Valve Drops Steam Frame CAD Files for Free, Modders Already Building Custom Accessories

Valve released the full set of CAD files for its Steam Frame VR headset on October 9. The release gives modders, 3D printer hobbyists, and accessory makers the official blueprints for the headset, its controllers, and its expansion port.

The CAD bundle covers the headset’s light blocker, head strap, battery housing, facial interface, core module, and both controllers, according to PC Gamer. It also documents the expansion port that sits just in front of the user’s nose. Gen4 PCIe is the connector standard behind it: one high-bandwidth internal lane used by modern graphics cards and SSDs. The third-party Arcturus Vision RGB camera already uses the port. Valve said commercial users need to contact the company directly, but the docs themselves are free for non-commercial use.

Modders did not wait for the official release. Rock Paper Shotgun’s James Archer found that first-wave Steam Frame owners had already prototyped a cottage industry of accessories before the CAD files dropped. The list includes controller-strap variants that work around the £59 official Ergonomic Accessories Kit. It also includes a back-mounted power bank holder that addresses the headset’s short battery life, and a gamepad coupler that lets users grip both controllers as one for flat Steam games. One maker built a life-size skull-shaped headset stand. Another is selling a 3D-printed chest rig for the Frame’s controllers, sharp edges and all.

Valve also confirmed it is working on an upgraded head strap with interchangeable batteries and off-ear speakers for the Steam Frame. The new accessory is “coming soon.” With the CAD release, more third-party head strap and battery options are now possible before that official kit lands.

Our read: The Steam Frame is the third Valve hardware product to get this treatment. Steam Deck got CAD files roughly a year after its February 2022 launch. Steam Machine has had its files open since its reveal. Steam Frame got them 3.5 weeks after launch, a faster turnaround that signals Valve has internalized the lessons from the Deck’s slow-maturing accessories scene. The Frame’s biggest weaknesses are the two-hour battery life and the £59 strap kit that does not cover the full accessory list. The CAD release effectively crowdsources both problems to the community. Steam Frame buyers should expect a flood of third-party straps, battery holders, and other mods in the next few weeks that Valve itself does not have to ship. The same $350 price band as Sony’s region-locked PS5 Midnight Black (covered separately) makes the two companies’ design philosophies look more different than ever.

Sources: Valve’s CAD release was posted to the Steam Hardware Steam News channel on October 9. Jacob Ridley’s PC Gamer writeup and James Archer’s Rock Paper Shotgun piece cover the official release and the early modding scene. The Steam Frame: Official Overview and Quick Start Guide is Valve’s own introduction to the headset, and the release calendar tracks the broader VR hardware slate.

Edited by Kerwin Stewart, Editor-in-Chief · How we report