Best PC Build: Steam Machine Under $1,000

[jpishgar]

It's that time again! Time to update the Best PC Builds! Once again, we are opening the field to user recommendations to get the best consensus for the absolute best of the best in each category. As last time, we're limiting the builds to price points, but this time we're also including two new forms - VR builds and Steam machine builds.

Your challenge is to create builds in any of the following eight brackets:

1. 
   ■Best Steam Machine Build Under $1,000http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/id-3026248/build-steam-machine-000.html
   ■Best VR Ready Build $750
   ■Best VR Ready Build Under $2,500

With these ground rules to follow:

• 
  ■Do not go over budget.
  ■Use only Amazon OR Newegg to source parts.
  ■Use list prices only: coupons, rebates, bundles or any other limited-time offers will not be accepted.
  ■Do not include shipping or tax in your final budget.
  ■Do not include the Operating System, Monitor or VR Headset, Keyboard, Mouse or Gamepad (Steam Machine).
  ■Do not put your forum handle in the name of your build, and avoid odd capitalizations & symbols.
  ■Provide links to the Amazon or Newegg product pages of each component — we encourage users to use PCPartPicker's System Build for speedy construction. Do not post a link to your build, but rather please be sure to export as BBCode for a quick copy/paste to the forums.
  ■The Steam Machine must be around the size of current-gen consoles and have Wi-Fi.
  ■ VR builds must meet minspec for both Oculus Rift and HTC Vive.

Once all of the builds have enough submissions, we’ll close the threads and our Community team will filter the submissions for adherence to the ground rules. Next, our Editorial team will filter the builds for compatibility issues (e.g. PSU won’t fit together with graphics card in case). The remaining rigs will be put up for public vote in the forums, and the top builds in each thread will go on to become our Best PC Builds!

Please be sure to format your list of components as follows:

Build Name

• 
  ■Processor: Component Name and Price
  ■Motherboard: Component Name and Price
  ■Memory: Component Name and Price
  ■Graphics Card:Component Name and Price
  ■Storage:Component Name and Price
  ■Case: Component Name and Price
  ■Power Supply: Component Name and Price
  ■Cooling: Component Name and Price

Good luck, and may the best builds win!

 

[mattadik123]

Best Steam Machine Under $1,000

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/J8BWMp
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/J8BWMp/by_merchant/

Yachiru

• 
  CPU: Intel Core i5-4590 3.3GHz Quad-Core Processor ($199.99 @ Newegg)
  Motherboard: ASRock H97M-ITX/AC Mini ITX LGA1150 Motherboard ($95.99 @ Newegg)
  Memory: Mushkin ECO2 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($29.99 @ Newegg) x2
  Video Card: XFX Radeon R9 390 8GB Double Dissipation Video Card ($314.99 @ Amazon)
  Storage: Mushkin ECO2 512GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($129.99 @ Newegg)
  Case: Silverstone RVZ02B HTPC Case ($64.99 @ Amazon)
  Power Supply: Silverstone 600W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular SFX Power Supply ($118.99 @ Amazon)
  Cooling: Stock Intel Cooler

Total (without shipping): $984.92

 

[Porcelainbowl]

Best Steam Machine Under $1,000 (updated to include mini-itx and wifi)

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-6500 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor ($204.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: ASRock H110M-ITX/ac Mini ITX LGA1151 Motherboard ($69.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws V Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR4-2400 Memory ($29.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($88.00 @ Amazon)
Storage: Hitachi Deskstar 7K2000 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($54.80 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 980 4GB WINDFORCE 3X Video Card ($473.98 @ Newegg)
Case: Cooler Master Elite 130 Mini ITX Tower Case ($48.54 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: EVGA 500W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($34.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $999.29
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-04-10 03:51 EDT-0400

 

[Mac266]

The I-Managed-To-Fit-Skylake-And-A-Fury-In-An-ITX-Build Build
(That title's a work in progress)

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-6500 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor ($204.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: ASRock H110M-ITX/ac Mini ITX LGA1151 Motherboard ($67.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws V Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR4-2400 Memory ($29.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($47.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: PowerColor Radeon R9 Nano 4GB Video Card ($479.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Silverstone ML07B HTPC Case ($69.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: Silverstone 500W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular SFX Power Supply ($94.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $995.93
Prices Do Not include shipping, taxes, and discounts
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-04-14 01:24 EDT-0400

Edit: Adapted to fit with the rules

 

[Luay]

The Pro Station 1

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-6600K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($244.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: RAIJINTEK Pallas Black 56.5 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($32.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: ASRock Z170M-ITX/ac Mini ITX LGA1151 Motherboard ($128.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws 4 Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR4-2800 Memory ($34.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Crucial MX200 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($81.72 @ Amazon)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 970 4GB ACX 2.0+ Video Card ($309.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Silverstone ML08B HTPC Case ($69.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: Silverstone 500W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular SFX Power Supply ($94.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $998.65

 

[DNStorage]

Best Steam Machine Under $1,000

If I had to blow a grand!

