My Story with EKWB... And why I'm done with them for now...

[@Shiftttyyy]

Former EK (US team) employee here 🙋🏻‍♂️ Unfortunately, the CEO, COO & Office Manager knew things and the rest of us staff were kept in the dark about a lot. Being locked out of the building and fired on the spot when days before, we were told that we had nothing to worry about. It stunk but I hope the entire staff and everyone else who got got, can still get what they’re owed.

[@MrExdous69]

Wait so they locked you all out of the buildings and haven’t paid you?

[@w2cfx]

So sorry you had to deal with this, definitely get legal advice about the whole thing dude

[@justinbridges4718]

That so sad and incredibly gut wrenching. I really hope things get settled

[@Walm89]

Is there any legal action you could take or could they just lead people on like this? This is fucked

[@sirmonkey1985]

that sucks to deal with. hopefully everything works out for ya'll.

[@TheGoldenVoiceKid]

Former EK (US) employee Thank you Jay for being an extended voice for me and the others from the Texas office who were let go. It’s unfortunate that you and others had to suffer from EK as well. I just wish things were different

[@Shiftttyyy]

BOOST

[@saucebosspl]

To the top!

[@farrez_gump]

Sorry to hear that, hope your talents* gets picked up quickly. Good luck sorry for the headaches you have to endure.

[@hydroponicgard]

I hope you have a better future from this day onward, poor souls that were tortured at EK US... I'm really sorry for you guys :\

[@jeo228]

This is all on the management. Hope you and the rest of the team land on your feet.

[@WayStedYou]

Now we know why Jay has been branching out into other companies watercooling parts over the last few years

[@davidnonya7359]

branching out? he ha sbene recomending there shit!? now i hear it is a horror story?

[@jedenzet]

@@davidnonya7359 where shit?

[@ScytheNoire]

Ya, wasn't he just showing off their weird new distro block and fitting the other day?

[@myke1380]

@@ScytheNoire i believe GN asked jay to look at it.

[@yarost12]

​@@ScytheNoirebranching out doesn't mean abandoning the roots

[@simonbutler3778]

Thanks!

[@nickcifarelli8887]

i was waiting for your statement on how payments should be made. You nailed it exactly - employees first, vendors second to keep the company producing and then everyone else. And no executive responsible for this debacle should be making a penny. Huge respect to you for your transparency. Your logic is exactly why I have always followed your channel. Nice work Jay.

[@xVuuM3]

Gamer’s Nexus nailed it as well, oh, as I’m writing this Jay just plugged him lol.

[@DjZiggy2]

When Jay is actual pissed because curse words are'nt stuffed out.

[@jaybor1683]

GN Steve did the same in his video on it now that you mention that.

[@jsncrso]

KZbin allows profanity in videos, but the video gets demonetized (no KZbin ads)

[@FINNIUSORION]

its not censored because its not monetized.

[@notgonnahappen7899]

Just means they aren't monetizing the video so they don't have to worry about curse words messing up the algorithm.

[@RyanS8251]

@jsncrso No, you can swear in videos and still get monetized. It just cannot be within the first 30 seconds, or you can't have multiple swear words in succession. Those will get a video flagged.

[@FarmerEnvoyXtreme]

The fact EKWB is compared to Artesian Builds is just all you need to know just the starting of how bad this is

[@Cyberdeamon]

Most of the workers that were left stranded by Artisan are now working for Starforge.

[@billyhatcher643]

I got me a ek waterblock and have nothing wrong with it

[@HowNowBrownCow69]

@@billyhatcher643 wow I guess ek is fine then. Nothing to worry about here.

[@blueblade455]

Never wanted or needed their products so I could care less about all this.

[@ssanc6]

The other half of Artisan workers went and started Phoenix PC @@Cyberdeamon

[@cjames4739]

Wow, an unedited f bomb! Jay mad!

[@SilverKnight16]

There was like three of them. Jay definitely mad.

[@outlet6989]

Don't forget the "S" bomb.

