XPG SX8200 Pro - Is the M.2 heatsink necessary?

[Cs342]

I bought a XPG SX8200 Pro SSD which came with a heatsink. The heatsink is red and my build has a white theme so it would look really ugly. Is it ok to use this SSD without the heatsink or would it overheat? Thanks!

[Jurrunio]

You can try, SSDs do report their temperatures. Run a long benchmark like Crystaldiskmark 4GiB (I think it's the highest option?)

[JB25304]

I thought the SX8200 Pro came with a heat spreader that looks like a run of the mill, DIY solution and not a classical heatsink (even though they bill it as one.) If you have a heat spreader on the motherboard over the M.2 slot, it would probably work just as well, if not better. 
 

If not, as @Jurrunio said, just try it without it and see what temps you get. If you throttle, then put it on and see if it makes a noticeable difference. 

[Cs342]

Just now, JB25304 said:

I thought the SX8200 Pro came with a heat spreader that looks like a run of the mill, DIY solution and not a classical heatsink (even though they bill it as one.) If you have a heat spreader on the motherboard over the M.2 slot, it would probably work just as well, if not better. 
 

If not, as @Jurrunio said, just try it without it and see what temps you get. If you throttle, then put it on and see if it makes a noticeable difference. 

My motherboard doesn't come with a M.2 heatsink (MSI Tomahawk Max)

[JB25304]

4 minutes ago, Cs342 said:

My motherboard doesn't come with a M.2 heatsink (MSI Tomahawk Max)

Then try it without it and check the temps like was previously suggested. If temps are high, try it with it on the drive and see if there is a difference.

[SupaKomputa]

1 hour ago, Cs342 said:

The heatsink is red and my build has a white

Choice number 1 : get a white heatsink

Second Choice : Spray paint / Plastidip (don't spray the bottom)

 

Third Choice : Don't use it.

[Mysteryman2000]

Don't SSD work better at elevated temperature in most cases,  spreading the heat might not be so bad but not so sure about straight up heat-sinks.