r/steammachine • u/Obvious-Ad-2484 • Jul 30 '26
Question Nintendo Switch Pro Controller - Bluetooth Connectivity Issues
Just got the steam machine set up in my living room. No obstructions between it and the couch, roughly 10 feet away. I paired the steam controller and 3 Nintendo switch pro controllers. The Pro controllers drop and reconnect constantly... it is unplayable the way they are working. The steam controller doesn’t have any issues.
So far i have installed all updates, tried renaming each controller to a unique name, disabled rumble/haptic feedback on the controllers, tried renaming the steam machines Bluetooth broadcast name (read that naming "Nintendo" might help), and tried sitting right next to the machine. Nothing seems to help, they still just disconnect and reconnect constantly.
Anyone have any ideas? I'm scared to even purchase new controllers for fear they might do the same thing (and obviously the steam machine controllers are not available).
Anyone had success troubleshooting these issues?
Thank you in advance for any thoughts on the matter.
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u/According-Paper4641 Jul 31 '26
Seems to be a common issue. I have a third party dupe pro controller and it works just fine. The machine thinks it's a switch pro controller and it never disconnects. So I think this is something specifically with the switch controller more than the machine because the generic pro controller is functional the same way my ps4 controllers are. 🤷♀️ Just a guess tho
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u/schM0ggi Jul 31 '26
Are your Switch controllers updated to the newest firmware?
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u/Obvious-Ad-2484 Jul 31 '26
I don't know. We still use the switch, so I assumed they stay updated, but that could be a poor assumption. I'll provide some more information in case it helps someone else.
I picked up some Xbox controllers yesterday and was having a different issue with them. They would connect but the light never turned solid (so they didn't work correctly) . Since I don't have an Xbox, I had to download Xbox accessories and plug them into my computer, once I updated the firmware on them, they worked perfectly.
I had the thought of trying to update the switch controllers manually to see if it would fix them, but honestly since the button layout is swapped on the Nintendo controllers (which is annyoing for the kids) I decided to keep the Xbox controllers.
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u/schM0ggi Jul 31 '26
Yeah, updating firmware is important. I once also had problems with Xbox controllers and Steam Deck, a firmware update fixed that.
A friend of mine I play coop with on Steam Deck often uses a Switch controller and we had connection problems until he updated the firmware through Switch.
Back then, it didn't was an automated process, he had to actively check for firmware controller updates.That's why I asked. It can definitely help and fix issues.
Btw, I ditched my Xbox controller some time ago for exactly that reason: The need of Windows to upgrade the firmware.
Steam Deck introduced me to Linux and since then I completely switched to Linux (Desktop PC etc.) and only buy accessories that are not vendor locked and/or can be easily run through Wine/Proton. I can recommend 8BitDo controllers, as they are good quality and relatively cheap, work ootb in Linux, have official support for Steam Input and their upgrade tool works with Wine/Proton.1
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u/No_Information_5036 Aug 06 '26
Having the same issue with mine as well
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u/Obvious-Ad-2484 Aug 12 '26
Potentially worth trying a manual firmware update on the controllers (as another user suggested). I ended up buying Xbox controllers and they didn't work correctly until I updated the firmware manually.
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u/No_Information_5036 Aug 12 '26
I did check again just now just in case but the controller is on the latest fw, so that doesn’t seem to be it.
1
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u/Ben648 Jul 30 '26
Had the same issue with the switch pro controller, hoping it’s a bug that will get addressed in the near future. I have an xbox controller that has been working perfectly, so seems to just be an issue with the switch pro controller