EKWB Predator 240 AIO Liquid CPU Cooler Review

[Apoptosis]

EK Water Blocks (EKWB), if you've never heard of them before, is a top-tier CPU water cooling component manufacturer based in Slovenia and founded in 1999. They have strictly made components that you can buy separately and put together your own liquid cooling setup, or they sold them as a ready-to-assemble kit - until now. Today, EKWB is launching the Predator 240, which is their first pre-filled and pre-assembled solution.



Article Title: EKWB Predator 240 AIO Liquid CPU Cooler Review
Article URL: http://www.legitreviews.com/ekwb-predat ... iew_171968

[sbohdan]

Recommended again? Why? The Corsair H105 was leading the pack in this test, eighter winning or being just second and I just checked you can get one on Amazon for $98.99! This is less than half of the EKWB price. On top of this the EKWB is mediocre at best. I wouldn't recommend it at this price point at all. Maybe if it was $50.

[Apoptosis]

Recommended again? Why? The Corsair H105 was leading the pack in this test, eighter winning or being just second and I just checked you can get one on Amazon for $98.99! This is less than half of the EKWB price. On top of this the EKWB is mediocre at best. I wouldn't recommend it at this price point at all. Maybe if it was $50.

drum roll.... While we away Brian's answer... You and I both know that this is a modular loop and those cost more to manufacture than a closed loop kit that roll down an assembly line in china in batch runs of 25,000 units at a time. This product is aiming at those that want the ability to alter their cooling solution down the road and those folks are willing to pay more. Is there a better closed loop CPU cooler with regards to temperatures and for a lower price? Yes, and our charts show that, but it's not modular and you can't swap out the radiator, block, cooling lengths and so on. I'm pretty sure he based his recommendation on the kit being fully expandable, the simplest installation that he's seen yet and solid middle of the road performance.

Personally I think the EKWB is visually appealing with it's chunky design and it is nice in the sense that you can change the part configuration around and later use different brand parts if you'd like. It's certainly no price versus value winner and won't ever be due to the fact it isn't going into going into mass production like say the Corsair H105

[NAiLs]

Recommended again? Why? The Corsair H105 was leading the pack in this test, eighter winning or being just second and I just checked you can get one on Amazon for $98.99! This is less than half of the EKWB price. On top of this the EKWB is mediocre at best. I wouldn't recommend it at this price point at all. Maybe if it was $50.

drum roll.... While we away Brian's answer... You and I both know that this is a modular loop and those cost more to manufacture than a closed loop kit that roll down an assembly line in china in batch runs of 25,000 units at a time. This product is aiming at those that want the ability to alter their cooling solution down the road and those folks are willing to pay more. Is there a better closed loop CPU cooler with regards to temperatures and for a lower price? Yes, and our charts show that, but it's not modular and you can't swap out the radiator, block, cooling lengths and so on. I'm pretty sure he based his recommendation on the kit being fully expandable, the simplest installation that he's seen yet and solid middle of the road performance.

Personally I think the EKWB is visually appealing with it's chunky design and it is nice in the sense that you can change the part configuration around and later use different brand parts if you'd like. It's certainly no price versus value winner and won't ever be due to the fact it isn't going into going into mass production like say the Corsair H105

Nate nailed it on the head with every point as to why I tossed up the "Recommend" award... he stole the words out of my mouth. Yes it does not perform as well as other kits out there, but if someone wants a kit that expands and appears to have a lot of room for growth, this kit is definitely going to be up their alley. I would pay more for that, for sure. I built my first water cooling kit about 6-7 years ago and spent way more for what would probably would be about the same performance, but my loop could easily handle expansion. A kit that's already assembled, easily and fully expandable, and a fraction of the price of something that you build on your own is a win in my books. I'm fairly certain you could add a video card block to your loop and this kit will barely stumble, whereas if you even tried to expand the H105 (which you shouldn't try), you would probably see not very pretty results.

This kit has that "heft" feel that made me believe it will last a long time - something you can't say about every kit on the market.

The ease of installation was another thing that helped raise that "Recommend" flag. I wish other manufacturers would take note of how EKWB did it and fix their kits. I don't think the install could have been any easier. The only thing that comes to mind that could have potentially been easier on the kit as a whole, is if they included the quick disconnect for expansion, like they will on the 360 version of this kit. But at the end, big deal if it wasn't included.

Again, I know you'll look at performance per dollar, but remember what you're getting. I don't think I would call EKWB mediocre, either. They put out fine products, and that's coming from my personal standpoint, not because they sent us a sample to review. Is there room for improvement? I'm pretty sure you could argue that for any manufacturer, including EKWB.

I hope this helps clarify why I raised the flag.

[sbohdan]

Yeah, yeah, Yeah. Once you upgrade or expand, you end up with even more money spent. I understand that the cost is higher because it's upgradebable but modular setups also (should) deliver more performance. Because that is the bottom line: does it cool or does it not? This one cost almost 2.5x more than the Corsair and cools worse at the same time. This is unacceptable. Anyway, I still think I would not recommend this unit to anyone at this price and performance. There are other once that are just simply better.

[bubba]

For an upgrade-able DIY water setup its not that bad of a price, and for someone that is new to DIY loops, everything is in the box no guessing on parts needed.

The Swiftech H20-X20 (Like the EK) is $240
The Swiftech H220X (Like the Corsair, CoolerMaster, prefilled plug and play) is $150

I get asked about water coolers all the time. First thing I ask before recommending one is "do you think you will ever water cool the whole system" if they answer no they get an AIO, if yes, then the talk starts on what their setup is (case mainly) and something like the EK and Swiftech units is suggested.

Level the playing field. Since Gentle Typhoon AP-15's have gone way of the Dino, it would be interesting to see the units tested with EK-Vardar F4-120 1450RPM fans (good static pressure and dead quiet).

[DØØM]

Necro but this should be added.

This item is sketchy at best. It has been recalled once by EK due to leaks. I ordered the unit rev 1.1 and the pump discharge had hairline cracks and leaked. Upon contacting EK customer service I was told I had to pay for replacement parts and shipping costs and then repair the unit myself. Furthermore, I was told since I shortened the hoses and used a different Waterblock that I voided my warranty. Their (EKWB) website lists this item as " fully expandable and customizable" but if you actually do expand or customize then you void your warranty. At least that's what I was told. I was then told the cracks in the discharge were my fault from over tightening a fitting. I asked at what point "over tightening" occurred since the manual provides no torque specification... And the fitting on the discharge leaked prior to me even trying to tighten it. Long story short, after several sarcastic go arounds with EKWB's customer service I just decided to chalk this up as a $200 loss and replace it with better equipment. I only bought it to save space in an itx build. This unit is overpriced junk. I can supply photos to back all this up.