Question Thermal pad for NvME M.2 SSD

[anandtechreader]

Hi, is it necessary to put a thermal pad on top of a NvME M2. SSD such as the Samsung Evo 970 and Evo 970 Plus? ASUS once told me that if I change the SSD, I need to change the thermal pad as well. What is the reason for this?

 

[Campy]

Yes, put a noctua NH-D15 on it too.

 

[anandtechreader]

Yes, put a noctua NH-D15 on it too.

I am a bit confused. Isn't the NH-D15 for the CPU? I am talking about thermal pad for the NvME M2. SSD like the Samsung 970 Evo and Evo Plus.

 

[LTC8K6]

Hi, is it necessary to put a thermal pad on top of a NvME M2. SSD such as the Samsung Evo 970 and Evo 970 Plus? ASUS once told me that if I change the SSD, I need to change the thermal pad as well. What is the reason for this?

A thermal pad would be used with a heat sink, I assume. So if you replaced the SSD, you should use a new TIM pad for the heat sink.

 

[anandtechreader]

Which is the best thermal pad-heatsink for Samsung 970 Evo Plus SSD?

 

[LTC8K6]

https://www.tweaktown.com/articles/8599/investigation-heatsinks-worth/index.html

 

[LTC8K6]

They go all the way from really cheap:
https://www.amazon.com/Pack-Heatsinks-Cooler-Silicone-Thermal/dp/B07DNC4YP8

To pretty expensive:
https://www.amazon.com/Advancing-Gene-Cooler-Heatsinks-Generation/dp/B077BPPFN8

 

[anandtechreader]

https://www.tweaktown.com/articles/8599/investigation-heatsinks-worth/index.html

I know about that article. Is tweaktown reliable? How come major sites like Anandtech do not have this kind of test?

 

[LTC8K6]

I think it's because for the most part, the drives do not need heatsinks.

Perhaps if you were using an SFF case you might need it?

 

[LTC8K6]

https://www.anandtech.com/show/9856/angelbird-wings-px1-m2-adapter-review-do-ssds-need-heatsinks

Perhaps in a heavy duty environment a heatsink is a good idea?

Another review of one that seem popular:

https://www.legitreviews.com/ekwb-ek-m-2-nvme-heatsink-review_202169

 

[nOOky]

Heat kills electronics. However, none of the drive makers that I am aware of require a heatsink. If your motherboard has a heatsink and thermal pad for the slot you are using I would certainly use it. If you are worried about longevity and you have the money it sure can't hurt. In all likelihood you'll probably be fine without.

 

[killster1]

I vote to get one




When you would most need a heatsink would be a laptop, however a itx build some kind of thermal solution, airflow or heatsink would be nice, i read the review.. it showed 6 degrees taken off using the 13$ cooler. Which imo looks pretty nice. Change the pad because of the different creases in the material. the chips are not all in the same spot right?

 

[anandtechreader]

For CPU, if it gets too hot, it thermal throttle and performance decreases. Is it really true that when the SSD gets too hot, it does the same thing?

 

[LTC8K6]

Yes, but we don't want anything to be hot enough for it to throttle, or even close.
You should regard thermal throttling as an emergency thing, not normal.
Such as when a heat sink fails.

https://industrial.apacer.com/en-ww/Technology/Thermal-Throttling-

 

[DrMrLordX]

For CPU, if it gets too hot, it thermal throttle and performance decreases. Is it really true that when the SSD gets too hot, it does the same thing?

My 512GB BPX is said to thermally-throttle. There are some other earlier NVMe drives that can do it moreso. It really depends on the controller.