EK M.2 NVME Heatsinks

[Menthol]

No added direct airflow, case is Corsair Carbide Air 740, 2x140 intake fans in front, H115i with 2x140 exhaust at top and 1x140 exhaust at rear

I had a Plextor M.2 drive with there factory heatsink (more like just a cover) that would not fit on a RVE due to interference with components to close to the drive so I am assuming this may not fit either

Someone should change how M.2 drives attach to the board, these little screws are a giant PITA when installing, removing inside a case

[Korth]

I don't think there's any official standard (or guide, or even whitepaper) which formally defines M.2 placement on the mobo, it's too "new". Mobo makers just stuff the M.2 slots pretty much anywhere they'll fit, ideally somewhere proximate to the main NB/PCH chipset part to minimize signal latencies (and to help minimize PCB trace complexity, lol).

I've seen a couple of enterprise mobos which mount an array of consumer-style M.2 slots (along with a big heatsink!) on the reverse side of the PCB. This is a smart approach but it obviously would be a hassle for most consumer PCs since convenient access to the backside of the mobo is typically limited and would often require removing the mobo from the chassis. It also presents challenges to PC mobo makers, since it requires thermally conductive PCBs which have higher material cost and may not be as suitable for the sorts of (beautiful) cosmetic masking we like to spoil ourselves with.

[Yoda]

During Crystal Disk and then copying over 90GB of data the drive hit a peak of 52c.

System is housed in a Corsair Air 740 with x2 140 ML Pro intake and x1 140ML Pro Exhaust.

Kraken X62 (x2 140mm fans) cooling attached to the top of the case.

[Menthol]

Yoda,
Very nice results

[Yoda]

Thanks!

You too Menthol =)

I see you have the same case as me! It's not everyone's cup of tea but I think its a brilliant case.

I have a slightly off the topic question if you don't mind. Have you tried adding fans to the bottom of the case as intakes?

I'm toying with the idea but unsure if this will mess up the air flow.

-Yoda

[Menthol]

Yoda,
I really like the 740, had a 540 before this, simple, easy to build in and cable mess is hidden, actually I installed a hybrid cooler on my 1080 FTW and have the radiator mounted to the bottom with the fan blowing down out of the case and the other fan hole covered to keep the hot air from the GPU rad from re interring the case, if not for that I was going to install intakes there, the hybrid cooler does keep temps lower inside the case, I have my case on my desk, I never put them on the floor, to much trouble cleaning

Les

[Yoda]

Hi Les,

Thanks for getting back to me.

I totally agree with your opinion on the case! Great to build in.

Ah I see you went the hybrid cooler way. I bet the temps are really nice! =)

I'm planning to try that or go full custom loop when the new Volta cards come out. EVGA Volta I think! that is so I don't have to worry about warranty becoming void when popping on the hybrid kit or custom loop. Think my current warranty on the Asus 1080Ti oc would be null and voided if I made the change.

Thanks again!

-Yoda

[SlackROG]

I was thinking about getting one of these heatsinks for a 960 Evo, I wonder if they are as good as it gets?

I guess I'm seeing people here reporting around a 8c-10c drop in temps?

Any other thoughts on good heatsinks/cooling solutions for these NVME chips?

Oh by the way, I'm assuming the Samsung sticker needs to be removed from the chips?

[Korth]

I haven't used these EKWB M.2 heatsinks.

I have used many of these "MemoryPack" (no-name Taiwan) enterprise M.2 heatsinks in the racks at work. Low cost but only available in obnoxious anodized red. And the side-clamping frame allows a tighter fit so thinner thermal padding can be used (thermal pads/tape not included and must be purchased separately, lol). Before-vs-after temps are lowered by about 7C~9C during sustained SSD stress loading, perhaps just slightly better than the EKWB product but honestly not significant unless you've got large arrays of M.2 drives - which would benefit more from active cooling than from bolt-on heatsinks, anyhow.

I've also tried two of these AKASA M.2 heatsinks (in a half-manly/half-gutless gaming system, lol). Again, similar thermal performance to the EKWB model.

I conclude that these things do lower your M.2 temps (by up to ~7C or so, on average, with enough airflow) ... so they're worth it. To be honest, the heatsink mass and surface area is basically overkill for this application, the main bottleneck on their efficiency is going to be the TIM (thermal pads) ... it's possible my MemoryPack heatsinks had (very slightly) better overall thermal performance because I used this "EP3x" industrial thermal potting epoxy. The best consumer/enthusiast equivalent I can find would be this Fujipoly Extreme thermal pad, although even these cheap StarTech thermal pads might be an upgrade over the cheap stuff the vendors throw into these kits.

[SlackROG]

What about just placing a nice blob of some Grease on the chips, then putting on the heatsink, instead of thermal pads?

I personally use GELID on my CPU;

http://gelidsolutions.com/thermal-so...extreme-10g-2/