Final Words & Conclusion

Final Words & Conclusion

What a ovely product this EK-Predator 240 is, I mean it is by far the most easy to install kit we have had our hands on (albeit the motherboard back-plate is a little tricky). Then the cooling performance for this 240 mm unit is massive. Then combine that with the incredibly low noise levels and the clean looks this product offers due to the fact that wiring leads out from the radiator and you will understand that the product is a winner from a design and hardware point of view. There's just one caveat we need to discuss, pricing.
 

The Predator 240 mm will cost you 199 EURO/USD. That is however a value ex VAT, so depending on your location you can add like 40 bucks to that. That is the only problem with this kit, as the competition offers LCS kits in the 100 to 150 USD range. For me, the extra money is well worth it as the Predator 240 simply oozes build quality and ease of use combined with excellent values. So yeah that is the trade-off, it will not be a cheap LCS kit at all. But hey, you have read the review and really, this puppy is just awesome. I mean, the Haswell based Core i7 4970K is just such a nasty processor to cool. The test platform makes use of the Core i7 4790K and we test it in a default setup (clocks) and then overclocked at 4600 MHz with 1.3 Volts. Now the 1.3 Volts is not even needed for the overclock, 1.2 Volts would have been good enough as well. However we inject more voltage to see how the cooler behaves. We also know with certainty that many of you are overclocking at 1.30 Volts. And for this cooler, that is just not an issue at all. Yeah, we have been pleasantly surprised by the EK-Predator 240, the cooling performance is really great for a 240 unit and is definitely impressive with even a proper overclock.
 

Aesthetics & Design

The overall looks are very tasteful as far as I am concerned, at first sight it might look bulky due to the thick radiator. However once you house it inside a chassis, most of that is not visible. And whatever is visible is nice and black in design. You do not have screaming logo's and LEDs and neither do you have wires leading out of the cooling block, as all of it is coming from the radiator, meaning you can route cables out of sight.

Pricing

The EK-Predator 240 as mentioned already is pricey, VERY pricy and will be introduced at 199 USD/EUR, that is ex VAT. Yes a high price, but considering the quality and performance in both cooling and noise levels you gain I think it's a fair amount of cash as this cooler offers so much. It is silent and at the default or even overclocked it just offers really good cooling performance. But sure, this is the big dilemma and elephant in the room.

Concluding

The EK-Predator 240 is probably one of the best LCS kits we have ever tested, taking into consideration that it is a 240 mm version. Even overclocked you will see proper cooling performance and very low noise levels (if you can hear it at all). Only once you start to overclock more extreme with say 1.35+ Volts on the processor the noise levels go up. Once you pass 1.4 Volts that's where (in combo with our 4790K processor) the product finally started to become somewhat noisy airflow wise. I will not even hesitate for a second to NOT recommending you the EK-Predator 240, it really is quality and performance but that does come at a more steep price, sure. The product is fairly user friendly to install, aside from the back-plate installation which can be a bit  tricky, just be careful and take your time. Quality does come at a price, and quality the EK-Predator 240 certainly is. However, in return you will get a product that really exists out of proper liquid cooling all factory assembled for you. The pump and reservoir are housed in an innovative matter, the product itself is very silent. Proper use of copper is the keyword here as well, with a proper cooling block and awesome thick tubing. Another massive advantage are the clean looks this kit offers, no dealing with wires coming from the cooling block, you simply route them from the reservoir... dawg. Last lines then, pricey sure even a 100 bucks more opposed to the competition and whether or not that is worth the extra money I'll leave up to you to decide. But tremendous build quality with a product that will not disappoint whatsoever make this product sit kind of in a class of its own. This pre-assembled kit is as close as it can be to purchasing liquid cooling components and creating your own liquid cooling loop, that is a distinct difference with traditional LCS kits. As such it comes highly recommended by us.

Handy related downloads:

• SiSoft Sandra
• AIDA
• CPU-Z
• HWMonitor