A slider has a read transducer comprising first and second shields surrounding a read sensor. The first shield faces a substrate. A first end of the reader stack is at a media-facing surface of the slider and a second end of the reader stack faces away from the first end. A heater is located farther away from the media-facing surface than the second end of the read transducer. The heater is configured to control a thermal protrusion of the read transducer from the media-facing surface. A heat sink is located between the first shield and the substrate.