You’ve seen the desk setups. We all have. The ones where someone spent ten grand on a glowing glass box that probably has more computing power than the Apollo 11 mission. But then there’s Origin PC. They’ve always been the ones to push things into the realm of "why did you even build this?" territory.
That brings us to the Origin Big O V3. It isn’t just a computer. Honestly, calling it a PC feels like a massive understatement because this thing is basically a Frankenstein’s monster of gaming hardware, stitched together with liquid cooling and a price tag that would make a used car salesman blush.
It's been a few years since the original Big O concept took the internet by storm, and the V3 is the evolution of that specific, chaotic energy. Most people see the photos and think it’s a photoshop job. It’s not. It’s a custom-engineered chassis that houses a high-end gaming PC and a full-blown game console—sometimes two—under one roof.
What is the Origin Big O V3 anyway?
Basically, the Origin Big O V3 is a hybrid. Imagine shoving a top-tier RTX 4090 rig and a PlayStation 5 into the same case. Now, imagine they share a cooling system. That’s the core pitch. Origin PC, now owned by Corsair, realized there’s a very specific (and very wealthy) niche of streamers and power users who hate clutter. They don't want three different boxes under their desk. They want one. One power cable. One massive footprint.
The V3 isn't a mass-produced item you’ll find sitting on a shelf at Best Buy. You can't just walk in and grab one. Each one is a bespoke build. The engineering required to strip a PS5 or an Xbox Series X out of its plastic shell and mount it onto a custom plate inside a PC case is actually insane. You’re dealing with proprietary heat sinks and liquid metal that Sony uses, which doesn't exactly play nice with standard PC water blocks. Origin has to custom-machine parts just to make the console breathe inside the new housing.
Why would anyone actually want this?
Space. Or rather, the lack of it.
If you're a full-time streamer, your desk is likely a disaster zone of cables. You've got the PC for the game, maybe a second PC for the stream encoding, and then the consoles for exclusives. It’s a mess. The Origin Big O V3 solves the "cable hell" problem by internalizing the capture card. Usually, you’d see an Elgato 4K60 Pro bridged directly between the internal console and the PC motherboard.
You flip a switch, or change an input, and you’re playing God of War on your PC monitor through your PC’s capture software without ever touching a HDMI switcher. It’s seamless. It's also incredibly overkill. But in the world of high-end tech, overkill is the entire point.
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Think about the thermal dynamics for a second. Consoles are notorious for sounding like jet engines when they get dusty. By liquid cooling the console SoC (System on a Chip), Origin keeps the hardware running at temperatures Sony and Microsoft never intended. This doesn't necessarily make the games run faster—consoles are locked, after all—but it prevents thermal throttling. It stays quiet. Dead quiet.
The Hardware Nightmare Behind the Scenes
Building the Origin Big O V3 is a logistical headache. Let's talk about the Corsair 1000D. That’s the case they usually use because it's the size of a small refrigerator.
Inside, you're looking at:
- A primary E-ATX motherboard for the PC.
- A secondary mini-ITX motherboard (if you go for the dual-PC setup).
- A disassembled PS5 or Xbox Series X motherboard.
- Dual power supplies (usually).
Wait, why dual power supplies? Because a single 1600W unit struggles to handle the transient spikes of an overclocked i9-14900K and an RTX 4090 while also feeding a hungry console. Origin often has to rig the system so the console runs off its own dedicated power delivery.
It's expensive. We're talking $10,000 to $15,000 depending on the specs. For most of us, that's a down payment on a house or a very nice vacation. For a professional creator, it's a tax write-off and a centerpiece for their brand.
The Problem with Consoles in PCs
There is a catch. There's always a catch.
When you buy an Origin Big O V3, you are effectively voiding every warranty known to man. Sony isn't going to fix your PS5 if the liquid cooling loop leaks. Microsoft won't help you if the Xbox motherboard shorts out. You are entirely reliant on Origin’s boutique support.
