Gaming becomes more fun when our hardware components run optimally and without issues. While our CPU and GPU have heatsinks that help to disperse the heat they generate, does your SSD need a heatsink for gaming, too?
Your SSD does not need a heatsink for gaming unless it surpasses the maximum heat limitation of 158°F (70°C). Since it does not render data like your CPU or GPU, it generates little heat. It’s ideal to keep a comfortable temperature between cold and hot, avoiding extremes on both ends.
While a heatsink remains optional for your SSD, there are some instances when it can be beneficial to have one. Let’s look at the effects of low and high temperatures on your SSD and why you should or shouldn’t get a heatsink for gaming.
Is Heatsink Necessary for SSD Gaming?
Your SSD does not need a heatsink for gaming unless it surpasses the recommended temperature of 158°F (70°C). It doesn’t render graphics, so it generates much less heat than your CPU & GPU.
Related: Is a 90°C CPU Going To Hurt Your PC When Gaming?
Keeping components like your CPU and GPU as cool as possible helps to improve their longevity and maintain optimal performance.
When you run a game on Ultra graphics, these components work harder and process more heat to render high-quality graphic settings. For this reason, they need heatsinks to help disperse the heat.
Your SSD does not render graphical data, but it will drastically improve loading times by sending the rendered data from your CPU & GPU to your RAM significantly quicker than a standard HDD.
Since your SSD works only with rendered data, it hardly, if ever, overheats. There’s a 5 – 10 percent difference between having no cooling and having anything at all for cooling.
Remember that a 2.5-inch SSD does not require cooling either because it has a metal casing that doubles as a heatsink. As long as your PC has a little airflow, it will be perfectly fine.
Is the Motherboard Heatsink Enough for SSD?
The answer to whether a motherboard heatsink is sufficient for an SSD largely depends on the specific type of SSD, the motherboard’s design, and the load on the SSD.
Many modern motherboards, especially those designed with high-performance computing or gaming in mind, often come with built-in heatsinks for M.2 NVMe SSDs. These heatsinks are typically sufficient for most consumer-grade NVMe SSDs under normal to high usage.
However, if the SSD is under heavy load for extended periods of time (such as in a workstation for professional content creation or while running very data-intensive games), even these built-in heatsinks might not provide enough cooling, and the drive may experience thermal throttling, where it reduces its speed to lower its temperature.
If your system is experiencing high SSD temperatures and subsequent thermal throttling, additional cooling methods may be necessary. This could mean using a larger or higher-quality standalone heatsink, improving the overall airflow within the PC case, or even using a fan to directly cool the SSD.
In general, it’s crucial to monitor your SSD’s temperatures under load to determine whether your current cooling solution is sufficient. You can use hardware monitoring software to do this. If your temperatures are high and your SSD performance suffers as a result, then you may need to improve your cooling setup.
What Happens When Your SSD Becomes Too Hot Or Too Cold?
According to Johnmichael Hands, Tim Schulte, and Pranav Kalavade at Intel, higher SSD temperatures may benefit your SSD because of how electrons flow through it.
Your SSD has an integrated memory chip called a NAND Flash that becomes slightly damaged every time you write to it, so they have a finite lifespan. Higher-temperature electrons can travel more easily through a heated SSD and are less likely to damage it.
It is also true that lower temperatures make it easier to retain data on your SSD because the electrons don’t move around so easily.
Considering both facts, it’s ideal to avoid extremely low and high temperatures and aim for the sweet spot between them. It ensures that your SSD runs optimally and maintains healthy longevity.
While it’s unnecessary, if you’d like to get closer to the sweet spot between hot and cold, a heatsink allows you to do that. Many modern motherboards also come with a heatsink for your SSD.
What Else May Slow Down Your SSD While Gaming?
If your PC case leaves little room for airflow, or your intakes and fans are not working correctly, it will clog your vents with dust and cut off the airflow. When that happens, you risk your SSD reaching higher temperatures than usual.
It may also be that your M.2 connector for your SSD does not provide enough power to handle the speeds of your PCI Express 5.0 drive. In this case, it will bottleneck your SSD and cause slower speeds.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does my M.2 SSD need a heatsink?
Whether your M.2 SSD needs a heatsink depends on the type of SSD and its usage. M.2 NVMe SSDs, which are faster and generate more heat, particularly under heavy load, may benefit from a heatsink. This can prevent thermal throttling (where the SSD slows down to reduce heat generation) and help maintain optimal performance.
Is it OK to install SSD on PS5 without a heatsink?
It’s recommended to use a heatsink when installing an M.2 SSD in a PS5. The PS5 can generate significant heat during operation, and a heatsink can help manage the SSD’s temperature, preventing thermal throttling and maintaining optimal performance.
You may also like: Do You Need A Cooling Fan For Your PS5?
Is the motherboard heatsink enough for SSD?
Many modern motherboards come with built-in heatsinks for M.2 NVMe SSDs that are sufficient for most consumer-grade use cases. However, under heavy load for extended periods, these may not provide enough cooling. If you’re experiencing high SSD temperatures and subsequent thermal throttling, additional cooling methods may be necessary. Monitoring your SSD’s temperature under load can help determine if your current cooling solution is sufficient.
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