I'm done with multitasking on a single PC, and I'm tired of waiting for Valve
so I built a custom Steam Machine, and here's what it has changed for me

Date:
Thu, 04 Jun 2026 20:00:00 +0000

Description:
PC gaming and multitasking can't get any easier than a dual PC setup, especially with the help of a capture card, and it's the best choice I've
made in years.

FULL STORY ======================================================================Copy link Facebook X Whatsapp Reddit Pinterest Flipboard Threads Email Share this article 0 Join the conversation Follow us Add us as a preferred source on Google Newsletter Subscribe to our newsletter Multitasking while gaming is typical for many PC users, and certainly so for me. Being able to keep tabs
on YouTube videos or, most importantly (in this case), stream to friends in Discord , breathes life into my game activities, especially when diving into an MMO or multiplayer shooter or in better terms, a game where I don't have to pay full attention.

However, such multitasking comes at the cost of game performance,
particularly on lower-end hardware (or specifically, PCs with 8GB of RAM). Discord, Google Chrome, Firefox, Spotify, you name it, can all significantly impact RAM and CPU usage, depending on how many tasks are running simultaneously.

Google Chrome is the worst offender, as simply running a single YouTube video in one tab can use up to 1GB of memory (sometimes even more than that), and almost 4GB for the application overall. Fortunately, I have a beefy system running with 32GB of DDR4 RAM, so I can count myself lucky, especially in a period where affordable memory is hard to come by. Latest Videos From Watch full video here: (Image credit: Shutterstock) With spare PC parts readily available, came the idea of a dual-PC setup, accompanied by a capture card
and a secondary Corsair Xeneon Edge screen. This would allow me to completely shift all of my side activities, including game streaming on Discord, onto a separate system, leaving my main system's hardware solely focused on gaming. I've built it, installed Bazzite (essentially a SteamOS clone), and it's easily the best decision I've made as a PC gamer in years. Here's how it's changed my PC experience. You may like 'Building a PC in 2026 is an absolute treat': I asked ChatGPT and Gemini to pick my perfect gaming rig, and it nearly cost me my sanity The best gaming PC 2026 I let ChatGPT and Gemini build my PC here are the components each AI picked The setup was arduous,
but streaming is easier now (Image credit: Future / Isaiah Williams) To get the setup started, you simply connect your main gaming PC's GPU (which is the source of what you'll be streaming) to the NZXT Signal 4K30 capture card's 'HDMI In' port via an HDMI cable. Then, connect the included USB Type-C cable into the 'Type-C' port on the capture card, and the USB-A end of the cable into the second streaming PC, and you're good to go.

The sole purpose of this capture card setup is to allow a separate PC to capture activity from another gaming PC, and this works with other systems like consoles. Ultimately, the goal is to offload the burden of your gaming
PC using more resources to stream on the same system, and instead, allow the streaming PC to handle those tasks. Get daily insight, inspiration and deals in your inbox Sign up for breaking news, reviews, opinion, top tech deals,
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Capture cards are especially helpful for devices like the Nintendo Switch 2 , where streaming to Twitch, YouTube, or Discord isn't possible natively, but
in this case, the focus is simply on reducing the workload for the main
gaming PC.

When streaming on Discord, you'll find your capture card as an option within the 'Devices' tab when attempting to share your screen. Besides a few hiccups here and there, the stream quality is great at either 1440p or 4K , with the former capable of 60fps.

I must stress that my particular setup case was a bit of a nightmare. Using
an HDMI passthrough is the recommended route in a setup such as this, as it allows you to transmit video and audio to your main display for gaming, with zero latency, while providing the same for streaming on the capture card.
What to read next 'Just use the manual': I followed ChatGPT's PC-building instructions, and all I got was a huge headache and a schooling on prompting Valve Steam Controller (2026) review The best budget gaming PC 2026

It's unclear whether the unit I used was faulty, but the Signal 4K30 would consistently force a 1080p 60fps output via HDMI passthrough on my LG UltraGear 45GS95QE ultrawide, without any higher resolutions available. Image 1 of 2 Ports on NZXT Signal 4K30 (Image credit: Future / Isaiah Williams) 2nd streaming PC (Image credit: Future / Isaiah Williams) Without much luck using HDMI passthrough, the easiest alternatives included duplicating my main display via Windows' display settings, or using the OBS projector option (labelled 'Open Preview Projector'), and since the latter has very little to no impact on system resources, it was the easier way to go.

The biggest advantage of the OBS projector option is that there is no constraint on the resolution or refresh rate available, which is usually limited using HDMI passthrough on a capture card (which would be 4K 60fps
with the NZXT card), so I had full access to my display's 240Hz refresh rate while gaming.

Multitasking is now a complete breeze, as I can watch other friends stream while doing so simultaneously, without the potential performance dips, especially when playing unoptimized games or those with demanding system requirements. It's also my custom Steam Machine (Image credit: Future /
Isaiah Williams) Whenever I need a console-like gaming experience, this 2nd
PC now acts as a separate custom Steam Machine, but one that's even more powerful than what Valve is poised to deliver.

With the AMD Ryzen 5 5600x 6-core processor and an AMD Radeon RX 9060 XT 16GB GPU, it's a build that's powerful enough to provide great performance at 4K when upscaling.

The only Steam Machine-like feature that's missing is the small form factor chassis to house the components, but it's a very tough ask to find a PC case as small as the Steam Machine's that will fit a full-sized desktop GPU and
if you can, it's not going to be cheap. One of Decky Loader's plugins... (Image credit: Future / Isaiah Williams) What actually makes this a custom Steam Machine is Bazzite, which runs like an absolute dream on PCs with AMD hardware. While there's the handicap of certain games not being compatible on Linux due to anti-cheat complications , that's exactly what my main Windows
11 gaming PC is at the ready for.

Using tools like Decky Loader quite literally transforms the SteamOS gaming mode experience into that of a custom console, as several plugins can change the UI, boot videos, navigation sounds, and more. You could turn your interface into that of GameCube or a PS5 if you wanted, and that's what makes it so special.

Just to reiterate, none of this would have been possible if not for my lucky case scenario of having spare parts, as this build would easily cost at least $1,000 / 1,000 / AU$1,400, and the 16GB of RAM would likely eat up a significant chunk of the cost.

Building this system has completely revitalized my PC gaming experience, and it's hard to look back, especially once Valve further optimizes SteamOS for desktop PC users. Follow TechRadar on Google News and add us as a preferred source to get our expert news, reviews, and opinion in your feeds.



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Link to news story: https://www.techradar.com/computing/gaming-computers/im-done-with-multitasking -on-a-single-pc-and-im-tired-of-waiting-for-valve-so-i-built-a-custom-steam-ma chine-and-heres-what-it-has-changed-for-me


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