Hi!
Is there enough room in the case (on the motherboard) of the Framework Desktop for a SSD with a heatsink? Say the WD_Black SN850X drive (sold here) but the model with a heatsink?
From the video it looks like it but I want to be sure.
Thanks!
Yeah so there are heatspreaders already with the Desktop. Nevermind!
It says in the specs:
2x NVMe PCIe 4.0 x4 M.2 2280 sockets with heatspreaders, up to 8TB each
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The included heatspreader seems to be visible here and it could probably also be exchanged for a bigger one. The CPU cooler might be limiting though.
Yes I see! I think a regular SSD would do. I was worried there were no heatspreaders or heatsinks at all and no room for a SSD with one.
Thanks!
Is there a Frame.Work recommendation with regards to SSDs i.e. with or without heatsink? Or does the presence of a heat spreader mean there is no room for a heatsink on the SSD anyway?
I don’t think there is a recommendation so far. For sure the SSDs they sell here would do (WD Black SN 850 for example). I don’t know if they sell the ones with a heatsink though.
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In case someone else ends up here, I have personal experience of this:
A WD_BLACK SN850X with factory-installed heatsink fits fine in the primary M.2 slot (the one pictured in the photo above on the front of the motherboard). Removing the Framework Desktop’s heat spreader is simple and there’s plenty of space.
However, the same drive does not fit in the secondary M.2 slot, which is on the opposite side of the motherboard (the back) – there’s not enough space between the motherboard and the side panel for the rather chunky heatsink. I guess you could run it with the side panel removed though.
As a side note, removing the factory heatsink from a WD_BLACK SN850X is (from what I read) a rather fiddly process involving razor blades and prayers. I didn’t personally risk it.
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Hey thanks for the information!
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Is it correct to assume one can NOT use a WD_BLACK SN850X with factory-installed heatsink (or Samsung 990 Pro) AND the stock Framework Desktop heat spreader on top? It will be too thick?
I only ask as the Amazon sale currently going on is only giving deep discounts on 4TB WD and Samsung drives WITH the heatsink. But I also want to keep using the stock Framework Desktop heat spreader.
Hoping to hear from you given your real-world experience. Thank you.
p.s. I think I may have answered by own question. Just had Perplexity make me a table of the physical dimensions of the WD, Samsung and Lexar SSDs with and without heatsink, and it’s pretty consistent across all of them that the heatsink adds about 6 - 6.5mm to the height, with the heatsink version just under 9mm for the WD and Samsung. So I’ll assume using a ‘with heatsink’ SSD AND the stock heatspreader will be a “no way”.
Yep, it’s definitely a “no way” for using the WD_BLACK SN850X with heatsink at the same time as the Framework Desktop’s heat spreader for that slot - it’s way too thick. I’d argue that there’s no need to use both at once, though. It’s very easy to remove the heat spreader (it’s documented in Framework’s guides, just one screw to remove), and of course you can re-attach it if you want to use it with another drive in future. Aesthetically, it all looks nice and clean with or without the heat spreader. I now have a 4TB WD_BLACK SN850X with factory heat sink in the front and an 8TB WD_BLACK SN850X without factory heat sink (using the Framework heat spreader) in the back. I haven’t been very scientific about it, but the SMART-reported temperatures seem pretty similar between the two under load.
As a reminder, don’t make the same mistake as I did and buy two with heat sinks expecting that they’ll both fit - only the front slot can fit one of these drives with a heat sink.
Much thanks. And I really appreciate the reminder.
I think I’ll jump on a 990 Pro with heatsink on sale at Amazon and get over wanting to use the heat spreader, and not use it.
When I was buying, a good NVME SSD with heatsink was an extra C$100 or so vs the same SKU without heatsink. Although a bit nervous, I bought a fairly decent two-sided Thermalright heatsink and installed that on my SN850X (in the primary slot). Yes, had to eschew the FW heat spreader. Sure enough, I found it made a nice difference in sustained throughput (15-20% IIRC). Didn’t think of putting the heat spreader on the secondary drive…
As folks have noted, if you’re using an SSD that has a heatsink attached (in the primary slot), you can remove the heatspreader. With the SSDs that we’ve tested, the heatspreader has been sufficient to keep the drives from throttling under typical use.
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