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-6600 3.3GHz Quad-Core Processor ($228.50 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Asus H170I-PLUS D3 Mini ITX LGA1151 Motherboard ($113.86 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-2400 Memory ($38.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 950 PRO 256GB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive ($181.95 @ SuperBiiz)
Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 970 4GB Video Card ($319.99 @ Amazon)
Case: Silverstone Sugo SG13B-Q Mini ITX Tower Case ($40.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: Silverstone 450W 80+ Bronze Certified SFX Power Supply ($72.17 @ Amazon)
Total: $996.45
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-04-09 13:43 EDT-0400

 

[ScrewySqrl]

PCPartPicker part list

Name: Living Room Gamer


CPU: Intel Core i7-6700 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($309.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASRock H170M-ITX/ac Mini ITX LGA1151 Motherboard ($102.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: GeIL EVO POTENZA 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2133 Memory ($54.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Mushkin Reactor 1TB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($209.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: Zotac GeForce GTX 960 4GB Video Card ($184.99 @ Amazon)
Case: Fractal Design Define Nano S Mini ITX Desktop Case ($83.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: XFX XT 400W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($45.98 @ Newegg)
Cooling Stock Intel fan ($0)
Total: $992.90

i7 4C/8T, GTX 960 (4 GB), and a 1 TB SSD makes a SMOKING living room build. Motherboard has built in wi-fi, too, so no need for more wires

 

[BadActor]

Ex Steam Machina

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-6600K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($239.99 @ Amazon)
CPU Cooler: RAIJINTEK AIDOS 48.6 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($26.87 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z170N-Gaming 5 Mini ITX LGA1151 Motherboard ($149.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance LPX 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2666 Memory ($64.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: A-Data Premier SP550 120GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($38.98 @ Amazon)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($53.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: XFX Radeon R9 380X 4GB DD XXX OC Video Card ($219.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Lian-Li PC-Q10WX Mini ITX Desktop Case ($136.50 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: SeaSonic S12II 620W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($61.98 @ Newegg)
Total: $993.28
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-04-10 04:38 EDT-0400

 

[Andrewst1021]

"An i5 and a R9 Nano walk into a bar..."

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-6500 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor ($204.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: ASRock H110M-ITX/ac Mini ITX LGA1151 Motherboard ($69.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: Avexir Budget Series 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR4-2133 Memory ($26.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($53.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: Asus Radeon R9 Nano 4GB Video Card ($519.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA GS 550W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($79.99 @ Amazon)
Other: Elite 110 ($39.99)
Total: $995.92
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-04-09 16:49 EDT-0400

 

[Guest]

Here's my new build! I crossed out my old entry.

Best Steam Machine Under $1,000

Name: Ultra Slim Steam Striker

CPU: Intel Core i5-6500 65W ($204.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: ASRock H170M-ITX/ac Intel H170 ($99.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.SKILL Ripjaws V Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 288-Pin DDR4 SDRAM DDR4 2133 ($33.99 @ Newegg)
Graphics Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 970 DirectX 12 04G-P4-3973-KR 4GB ($309.99 @ Newegg)
Storage SSD: SanDisk SSD PLUS 2.5" 480GB SATA III SSD ($116.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Fractal Design Node 202 SFF ($79.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: CORSAIR SF600 600W SFX 80 PLUS GOLD Full Modular ($119.99 @ Newegg)
Cooling 1: Thermaltake CL-F011-PL12BL-A 120mm 1,000 RPM Case Fan ($8.99 @ Newegg)
Cooling 2: Thermaltake CL-F011-PL12BL-A 120mm 1,000 RPM Case Fan ($8.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $982.91
Prices do not include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Notes: The case is slim and uses a riser card for the Graphics card. The i5 CPU is 65W so it should run nice and cool in this slim SFF case with the Intel stock fan since no overclocking will be done and it will fit in the case with no clearance issues.

Two thermaltake 120mm fans were chosen for the case cooling to cool the graphics card area. At 1,000 RPM they should run quiet. They come with 3-pin to Molex adapters so connecting them should not be a problem. The SFX power supply I chose is 80plus Gold and has 50A on the +12V rail. I believe it is the best power supply in the SFX size. So it should be enough for more upgrades in the future.

