I recently noticed that my NVMe SSD (Samsung 970 Evo Plus 1TB) gets really hot, hitting temperatures over 70°C when my PC is in use. I thought adding a heatsink would help, but it still runs in the 60s even when the PC is just booted and idle. It's installed next to my graphics card, which is not hot at all (40°C-55°C). I'm looking for suggestions on what might be causing these high temperatures and how to manage them better.
2 Answers
That doesn't sound ideal! Your SSD shouldn't be hitting above 70°C at all. With a heatsink, it should ideally stay around 60°C max. Make sure the heatsink is properly installed, and check that there’s good airflow in your case with active fans nearby. Don't forget to use a good thermal pad between the chip and the heatsink, too! Also, it can really help to have a fan blowing fresh air onto the SSD and your GPU to keep everything cooled down. With the hot summer temps, consider boosting your fan speeds to improve airflow. If you still see temps creeping up to 75-80°C, it might be worth reaching out to Samsung Support since that's way too hot for that drive.
It’s interesting that your SSD heats up more when idle. This could be linked to your fan setup. If your graphics card has a zero fan mode, it won't cool the area around your SSD until it reaches a higher temperature. Case fans often follow a similar pattern, spinning slower until they hit a threshold, which could explain why your SSD gets warmer when idle. Just something to keep in mind!
Thanks for the tips! I'll definitely check my setup and see how the airflow is.