[@asuche03x]

Definitely made my head snap back to YT. I don't think I've ever heard him drop an f-bomb.

[@regwatson2017]

Jay only mad after GN leads the way and now he feels braver.

[@wrothy7692]

@@regwatson2017 Did you miss the bit where Jay said he was always intending to release the video but was going to wait until the end of the month, but brought it forward because Steve's video made it apparent to him that the problem was more widespread?

[@ivangerginov5648]

I've been finding myself coming to this channel more often. I don't know too much about it but Jay and the dynamic he has with his team in other videos are just really chill and down to earth.

[@jimbo_dilly1675]

But Jay lies so have fun listening to a down to earth channel that doesn't respect honesty. Jay was introduced to a bunch of shady stuff EKWB was doing a couple years ago by another small youtube channel, NoNonsensePC (the channel no longer exists BTW). I guess it didn't survive the pandemic. Jay just write the guy off when he asked Jay to help out with getting EKWB to be honest and refund customers on an ARGB controller they released called the Loop Connect which had a crap ton of software problems they refused to fix.

[@Robbie-mw5uu]

I like this channel because Jay is an old school PC guy who understands a computer is just a machine for serving a purpose. Most tech channels just use pcs as a fashion statement and as a result completely ignore the amazing specifications a component may have because it lacked rgb.

[@sondernfy]

@@Robbie-mw5uu Jay is old-school but I think he values his PCs also as 'artworks', where he will build a beautiful looking PC that also functions extremely well as his computer, e.g. Skunkworks

[@TheAmazingCowpig]

It's really sad to hear all this about EK. It was one of your more recent videos that made me aware of their low-profile rotary adapters that helped me complete my own build. Thanks for all you do, Jay.

[@MDxGano]

Serious question; how much did you spend on your cooling solution, what is your cpu/gpu, and how do you feel about the build moving forward in terms of upgradability of parts (cpu/gpu) and not always being able to bring those blocks forward? What extra frequency were you able to squeeze out and how far ahead of something like a trusty NHD-14 from noctua do you think you are ($90USD on sale). I ask these questions as someone who can appreciate the work and money spent on a beautiful custom cooled build, but has trouble justifying spending a minimum of 4x more for a cooling solution that then requires bi-annual maintenance of 2-4 hours to drain loops and clean blocks and parts that can't be carried forward in 3-5 years when you feel the need to upgrade.

[@TheAmazingCowpig]

@@MDxGano Oh, my build is nothing like the usual idea of water cooling builds. Mine is much more form-over-function, because it's actually an SFF build, and I needed the parts to create what is essentially a compact custom AIO cooler for the CPU (13600K). The block is an Alphacool Eisbaer Aurora LT, which is basically an AIO block sold separately and compatible with water cooling fittings. The entire point of the water cooling was to actually get the CPU to stop thermal throttling in the case and also be more tolerable in noise profile, which it successfully does now. Total cost is $200-300, but it's definitely worth it to me. If I were to do a custom loop for a standard desktop PC, I think it would still be worth it for a hot CPU, to get good continuous multi-core performance out of it at tolerable noise levels. I don't care much for hard-tube aesthetics though. Also for air coolers, the NH-D14 is terrible value next to a $35-40 Thermalright Phantom Spirit.

[@joshr96]

Thanks for the transparency and sharing your POV on the whole thing 👍

[@brucer.5403]

That was an honorable thing to say, telling EK to pay its employees before they pay you, Jay.

[@GlycerinZ]

that's just the kinda guy Jay is

[@brandonhoffman4712]

Hes also staying the hell out of the legal department.

[@Psycho-Ben]

8:35 Totally looking forward to a video of you and Steve meeting up to discuss ethics and content creation👏 You definitely came to mind while I was watching Steve's EK video yesterday. So very glad you made a response video too about your own EK experience to coincide with it. Very unfortunate to hear about EK's workplace shenanigans 😖

[@regwatson2017]

Why would Steve prop him up ? Where was Jayz speaking out before GN went public ?

