First water-cooled Steam Machine is here
Custom copper and acrylic block replaces the stock cooling.
A modder has built what appears to be the first water-cooled Steam Machine. Reddit user techmagnet designed and manufactured a custom water block for Valve’s compact gaming PC, reporting CPU and GPU temperatures 20 to 30°C lower than with the stock cooling system.
The block was manufactured using a Makera Carvera Air desktop CNC machine. The project combines a machined copper plate with a clear acrylic top. The cooling loop uses flexible tubing connected to an external pump, radiator and fan. Some modifications to the Steam Machine enclosure were also required.
Source: techmagnet
According to techmagnet, the system now runs 20 to 30°C cooler under full load on both the CPU and GPU. The modder says this leaves considerably more thermal room for overclocking, although Steam Machine currently provides no overclocking support. In another comment, techmagnet said that without OC support, buyers looking for more performance would still be better served by a conventional PC.
VRM cooling is the next challenge
The project is not finished yet. Techmagnet plans to revisit the block to improve VRM cooling. The modder says the MOSFETs are small and already operate close to their thermal design limits, making this part of the cooling system more difficult to modify.
Steam Machine hardware mods have started appearing more frequently since the system launched. We recently covered a replacement front panel that integrates the Steam Controller charging puck. Valve has also released official external CAD files for Steam Machine, giving modders accurate dimensions for replacement panels and other external parts.
Source: Reddit
