Alienware 17R3 M.2 SSD thermal pad thickness

Greetings all,

I have a Crucial MX500 250gb M.2 in my alienware that is use as a game drive, when i'm copying or updating the games the ssd temps jump to 81c after a few minutes, idk if that's ok but from what i understand this can degraded the NAND and shorten the life expect ency of the SSD.

I bought me some Gelid thermals pads (0.5, 1, and 1.5mm sheets), which i fought tooth and nail to get because there are absolutely no thermals pads in retail stores in my country, and the Gelid ones took 3 months to pass through customs and postal service.

I don't want to try out different thicknesses in the hopes that one will fit, and i don't really have an accurate way to measure the thickness i need, so i'm asking some of the more experienced hands here, which thermal pad thickness should i sandwich between the ssd and the copper plate underneath it?

 

I simply added 2x0.5mm pads and it dropped temps by 5-7C on max load. All SSDs work between 0 and 70. I'd add 1.5mm first on NAND chips and plug back to check if there's any reduction!

 

Do you reckon i should put thermal pads on both sides or will between the ssd and copper plate be enough?

 

You will have a copper surface so it'll work as toaster if you add it underneath since there's no airflow. Anyway, the second side is plain PCB so don't worry about heat.

 

so put the thermal pad between the ssd and bottom cover only?

 

Put it only on one side of the SSD which faces the bottom panel.

 

Ok i did just that, i don't think the 1.5mm thermal pad is making any contact with the bottom panel

you sure about the thickness?

 

It varies from panel to panel. Even mine does not stick to bottom panel, sticking it is bad if you are not careful you might pull it apart.
Checked the temps? Idle temps will be slightly high by 1-3C but max load will drop by 5-12C.

 

well not "stick", more like "making contact", with just 1x1.5mm strip i may as well have been using a sheet of paper, i added on another 1.5mm strip so it can make contact with the bottom panel, and it sort of worked.

It takes longer to reach the peak temps i've been having before, but it will get there if left under stress.