[@knm080xg12r6j991jhgt]

Would like to hear from traditional media on this too!

[@Caderynwolf]

@@regwatson2017 It's all in the video if you care to watch it.

[@s13shaka]

Nobody cares

[@DJdoppIer]

I know a guy that works as a back-end manger at a Micro Center, and they've been having issues with their incoming shipments from EK for at least the 2 years he's worked there. Namely the parts they get are sometimes significantly different than what the invoice says, usually when it comes to the radiators. The store also has a open demo EK cooling display that they have been waiting to get updated, but EK still hasn't sent parts to them for many years (right now it's still using RTX 20 series components).

[@nightowlarchive]

Ex employee at MC 051 here! This has been going on since at least 2021 when I left the company, the EK display is the exact same as it was back in 21, however it is no longer filled, and has just been shoved ontop of a shelf. I believe bitspower is now the main focus.

[@MarinaraTrackDays]

Wow there is so much behind the scenes on how this channel runs as well as sponsored content. First, so cool to learn how it works! Second, this forum felt so personal and like a conversation. Loved this format and I do NOT blame you at all for terminating the relationship that has caused so much stress and confusion.

[@Tpbmods]

As a previously sponsored Case Modder from EK, I knew this was coming. I never expected this bullshit to happen to someone so much higher up the food chain from me. And You know the video is gonna be good when nothing is censored, and so clearly demonetized!

[@buckhammer5897]

Absolutely enjoyed the *explicit* and uncensored, this is how Jay feels video. Such a breath of fresh air on the channel

[@f688xt6]

You know, I see this video as a very important "supplement" to Steve's video. As much as it sucks to have a company doing things like this, it's good to hear corroborating evidence from someone directly affected by shady business practices. Thank you Jay. Your work is appreciated.

[@xxTHExxABYSSxx]

People need to respect the whole Gamers Nexus team. It's not just "Steve's video" there is a whole team there.

[@verios44]

This is one of the reasons I have been a subscriber for years! I dont water coll my PC's, but your content has always felt fresh and in good taste. Videos like this reflect your business stances and give me, your consumer even more respect in you.

[@TheFlighteur]

I work at a company in Europe which had similar cash flow problems at the beginning of Last year. We invested heavily into much needed tools for expanding the company but our government knocked on the door, asking we repay money granted during the Covid pandemic to keep companies afloat. We delayed payments to our suppliers and we came out on top after a really tough beginning of the year. I agree this situation can be repaired, and I hope for everyone involved it will be. It sucks for employees, it sucks for suppliers, both materials and marketing and above all it sucks for consumers if the company goes under.

[@kittz0r]

"Government" you meant to say the society that gets robbed, right?

[@pr0xZen]

I get the gist, but honestly I think this probably and legitimately sucks more for those strung along and owed money, than those who "just" might have to find somewhere else to _spend_ theirs. EKWB has a great track record for very solid products. But if they can't recover, it's not as big a loss to consumers as it would have beem 5-10 years ago. There are several well established competitors in the market now that at minimum _meet_ EKs product quality, and are plenty capable of picking up the industrial business if that market wants it. I got lots of love for EKs products and so many great folks that habe come and gone or are still there. And while I hope _the company_ can recover and restore, I don't stay beholden to commercial entities.

[@TheFlighteur]

@@pr0xZen You are totally right. I thought about the warranty aspect for consumers not the spending part but I didn't make it clear in my comment.

[@empireOfLove2]

There's a difference between running into a tight spot, telling all your suppliers "hey, cashflow is an issue, can you take a rain check for a few months" vs what EK has been doing, which is complete *radio silence* and then only paying up when they get harassed publicly about it. That's not a company trying to survive, that's a company that either has nothing left at all, or is extracting and hiding all the money before abandoning ship to leave everyone else holding the bag.

[@pr0xZen]

@@TheFlighteur That's certainly a fair point.

[@wallywest2360]

Love the PPCS shoutout. I have had nothing but great experiences ordering from them.

