Alienware 17r4 samsung 960 evo heat issue

I’ve recently bought a Samsung 960 Evo 1TB M.2 Nvme SSD for my alienware 17r4. After cloning the data from my stock ssd, I put the samsung ssd into slot number 3 replacing the stock sk hynix 512gb ssd. By adjusting the bios from RAID to AHCI, the samsung driver can finally detect the ssd.
However the ssd temperature is extremely high,usually around 70 degrees web surfing, 80-100 degree while gaming. Is there anything wrong with my ssd? Should I put a passive heat sink on it with/ without the samsung sticker?

 

Ask @Pete Light since he has done a mod to reduce those high temps on Toshiba SSD.

 

Yes you should. That's completely normal I'm afraid. I've had 3 separate drives and they all exhibit these temps in Drive Temperature 2 because this is the temperature sensor in the controller (not the memory as that's the other one).

Good news is there is a simple mod which you can make which is excellent in cooling the controller. Check the Samsung SSD link in my sig for more details and a little guide with results

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Can multiple small heatsinks do the job? I got some spare ones, but I don’t know if I should get a single long piece. Also, how do I stick them? Use a thermal pad under the heatsink, or use an electrical tape on the SSD edges then super glue the heatsink on it?

 

Hi Pete, I am also looking for your link regarding the Samsung 960 EVO (500GB NVMe M.2) thermal solution for the Alienware 17R4 but cannot seem to find the link in you sig.

Thanks!
-AM

 

He used a grinder on an EK m2 cooler to grind the fins down enough so that it cleared the lower access plate. Interesting choice but honestly the real solution is to stick with low power SATA until the design/tech improves and reduces power draw for m2 drives

Something like this however might be thin enough to clear the shell without modification:

https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=37B-0003-00023

 

This is why it prefer the mod in my signature, no glue required.

You can use individual heatsinks, check out the mod to my Toshiba drive, also in my signature

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http://forum.notebookreview.com/thr...4-owners-lounge.797457/page-692#post-10611493

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This is a tough issue since the Samsung 960 EVO NVMe devices dissipate so much thermals and the enclosure space is limited with little air movement at least with my AW-17R4 laptop. My configuration has 2x 960 EVOs - (SSD #2 250GB, #3 500GB), #2 is my boot drive. Even with heat sinks, the temperature rise but slower and still thermal-throttles for longer access times (i.e. copying large files) and still takes a bit for the temps come back down on the SSDs.

For my AW17-R4, I bought a couple EKWB and they include the aluminum top heat sync with fins and the lower plate, they include clips and two thermal pads (1.0mm and 0.5mm). They barely fit, but fit good without interfering if thinner sink pad is used on top. I would not recommend the nickel sink offered, nickel is a horrible thermal conductor compared to aluminum. I was looking for something with fins for more surface area, but not sure that even makes a difference with little air movement in the confined area with little airflow.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B073RHHYCM/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

(NOTE: If you use these EKWB sinks, due to the height, make sure to use the thinner pad (0.5mm) on the top else the heat sink will interfere. Also for SSD #3, you may have to remove some plastic off the sides of laptop to get the device to fit. The width is just enough for the NVMe card to fit and may not be wide enough even for thin heat sink clips. I had to widen SSD #3 slot with a dremel disk slightly. I hated doing that, but want to make sure to use the clips to hold sinks together securely. No width issues with SSD #2.

(Noted added today: Even with 0.5mm pad on top, I did notice slight interference for SSD #3, it does push on the bottom case cover slightly. I may file down the heat-sink a bit. It is not concerning enough to worry about it now but eventually I may file that of replace sinks with something else.)

For AW17-R4 owners, here is a quick look at the socket locations especially SSD #2 and SSD #3. I would recommend using SSD #2 first since this socket space is more open than #3 .

http://laptopmedia.com/highlights/i...assembly-internal-photos-and-upgrade-options/

If anyone has a better passive thermal solution, I would like to hear it. The EVOs are nice fast devices but dissipates so much heat and they thermal throttle themselves even with decent sinks on them from my experience. I don't think active cooling will work due to confined space and power connector limitations.