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Then there’s the "mid-gen" problem. What happens when the PS5 Pro or a new Xbox revision comes out? You can't just "upgrade" the console part of the Big O easily. It’s custom-mounted and water-blocked. You’re basically stuck with the tech that was available the day the machine was built. In the PC world, that’s fine; you swap a GPU. In the Big O world, swapping the console requires a complete teardown of the custom loop. It's not for the faint of heart.
Also, the sheer weight. These machines can weigh over 80 pounds. If you need to ship it back for repairs, God help your lower back and your wallet. The shipping crates alone are heavy-duty wood.
Comparing the V3 to DIY Options
Could you build this yourself? Maybe. People have.
There are plenty of "sleeper" builds on YouTube where guys cram a PC into a GameCube or a PS2. But the Origin Big O V3 is different because it’s polished. It looks like a factory-made product. The custom distribution plates—those clear acrylic boards that move the pink or blue coolant around—are works of art.
If you tried to DIY this, you’d spend months in a machine shop. You’d probably ruin three consoles trying to get the liquid metal off the APU. Origin has a standardized (well, standardized for them) process for this. They've done the R&D.
Is it even "Big O" anymore?
Some purists argue that the V3 has moved too far away from the original 2009 Big O. That original beast had an Xbox 360 built into a PC case back when that was considered impossible.
The V3 is more of a workstation that happens to have a console inside it. It’s less about the "hacky" nature of the original and more about "refined luxury." It’s the Rolls Royce of gaming. Does it need to exist? No. Does it make sense financially? Absolutely not. But that’s why it’s cool.
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Technical Breakdown: The PC Side
Let's look at what actually powers the PC side of a typical V3 build. Usually, you aren't putting mid-range parts in here.
- CPU: Intel Core i9-14900K or AMD Ryzen 9 7950X3D. These are the heavy hitters.
- GPU: NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090. Usually with a custom water block that thins the card down to a single slot, which is necessary for space.
- RAM: 64GB or 128GB of DDR5. Totally unnecessary for gaming, but great for video editing.
- Storage: Multiple 4TB or 8TB NVMe drives.
The console side is exactly what you get from the store, just naked. No plastic fins. No bulky fans. Just the raw PCB (printed circuit board) screaming for air, cooled instead by a copper block and some high-performance thermal pads.
The Reality of Owning One
Honestly? It's a loud statement.
The Origin Big O V3 is for the person who wants the best of everything and doesn't want to see a single HDMI cable hanging out the back of their desk. It's for the person who wants to play Spider-Man 2 and then instantly switch to Cyberpunk 2077 at 4K Ultra with Path Tracing without moving their hands from their keyboard or controller.
It's a luxury item. It’s jewelry for nerds.
But it’s also a feat of engineering. In an era where most PC cases look identical, the Big O stands out because it dares to be weird. It’s a reminder that hardware can still be fun and experimental, even if it’s priced out of reach for 99% of the population.
How to get the most out of a high-end hybrid setup
If you’re looking at the Origin Big O V3 or thinking about a similar high-end build, here are some actionable ways to handle that much power:
- Investment in Power Conditioning: Don't just plug this into a wall. You need a high-quality UPS (Uninterruptible Power Supply). A machine pulling 1000W+ can trip a breaker or be sensitive to "dirty" power in older homes.
- Network Management: With a PC and a console in one box, you'll want a dedicated 10Gbps switch nearby. You're going to be downloading hundreds of gigabytes of games on both platforms.
- Thermal Ambient Control: This machine is a space heater. It doesn't matter how good the liquid cooling is; that heat has to go somewhere (your room). Make sure you have decent airflow in your office or a dedicated AC vent.
- Monitor Selection: To truly use a Big O, you need a monitor with multiple high-speed inputs (HDMI 2.1 and DisplayPort 1.4/2.1) and preferably an auto-switch feature. An OLED panel like the Alienware AW3423DWF or a massive 42-inch LG C3/C4 works best here to capture the console's HDR and the PC's high frame rates.
The Origin Big O V3 remains a white whale in the tech world. It’s the ultimate "what if" made real. Even if you never buy one, it’s worth respecting the sheer audacity of its design. It pushes the limits of what we expect from a desktop, proving that sometimes, putting all your eggs in one very expensive, liquid-cooled basket is actually pretty awesome.