[@newjerseydamo]

I posted on GN that I hope you (JayzTwoCents) tells them to fuck off. This is precisely why I will never unsub from your channel and have been watching for years. Thank you for sharing your personal situation and your thoughts on the matter, it's appreciated. Stay well and look forward to the next video.

[@awilliams1701]

I was hoping for this video as well. I was surprised that he was already disgruntled.

[@Twokeeshonds]

A company with no integrity is not company worth working with.

[@newjerseydamo]

Or for.

[@fuzzylumpkins6034]

Truer words never written , yet Apple, Microsoft and Nvidia are billion dollar companies.

[@Alphahydro]

I felt the same about a leading cable and internet provider I previously worked for

[@samishiikihaku]

Or for. Or buying From. Not to mention the "stink". If it has a bigger brand in the server side, this may affect that too. EASILY

[@fuzzylumpkins6034]

@@samishiikihaku this is just bravado. Not 1 single big tech Corp has integrity and there are millions of people working for and buying from them. And all of the business practices are shady. Nvidia has every component made in a country where there are no pollution regulations or laws against child labour and that country gets all of its resources from a 3rd world country, again, with no regulations on pollution or child labour. There is no integrity in any tech company. They all pay pennies for products, are backed by billion dollar government schemes and in the game of 2 of these giants, market very well to the sheep that over pay for every single component. Integrity does not make companies money. Lies and marketing do

[@ClassicDura]

Man....as a Gen 0 Slovenian that moved to the US, my heart skipped a beat when I heard you mention my country (I didn't know EKG was from there....) and that it's being such a shitshow. I'm honestly ashamed and borderline in tears to hear this info.

[@Casmael01]

Man, companies are corrupt and fucked up everywhere you look. I live in London, and just recently the only water supplier here has announced they will raise prices 40% or go bankrupt. Highly embarrassing…. For them lol. No reflection on ordinary Londoners, except obviously it sucks that we will all end up screwed one way or another lol. Peace dude x

[@f.e.dzerzhinsky]

I've always liked EK in part because it's cool to see a small Central/East European company become a global brand. I really hope they pull through! And hey, you can't control what you have no control over. 🇷🇺🤝🇸🇮

[@Cr3ePiO]

'tis the slovenian way.

[@ClassicDura]

@@Cr3ePiO no we can do better than this

[@honeybadger6275]

@@ClassicDura Thousand years of history says otherwise.

[@Vtarngpb]

There are multiple reasons why I follow both yours and Steve’s channels… Thanks Jay, and your employees!

[@pahnazd]

The people are amazing, the leadership is shit. Unfortunate reality in many, many modern companies... especially the big ones.

[@tek_soup]

and leadership gets all the money.

[@Grandwigg]

Yep. There seems to be a critical point where companies get too big to be reliable. For many one sign is when something happens and the blame/responsibility can be spread around enough that they're no bite to any recompense/penalties. Distributed Liability, I call it. The point the leadership can get away with anything, and begin to take advantage of the customers, employees and so on, often to an egregious degree.

[@binks_jim]

I saw this first hand. Big companies will ruin anything they can. For me it's only a matter of time.

[@natel7382]

Very rarely company growth and good consumer relations go hand and hand. Especially company's that go public. Once a company goes public their shareholders are everything. Consumers can't fire board members.

[@turambar304]

All the time all over. It's a horrible trend.

[@hbdude155]

They be selling $800 water blocks of course they were gonna struggle to move inventory. Real niche of all niche markets. That's before the rest of this deplorable behavior

[@zackzeed]

Agreed. I've personally wanted to buy water cooling parts myself but rarely had the the money for it. I do understand that manufacturing isn't cheap, but EK expensive? Idk.

[@levigoldson]

They aren't even good quality. EK machining is horrible and defect filled. Every part I've ever gotten from them was flawed in some way. Often minor ways, but sometimes complete failures. Don't get me started on their shitty coolant that gunks.