[strike]Best Steam Machine Under $1,000

Name: Shoebox Gold Pro

CPU: AMD Athlon X4 870k ($90.28 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: ASRock FM2A88X-ITX+ ($98.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.SKILL Sniper Series 16GB DDR3 2400 ($67.99 @ Newegg)
Graphics Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 970 04G-P4-1972-KR 4GB SC ($337.99 @ Newegg)
Storage SSD: SanDisk SSD PLUS 2.5" 480GB SATA III SSD ($119.99 @ Newegg)
Storage HDD: Seagate Barracuda 3TB 7200 RPM 64MB Cache SATA III ($104.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Cooler Master Elite 130 - Mini-ITX ($55.21 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: FSP Group Hydro G Series 650W 80 PLUS GOLD Full Modular ($89.99 @ Newegg)
Cooling: Noctua NF-F12-2000 120mm 2000 RPM 29.7 dBA 4-pin SSO2 Case Fan ($24.49 @ Newegg)
Total: $989.92
Prices do not include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Notes:

With this build you get a SSD and a HDD.

A Full Modular power supply was chosen for easier cable management.

I chose the GTX 970 with a blower design so it would get the hot air out of the case quicker.

The Noctua NF-F12-2000 120mm 2000 RPM fan would be mounted in the front of the case, serving as the intake fan. The reason I choose a faster 120mm intake fan is because I feel the 1,200 RPM fan that's included with the Cooler Master Elite 130 case doesn't push enough fresh air into the case. Noctua makes better quality fans anyway.

The Stock Cooler that comes with the X4 870k will be used for this build so it costs $0. [/strike]

 

[RedJaron]

Entrants,

Please remember our two key defining characteristics of the Steam Box build: it must have WiFi and it must be in a case that can fit on and would not be out of place on the TV stand or with your AV receiver. As noted last time, we're looking for something about the size of an XBox One, PlayStation 4, or cable/satellite box. Since you don't have the luxury of customizing all your parts for absolute minimal size, we're willing to give you some wiggle room. As a rule of thumb, think 12" x 12" x 6". Just because you use an ITX case doesn't mean it's acceptable. Many ITX cases are as big as a mATX mini tower.

-The Establishment

 

[RedJaron]

Some specific notes for builds already here on cases.

Silverstone has specialized in small cases for a while, so they're usually a smart choice.

Porcelain, a mATX board and case will likely be immediately thrown out. I'd rethink that.

Mac, that Tt case may be too big. It's great for a LAN box, but I think the judges might call it too big for the TV room.

Screwy, much as I love Fractal Design, that thing's the size of a mini tower.

Bad Actor, same.

Andrew, you don't have a case in your list.

Pawacorn, you might want to verify a few measurements to make sure the 880K's new cooler will fit in that case. I did a very similar build, and it was a tight fit with the older, smaller coolr.

 

[Luay]

Entrants,

Please remember our two key defining characteristics of the Steam Box build: it must have WiFi and it must be in a case that can fit on and would not be out of place on the TV stand or with your AV receiver. As noted last time, we're looking for something about the size of an XBox One, PlayStation 4, or cable/satellite box. Since you don't have the luxury of customizing all your parts for absolute minimal size, we're willing to give you some wiggle room. As a rule of thumb, think 12" x 12" x 6". Just because you use an ITX case doesn't mean it's acceptable. Many ITX cases are as big as a mATX mini tower.

-The Establishment

Red J

I've edited my post. I hope you can allow it.

 

[BadActor]

Ex Steam Machina V2

CPU: Intel i5 6600K http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819117561 $239.99
CPU Cooler: RAIJINTEK Aidos http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=9SIA66Z28E4788 $16.99
Motherboard: ASUS Z170i Pro Gaming http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813132641 $169.99
Memory: Corsair Vengeance LPX DDR4 2666 2 x 8 GB http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820233835 $64.99
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO 256 GB http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=9SIA6BM3572949 $87.89
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1 TB HDD http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822236339 $53.99
Graphics Card: ASUS GTX 960 2 GB ITX http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814121916 $199.99
Case: RAIJINTEK Metis http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=9SIA66Z2KU0729 $49.99
PSU: Seasonic S12II 520 Bronze http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151094 $53.99

Total $932.81

 

[RedJaron]

Red J

I've edited my post. I hope you can allow it.

I'm not a final judge on the matter. I'm just re-iterating some of the rules and reminders we issued last time. We had some pretty decent configurations submitted six months ago that didn't make the final cut because the case was deemed simply too big to qualify as a console replacement.

