Testing area
For testing, we will use our standard equipment (Core i7-8700K with MSI Z370 Gaming M5 and RTX 2080), SSD set to for an M.2 basis so that it does not absorb heat from the graphics card or processor.
SSD used in experiments i Pass SSD 220S with 1 TB capacity, and as a heatsink we will use simple, inefficient and economically viable, a Aquacomputer KryoM.2. It should be noted that this PCIe 3.0 NVMe 1.2 SSD is not one of the hottest spots on the market, and in fact those are the best temperatures they can prepare in normal conditions. Other SSDs of the same symptoms but better performance get more heat, and there are also those stored at about 60 ° C while relaxing.
For the test will include a "normal" working condition: playing the game. For this we use Black Desert Online Reastered and all graphic changes are high, game sets graphics card in high performance
At the same time and with the game in the background, we continue to scale the SSD to see its performance.
Heatsink Performance Assessment
We start with the performance tests we mentioned earlier, with the background game and bench press CrystalDisk Markwith CrystalDisk details and beside you to monitor the temperature at the same time.
As you can see, the SSD is always in the best position at 42 ° C and that the heatsink is fast, and the performance of the SSD is above or below expected, normal operation on the SSD.
Performance test without heatsink
We will now test the equipment in the same conditions but after removing the heatsink from the SSD. This was a result of the test:
In this case, since the heatsink is also needed enough from the machines, the SSD is 66ºC, and even though it is still below the limit at which Thermal Throttling is made, performance is already floating and it is clearly low. the result obtained from the heatsink test, being vulnerable and "suffering" due to high operating temperatures.
Verdict: M.2 SSDs, better with heatsink than without them
It is clear that even though there is less air in the box and SSD included in the M.2 socket where it does not receive direct heat from the drawings or processor, its performance is reduced if we do not use the heatsink And in addition, forcing the app to operate permanently at high temperatures is also will have an impact on its health.
In short, the decision is it's best to put a heatsink in our M.2 format SSD, because it will not only work at better temperatures and we will avoid Thermal Throttling, thus working better, but will also extend its useful life because it will make it work within a reasonable temperature range.
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