[@jamegumb7298]

Too niche probably. They need MOQ for some parts like RX GPU waterblocks. They then need to charge a minimum for each of those since having the inventory sit costs money. If I were EK I'd get rid of the too niche products. Buy bigger for the better movers, lower cost there. Assuming this is at all possible of course, I do not work for them.

[@Rcmiller]

I loved EK parts , but the last 3-5 years the stuff just got expensive to buy. I make good money to afford it , but when a cpu block like the newest one is almost $300. That would eventually it them when people stop buying.

[@a.x.w]

Yeah, they don't even manufacture in house. All they have (had) is the brand image and warehouses full of overpriced products that sell in single digit quantities.

[@mikeoleksa]

My computer was down for a couple of days because of swapping everything to a new case, but had seen GN's video. I knew this video was coming knowing that Jay, through his passion for custom watercooling, had a business relationship with EK. For that reason I knew it would be a more "heartfelt" approach on the subject as opposed to GN's "calling the business out and throwing them under the bus" approach. There's nothing wrong with that approach, especially in a case where a company is literally screwing everyone over. It's just good to hear the experience side to go with investigative facts. It's sad that good people get caught up in things like this. Good video, Jay. Thanks.

[@phantom_smoke_420]

Jay way to keep your composure! Thanks for giving your viewers the heads up hope things start going your way soon.

[@Manysdugjohn]

Like Louis Rossman would say, this too is unfortunate, and informative. Sad too see a company that makes beautiful products go down like this.

[@alexdavis9324]

Goddamn that was a good series of events with Louis. That dude was insane (the guy made at him I can't remember his name)

[@tdis8629]

​@@alexdavis9324One of the lead devs (now former) for GrapheneOS.

[@DanielFrost79]

Totally agree. And that a company making expensive stuff like this, you think they would understand what happens when you treat people like sh!t. And now it just hit the fan, spreading everywhere. If this is actually true, they deserve what's coming...

[@mycosys]

Many terrible people have made beautiful things - doesnt mean we should enable them....... where did i put my Hugo Boss jacket?

[@Manysdugjohn]

@@viewer2277 woah, didnt expect someone your age watching hardware news. Kudos to you for not giving to old age!

[@AnIdiotAboard_]

[Posted this to GN video aswell - i bet theres more like this] Well this ties in nice with my experience of these. Ordered 2 very expensive kits from them for a new build, they took so long to come newer processors had been released and my brand new but unused computers sat collecting dust. When they did arrive one had clearly been on a NHL Rink before shipping and the other was run over by the Zamboni, they refused to accept shipping damage, i attempted to return them for a refund, they claimed to never have received them, despite signing to say they did actually have them After 8 months of aggravation i just called the bank, explained the situation and they refunded it all immediately, 2 days later i get the snottiest of emails from them complaining., When i suggested they had committed fraud in the first place they stopped communicating Will never ever ever use there shit again.

[@chrys9256]

EK was definitely in the wrong, but you actually waited for months? Why didn't you at least get a cheap air cooler so you could use your PCs?

[@Kingstoncollege7]

This is wild, sorry you had to go through that.

[@AnIdiotAboard_]

​@@chrys9256 Because i spent close to £25,000 on 2 computers out of my bonus. I wanted what i wanted at the time, and i was willing to wait for them, to a point, and i couldnt put them on air even if i wanted, there install location and space limitations precluded it. Proverbial dream machines from my point of view, id worked bloody hard to get EXACTLY what i wanted.

[@hassam363]

How did you know it was on a NHL rink?

[@AnIdiotAboard_]

@@chrys9256 Because i spent £25,000 out of my first big bonus from work, id had an amazing year. I wanted what i wanted, they were proverbial dream machines, and i was willing to wait for EK. I didnt buy coolers either untill i involved the bank, i was willing to wait to get it sorted, cos i wanted what i wanted. I couldnt put them on air, there install location precludes air cooling full stop.

[@corchaEkotte]

Yikes. There's a bit of poetic irony here, just a couple days ago Adam Savage put out a video about the concept of "F*** you, pay me." I know both you and Steve have said that this is fixable, but to an extent I'm not sure if it should be saved. It would prove a lesson about how to screw up a company.

