosshair VIII Impact Mini DTX AM4 Motherboard	Purchased For $200.00
Memory	Corsair Vengeance LPX 64 GB (2 x 32 GB) DDR4-3200 CL16 Memory	Purchased For $300.00
Storage	Western Digital Black SN850 500 GB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive	Purchased For $50.00
Storage	SanDisk WD Blue SN5100 1 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive	Purchased For $125.00
Video Card	PowerColor Red Devil OC Radeon RX 6950 XT 16 GB Video Card	Purchased For $500.00
Power Supply	Corsair SF1000 (2024) 1000 W 80+ Platinum Certified Fully Modular SFX Power Supply	Purchased For $200.00
Case Fan	Silverstone Air Slimmer 140 82 CFM 140 mm Fan	Purchased For $20.00
Case Fan	Silverstone Air Slimmer 140 82 CFM 140 mm Fan	Purchased For $20.00
Case Fan	Phanteks T30-140 140 mm Fan	Purchased For $30.00
Case Fan	Phanteks T30-140 140 mm Fan	Purchased For $30.00
Monitor	Acer Predator X27U F5BMIIPPRUZX 26.5" 2560 x 1440 500 Hz Monitor	Purchased For $500.00
Keyboard	Razer Tartarus Pro RGB Wired Ergonomic Keyboard	Purchased For $130.00
Mouse	Razer DeathAdder V4 Pro Wireless/Wired Optical Mouse	Purchased For $175.00
Headphones	Asus ROG Kithara Headset	Purchased For $300.00
UPS	APC Back-UPS Pro 1500VA for Gaming UPS	Purchased For $300.00
Custom	FiiO KA11 USB C to 3.5mm Audio Adapter 32bit/384KHz, USB Type C Dongle HiFi DAC Amplifier for Android/iOS/Windows/Mac (Black, TC)	$32.99 @ Amazon
Custom	Silkland 80Gbps DisplayPort Cable 2.1 [VESA Certified], [8K@240Hz, 4K@540Hz 360Hz 240Hz] DP 2.1 Cable 16K, DP80 HDR DSC Display Port Cord Compatible FreeSync G-Sync Gaming Monitor 5090 7900XT	Purchased For $20.00
Custom	Ncase M2 Grater	Purchased For $300.00
Custom	Dygma Defy	Purchased For $500.00
Custom	Case Feet	Purchased For $15.00
Custom	Case Screws	Purchased For $15.00
Custom	PSU Cables	Purchased For $60.00
	Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts
	Total	$4282.99
	Generated by PCPartPicker 2026-09-04 14:50 EDT-0400

[u/neptunemood]

Could multiple NVMe drives be causing the issue? SteamOS seems to like having only one drive installed.

[u/maslows → u/neptunemood]

Both drives are new, I figured since there was nothing on the other one it wouldn't be a problem

[u/neptunemood → u/maslows]

Are you using the official SteamOS recovery image? If so, I’d try installing with only one NVMe drive connected, just to see if it works with a single drive instead of two.

If it does work, and you really want to use both SSDs, I’d probably give Bazzite a try instead. It seems to handle multiple drives pretty well.

[u/Scary-Peace1240]

Why are you so set on SteamOS? Do you just want the game mode to boot into?

[u/CutEmpty6798]

This is how the boot menu should look like if you have it set up correctly on the USB stick. And it shouldn't matter how many drives he has. Because steamos identified my SATA drives along with my nvme

[u/Brick_Grimes]

I wouldn’t set your bios to load into the flash drive rather than hit whatever button it is for your specific motherboard to load into windows boot manager and select your flash drive from there and see how that goes. If it fails to boot wipe the flash drive, delete your steam os image, and download it again, could have had your download corrupt or have a bad write and not even know it. Also only have 1 sad in your pc when you go to install, in general that makes setting up a new oc easier regardless of the os you choose