A Closer Look

The aluminium radiator is a bit heavier than most for 240 mm coolers I have on hand even though it has a fins-per-inch (FPI) of 18 compared to the more typical 21 of most closed-loop coolers. More fins do mean more surface area for cooling, but as the density goes up, so does noise since high speed, high static pressure fans are needed to force air through the radiator. Like the 360 D-RGB, the 240 D-RGB should see improved airflow through the radiator compared to other designs, and while the fans can ramp up to 2200 RPM, it is not necessary to achieve the sweet spot in regards to performance. The fittings are nicer than the usual smaller option used on some AIOs, which always seemed like a weak point even if I have never had an issue with them. That said, the fittings here are a bit more robust and look better, which is a nice plus.


EK has based the design of this pump/block on its SPC series of pumps—it's a custom in-house design. The semi-transparent white top will diffuse the light from the LEDs hidden under the black aluminium bracket in the center, and said bracket also hides the LEDs, so as you will see in a bit, the diffused lighting expands outwards and tapers off evenly the closer it gets to the outer edge. The brushed aluminium EK logo in the corner is also a nice touch, but like on its larger sibling, it can't be rotated.

As for the copper cold plate, it has a smooth finish with only the faintest of visible machining marks, having been sanded and polished to where it is semi-mirror-like when viewed up close. While that won't impact performance to any measurable degree, it's still nice to see. After all, a smoother, flatter, cleaner cold plate is never a bad thing. It is also worth noting once again that this series has had the cold plate optimized for AMD's Ryzen processors rather than Intel.


The EK-Vardar S 120ER D-RGB fans that come with this kit have an RPM range of 550–2200 with a maximum airflow of 66.04. The chunky fan frames may not be as pleasing to look at, but they are sealed at the back, so there will be less blowback and air escaping between the fans since the frames block the various openings you typically find on RGB-ring-style fans used on many other AIOs.