[@mycosys]

I totally agree. At that end of the luxury good/design market people arent just looking for a product, they are looking for an image and person/group behind it. They have competition now, from people that seem to be actually cool people. I dont see how they stay a premium product form here.

[@HellGatefr2]

@@mycosys Who is that competition ?

[@stephensmith4758]

Literally watched that right before this!

[@lasskinn474]

nobody knows how fixable it is. like how much it is that they owe and is it because they weren't doing money and if there is a venue to making money. spending on products like they make is down all across the globe.

[@jorelplay8738]

For it to be fixed, a drastic attitude change is needed, which won't happen in cause people don't change overnight

[@spareroomtech]

Yikes. It's very sad. Thanks for sharing your experience, Jay. I hope they get their act together.

[@rpglord71]

Wonderful video. Too bad this happened to you and others that have been working with EKWB. I Hope you get this unpleasant situation taken care of in a timely manner - which doesn't see it will. I have been a very long time follower of your channel. Please don't let this make you too down. Take care and Blessings for everyone at your place.

[@Butterfingers1989]

Makes sense why fewer and fewer youtubers started using EK and switched to Corsair or Thermaltake blocks.

[@fs9553]

I will never buy stuff from Thermaltake. They literally steal designs for themselves. Most cases they sell are literal copies.

[@PSYCHOV3N0M]

​@@fs9553That a fact??

[@fs9553]

@@PSYCHOV3N0M Oh yeah. Caselabs, Fractal, NZXT, Corsair, Swiftech all got copied and put up a cheaper version on the market, not to mention quality wise a lot worse as well. I had a Thermaltake case once... flimsy piece of junk it was.

[@TheMC1X]

​@@PSYCHOV3N0M Literally Jay blacklisted Thermaltake because they stole the designs from Caselabs, sued them and won, bankrupting them.

[@russb3n]

Outstanding video Jay and totally deserved. Watching EK videos on KZbin for the past 3 years from their channel I think to myself how can they sell a product if 99% of the videos are zoomed in on the big ego guys and not the product they are selling. Watch the Valentine video so freaking confusing. If you want to sell your product show how to use it to the consumer.

[@jadedmoon]

It sucked working at NA EKCS. Manager was really sus. Outsourced building custom fun builds, to very close friends from outside the company. We really had no creative freedom. We were just a couple of bros trying to meet quotas each week while knowing that the higher ups don’t have your back. We had so many chances to work with cool people, but it takes the approval from ALL the way from Slovenia to be even approved. This much is just the iceberg.

[@jadedmoon]

Tip of the iceberg whoops😅

[@Shiftttyyy]

BOOST

[@mycosys]

It sounds like you had some really skilled people to do as well as you did in impossible conditions. Maybe time for HydroPhoenix builds?

[@interceptor001]

So you think this was a reason why the Slovenian branch thought of the US as incompetent?

[@sv0g391]

It seems like the Slovenians were right all along from all that has been said 😅

[@InviableTrader]

Jay is the best. Sorry to hear about the headache. You definitely don’t deserve this. Your channel is one of the best and you seriously gave me the confidence to build my first pc.

[@silkysixx]

Really great call to bring in a trusted advisor regarding sponsorship ethics. The fact that it's Steve just elevates.

[@stewart9540]

It's a downwards spiral as soon as this kind of stuff gets out. Consumers think twice or just won't buy products if they think they're gonna have issues with supply or support, especially when you're spending a lot of money on it,and lets face it EKWB blocks look good but by god you pay through the nose.

[@BType13X2]

I did my first custom watercooling loop in a decade a few weeks back and used an EK block / some EQ fittings. If this had dropped 4 weeks ago my build would not have any EK stuff in it.

[@rogeramu]

EK used to make good, nice looking (in the discreet sense) water cooling products that was a little more expensive than most other brands. Now they have tons of flashy stuff that costs an arm and a leg. Definitely too many SKUs and maybe a lack of focus - what does EKWB want to be?