 

[Dark Lord of Tech]

Full Steam Ahead.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-6600 3.3GHz Quad-Core Processor ($229.99 @ Amazon)
CPU Cooler: CRYORIG C7 40.5 CFM CPU Cooler ($29.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: ASRock H110M-ITX/ac Mini ITX LGA1151 Motherboard ($69.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: GeIL EVO POTENZA 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2133 Memory ($54.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: A-Data Premier SP550 240GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($58.00 @ Amazon)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($46.95 @ Amazon)
Video Card: XFX Radeon R9 390 8GB Double Dissipation Video Card ($314.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Silverstone ML07B HTPC Case ($69.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: Corsair SF 600W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular SFX Power Supply ($119.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $994.87
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-04-11 21:04 EDT-0400

 

[ScrewySqrl]

ok, with a change in case



PCPartPicker part list

Living Room Gamer V2.

CPU: Intel Core i7-6700 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($309.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASRock H170M-ITX/ac Mini ITX LGA1151 Motherboard ($99.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: GeIL EVO POTENZA 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2133 Memory ($54.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Mushkin Reactor 1TB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($209.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: Zotac GeForce GTX 960 4GB Video Card ($184.99 @ Amazon)
Case: Silverstone GD09B HTPC Case ($72.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Power Supply: XFX XT 400W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($45.98 @ Newegg)
Cooling: Stock intel Cooler, but maximized case fans:
Case Fan: Cooler Master R4-C2R-20AC-GP 69.0 CFM 120mm Fan ($4.35 @ Amazon)
Case Fan: Cooler Master R4-C2R-20AC-GP 69.0 CFM 120mm Fan ($4.35 @ Amazon)
Case Fan: Cooler Master R4-S8R-20AK-GP 28.9 CFM 80mm Fan ($4.75 @ OutletPC)
Case Fan: Cooler Master R4-S8R-20AK-GP 28.9 CFM 80mm Fan ($4.75 @ OutletPC)
Total: $997.12
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-04-10 13:57 EDT-0400

as before a 4 GB 960, plenty for 1920x1080 gaming on your living room TV. i7 gives you 8 threads along with 16 GB of Ram gives you plenty of time before you need to upgrade. all the case fans are chosen for their silence (19 or 20 decibels - whisper quiet - so noise should not be a problem. All the combined fans will be a low hum at most), 1 TB SSD gives lots of room and lightning quick speed.

 

[Guest]

Ok thanks RedJaron I have edited my post. I have chosen the 870K instead that comes with the smaller heatsink and fan.

 

[damric]

A Steamy Little Streamer

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i3-6100 3.7GHz Dual-Core Processor ($125.98 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Asus B150I PRO GAMING/WIFI/AURA Mini ITX LGA1151 Motherboard ($125.00 @ Amazon)
Memory: G.Skill Aegis 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2133 Memory ($56.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 950 PRO 512GB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive ($322.57 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Zotac GeForce GTX 950 2GB Video Card ($129.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Azza Z Mini ITX Tower Case ($75.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Silverstone Strider Gold 450W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular SFX Power Supply ($88.99 @ Amazon)
Optical Drive: LG CU20N Blu-Ray Reader, DVD/CD Writer ($73.46 @ Amazon)
Total: $998.96
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-04-10 17:02 EDT-0400

- Audio/WIFI
- Power Efficient, Fully Modular PSU
- Blue Ray
- FAST, and built to last

 

[Tim Harden]

Should be plenty

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-6400 2.7GHz Quad-Core Processor ($184.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASRock H110M-ITX/ac Mini ITX LGA1151 Motherboard ($69.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws V Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR4-2400 Memory ($29.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Crucial BX200 240GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($64.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: PowerColor Radeon R9 Nano 4GB Video Card ($479.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Silverstone ML08B HTPC Case ($59.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: Silverstone Strider Gold 450W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular SFX Power Supply ($88.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $978.92
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-04-10 20:45 EDT-0400

 

[hpascoa]

Best Steam Machine Build Under $1,000

Small But Does It All

• 
  ■Processor: Intel Core i5-6500 ($204.99 @ Newegg)
  ■Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-H170N-WIFI ($113.99 @ Newegg)
  ■Memory: G.SKILL Ripjaws 4 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2133 F4-2133C15D-16GRR ($54.99 @ Newegg)
  ■Graphics Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 970 04G-P4-3973-KR 4GB GDDR5 ($294.99 @ Newegg)
  ■Storage: Seagate 1TB Gaming SSHD SATA 6.0Gb/s 32GB NAND Hybrid Drive 2.5" ST1000LX001 ($119.99 @ Newegg)
  ■Case: Silverstone Raven RVZ02B ($64.99 @ Amazon)
  ■Power Supply: Silverstone ST45SF-G 450W 80 Plus Gold Certified Full Modular SFX ($88.99 @ Amazon)
  ■Optical Drive: LG Slim Blu-Ray Drive CT40N ($45.99 @ Newegg)
  ■Slimline SATA Adapter: StarTech 6'' Slimline SATA to SATA Female/Male Adapter SLSATAADAP6 ($7.99 @ Newegg)
  ■Cooling: Intel Stock Cooler ($0)

