The EKWB EK-XLC Predator 240 Liquid Cooler Review
by E. Fylladitakis on December 15, 2015 9:00 AM EST- Posted in
- Cases/Cooling/PSUs
- AIO
- Water Cooling
- Liquid Cooling
- EKWB
Testing results, low fan speed (7 Volts)
| Core Temperature, Constant Thermal Load (Max Fan Speed) |
At first sight, the thermal performance of EK-XLC Predator 240 with a supply of 7 Volts does not appear to be stellar. With an average thermal resistance of 0.0958 °C/W, it falls to the seventh place of the chart and appears at a disadvantage against most other dual fan coolers under heavy loads. The other coolers that are directly on par with its thermal performance are mainly older designs, such as the Corsair H100i and the first revision of SilverStone's TD02. More recent designs, such as the Corsair H100i GTX, and models with dual 140 mm fan radiators, appear to have a notable thermal performance advantage.
The catch is that, under these operating conditions, the EK-XLC Predator 240 is the quietest AIO cooler that we have ever tested to this date. Our instruments recorded just 35.1 dB(A), a barely audible figure that combats even the best low-noise CPU cooler designs. The coolers that displayed significantly greater thermal performance are also much louder. As the dB(A) scale is logarithmic, the pressure triples for every increase of 3 dB(A), so the actual difference in comparison to the top performers is vast.
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Titillating - Thursday, December 17, 2015 - link
We gave out a bunch of those AT-branded screwdrivers a while ago! They conveniently feature a reversible Phillips/flathead tip. We don't have a full set of branded tools, but if there is sufficient interest, we're happy to find a way to give away some more screwdrivers!pliablemoosethebanned - Thursday, December 17, 2015 - link
Put me on the list, I want one :)wolf762 - Sunday, December 20, 2015 - link
My first though was, cool where can I get one. If they were for sale I'd have bought a few to give as gifts this holiday season, depending on price of course =)Allan_Hundeboll - Monday, December 28, 2015 - link
I would love an AT branded screwdriver!Dr_Orgo - Tuesday, December 15, 2015 - link
Does H110 in the figures mean H110, H110i GT, or H110i GTX? If it is just the original H110 AIO cooler, that's a bit disappointing since the H110i GT is a direct upgrade over the original and is the most likely AIO alternative to the reviewed product.satai - Wednesday, December 16, 2015 - link
Comparison with some high-end air cooler (Noctua NH-D15 comes in mind) would be helpfull.Ninhalem - Wednesday, December 16, 2015 - link
The EK Vardar fans are comparable to the venerable Gentle Typhoon series as being the best radiator fans on the market. The Vardar fans are extremely quiet even when at high speeds (3000 rpm). I picked up one of the FF5 120 mm PWM fans when they first came out for some viability testing and couldn't believe how quiet they were at full speed. It's no surprise to me that they have excellent cooling ability with low fan noise.eckre - Wednesday, December 16, 2015 - link
(Facepalm) Why don't you compare this to AIR? Noctua 14/15 blows away almost all of these coolers in performance AND sound.Ninhalem - Wednesday, December 16, 2015 - link
And why would I want something clunky like the Noctua 14 hanging off my motherboard when I have space restrictions that a water cooling system like this product could solve handily?satai - Sunday, December 20, 2015 - link
It would be useful to get the comparison. Air can be better for your setup, Water can be better for your setup - details matter. But it doesn't make the performance and noise comparison useless.