[@stewart9540]

@@rogeramu couldn't agree more, I've 4 different FLT pump/res combos which are still good to use in various builds and a new 7950x block that is effective and very nice to look at ,(only Alphacool made a good looking block for my 3080) . I do think it's difficult for companies like EK, It would be difficult to even cover the last 2-3 generations of Nvidia cards alone., the outlay must be mind boggling, but there's no excuse for not paying staff unless you're going under.

[@matt0725]

Performance PC’s my first water cooled PC was built with parts from you years ago, before I followed Jay. You guys were great! Now, knowing how much support you’ve provided him, I will order all my parts from you guys moving forward. Taking care of the hobby and people is excellent, thank you.

[@yramid6770]

I watch the video yesterday from Gamers Nexus. Very informative and very unfortunate for all of the parties involved

[@dimitri877]

As a Dutch guy I just love this level of honesty. I can only applaud how your channel and GN are covering this (I watched GN's report before watching this), the level of clarity towards EK, and courage to make a stance about the topic as a whole (for it's not just EK, stuff like this has been ramping up for years in the industry). Hats off to you Jay.

[@theovannieuwenhuizen5756]

Same here, came here because of the GN video. Really confused about what some managing people can get away with and still land a position in the board of directors of another company.

[@jfruelas1]

Excellent video. Thank you for going on record with this. It is important to get this bad behavior out in the open. You're right that the employees need to be paid first.

[@AJ_Jones198XAD]

Holy shit... Jay, sorry you've had to deal with this bullshit. I hope you somehow get what you are owed.

[@PostNoteIt]

Thanks for linking to the mentioned video from Gamers Nexus in the description.

[@PSYCHOV3N0M]

You make it sound like if it's hard to search for Gamers Nexus' channel and see the video at the top of the list. 😅

[@jona777dedios]

Was waiting for this ty Jay

[@mancocapac6421]

My Conscience is clear, I have always used XSPC and Primochill products. And why has Jay never used any XSPC products?

[@AnarchistAvenger]

í just aplied as CEO of EK! cant do any worse than they already do, and i am a decent person. Edit: i have not heard back expect a conformation email thanking me for me resume!

[@ExiledStardust]

You're a decent person? Then they'll never hire you.

[@GamesFromSpace]

I hope you have living expenses saved up for a while.

[@robcason9827]

I haven't seen Jay this mad since I've been following him. (about 4 years).

[@BigDrewski1000]

Naw Asus made him pretty mad last year. Lol

[@lanchester101]

Nah, this is like ASUS all over again

[@robcason9827]

@@BigDrewski1000 Asus comes close but this is worse.

[@BigDrewski1000]

@@robcason9827 True. Lol. I don't think he dropped an f bomb back then. 😂

[@GOPACKERSJT]

Dude he bought some fluid that turned a nasty color after heat (can't remember which company) and nearly started WWIII back around 2014.

[@leakypipe86]

I've been waiting for this video.

[@RicardoPenders]

Teve's video is the first that I watched about this, didn't even realize that you we're caught up in this debacle too, I'm sorry for your loss.

[@Kerrathul]

When EK products went from expensive to outrageous, I switched to Alphacool Core and those are better at often less than half the price.

[@ducatii360]

All my water cooking is EK and I started and learned so much about building my computer and how to do custom loops from watching you @JayzTwoCents I’m really sad to hear that this has happened to you and fellow content creators and more importantly their own employees. I truly have loved the EK brand, the quality and reliability so far for me going on almost 10 years now has been top notch, never had to replace a component or had any failures. Hopefully EK can figure its shit out and get things back on track

[@ramdom_assortment]

I'm a casual watcher, but I have been watching more of your videos recently. Completely off topic, but that is one damn fine logo you have. I really dig the 80s inspired aesthetic, especially in a world where companies are "simplifying" their logos.