Total: $996.91

(Newegg/Amazon prices updated as of 04/12/2016)

I included an optical drive in this build because I wanted it to be able to replace all other devices under the TV in the average living room, so the ability to playback DVD and Blu-Ray discs was a necessity. The SATA Adapter is needed to connect the slim drive to a desktop motherboard and power supply.
Other than that, it's as powerful a gaming machine as I could make it for under $1,000 without sacrificing the quality of components. With a Core i5 Skylake processor, 16GB DDR4 memory, a GTX 970 and 1TB of storage with 32GB SSD caching, all in a form factor that is about the same as current gen consoles, I think it makes for a pretty impressive and well-rounded system for gaming on an HDTV. I would love to own it myself if I had a grand to spare for building it

 

[basroil]

Hot Rock!

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-6500 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor ($204.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: ASRock H110M-ITX/ac Mini ITX LGA1151 Motherboard ($69.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws V Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR4-2400 Memory ($29.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($53.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Asus Radeon R9 390X 8GB Video Card ($419.98 @ Newegg)
Case: Silverstone RVZ01B Mini ITX Desktop Case ($93.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Silverstone 600W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular SFX Power Supply ($118.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $980.93


the 390X is a bit hot for that case, but what the hell

 

[ComputerSecurityGuy]

Putting the Ti in Tiny
=http://pcpartpicker.com/p/4Gg9xr]PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-6400 2.7GHz Quad-Core Processor ($201.37 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASRock H110M-DVS/D3 Micro ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($49.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: Crucial 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($26.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 160GB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($15.98 @ Amazon)
Video Card: MSI GeForce GTX 980 Ti 6GB Video Card ($549.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Silverstone GD09B HTPC Case ($74.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: XFX XT 600W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($51.98 @ Newegg)
Wireless Network Adapter: TP-Link TL-WN725N 802.11b/g/n USB 2.0 Wi-Fi Adapter ($7.98 @ Amazon)
Total: $979.26
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-04-13 19:36 EDT-0400
Notes:
1.The i5-6400 better be Oculus Rift Ready, or else a whole lot of retailers will be in trouble for false advertising.
2. The price before S&H or rebates is $997.17

 

[basroil]

Overclockable Skylake and Fury Nano... For under $1000!PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-6600K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($239.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($34.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: ASRock H110M-ITX/ac Mini ITX LGA1151 Motherboard ($69.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws V Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR4-2400 Memory ($29.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital WD Green 750GB 2.5" 5400RPM Internal Hard Drive ($83.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: PowerColor Radeon R9 Nano 4GB Video Card ($474.98 @ Newegg)
Case: Antec ISK600 Mini ITX Tower Case
Power Supply: SeaSonic 350W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($51.98 @ Newegg)
Total: $985.90
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-04-11 06:03 EDT-0400
Notes: Yes, that is one of the non-Z non-K overclocking boards. And I think the case is about console-sized. I wasn't able to edit out S&H or rebates but it has enough room to approximate, I'll try to fix that later.

You should probably take a look at http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/amd-radeon-r9-nano,4285-9.html . The seasonic 350 is a great PSU, but you'll be loading it with spikes of about 40% above rated output. Unless you've actually made one yourself and it works, I would really suggest using a bigger PSU, maybe ~500W

 

[AMD Radeon]

I can only find a few HTPC cases which is close to $1000 Steam machine requirement. Silverstone ML07B is the closest i can get at the moment (13.8 x 15 x 4.1 inches)

I hope it is good enough...



Radeon 390 8GB Steam Machine HTPC

CPU: Intel Core i5-6500 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor ($204.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: ASRock H170M-ITX/ac Mini ITX LGA1151 Motherboard ($102.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws V Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR4-2400 Memory ($29.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Sandisk SSD PLUS 240GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($64.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($71.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: Gigabyte Radeon R9 390 8GB Video Card ($319.99 @ Amazon)
Case: Silverstone ML07B HTPC Case ($69.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: Silverstone 600W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular SFX Power Supply ($118.99 @ Amazon)

Total: $981

without shipping/rebates/discount/taxes
As of April 13th, those hardware are in stock without any sign of limited availability (checked one by one)