[@demonfedor3748]

When I bought EK's GPU block back in 2021 I had to contact their support to figure out where the hell are the screws to the backplate hidden in their ridiculous packaging. And a few weeks ago the block ruptured killing my PSU. Looks like the end is here for mine and EK's time together.

[@AxR558]

I had one of their CPU blocks that corroded (using their coolant and pump + rad that was a kit), leaking all over the back of my GPU - obviously killing it. They took zero responsibility, said that it was clearly my fault for taking the block apart (which their CS requested I do to photograph the inside of the block). I moved back to air cooling from then on and haven't considered using liquid cooling again.

[@demonfedor3748]

​@@AxR558Maybe my GPU block also corroded. I didn't take it apart to take a look. Used their EK Cryo fuel premix. I was considering doing something about it but now after Steve's and Jay's videos it feels futile.

[@Youbruss1]

I built my custom loop in 2021 and my water blocks haven’t had any problems, bit of discoloration but that’s expected after 3yrs

[@Vinetio]

I've been using their AIO since 2022. No issues so far but all of this news is making me start to sweat lol

[@emilcalderon4295]

Never change your stance on sponsorships. Love how you handle it!

[@johnuxtv]

I love the honest energy of this video. Your mention of creators being flaky kinda gave me a kick in the ass to finish a couple of things I promised I would. Thanks for being an example of reliability.

[@kenneth_jensen]

I had the same experience. It took from June last year to February this year to get all my ordered parts! I was bound because I got the first products in Juni, and there are only 30 days free return. They splitted my order, so I got some parts and then again had to wait. I talked to their support, and they were surprisingly understanding of my situation and excused. I couldn't do anything and I really regret so much buying their products now...

[@vinak963]

Watercooling has just gotten far too expensive. It's no surprise most of their products are sitting on shelves.

[@GOPACKERSJT]

This whole hobby has. Remember when a $1000 system was a good computer? Now GPU's cost $2500..... This hobby just isn't worth it anymore.

[@fromaflafl2198]

that is "only" a EKWB. there are plenty of other manufacturers that have reasonable prices

[@viet0ne]

Not expensive at all. I've done full Bykski/Barrow custom loops and they perform great. Two 360 rads, CPU Block, GPU Block, Pump, fittings, tubes for $350-400. Might not be as good, but they perform within 3-5C which means you'll never worry about thermal throttling. You don't need the best of the best water cooling to get the benefits of custom loops.

[@OneTrueRat]

Thanks Nvidia ​@@GOPACKERSJT

[@veedubfreak]

Nah there are plenty of good products out there that are reasonably priced. Alphacool still makes very reasonably priced blocks that aren't garbage. EK just thought they could be Apple and ride on their name while cutting every conceivable corner on their products while still charging nearly double the price of other manufacturers.

[@dannymac9110]

Once Performance PCs drops EK, it will be a death kneel.

[@michaelcarson8375]

@dannymac9110 they have been having trouble selling EK goods for a while. I noticed they put EK stuff on clearance a lot the last few years.

[@mycosys]

So the death kneel comes before death knell?

[@MisterSiga]

@@mycosys ask that blm dude lmao

[@mycosys]

@@MisterSiga look out, you might cut yourself with all that edge

[@Mr_jz_12]

@@MisterSiga fun fact, he didn't die from being knelt on like that.

[@RodanQQ]

Raw Jay is best Jay

[@ToastenButter]

That's what she said

[@SlapsRUS]

Yoooooo crazy I was adding stuff to a cart earlier this week for their stuff. Glad to know!!

[@Timmyfigs]

Sorry to hear about all this. You always seems like a big fan.

[@mazdapro82]

Probably why Corsair got into the water cooling biz.

[@benjaminoechsli1941]

"Wow, the bar to clear is on the floor." _steps over it_ "We win? Yay?"

[@ii_r_ftw]

As somebody who has been water-cooling since the gtx 500 series days another issue with EK is their prices have gone up massively while the quality has slipped and not just in the random scratches QC fails but just the milling they do isn't up to the quality you can get for a fifth as much from other brands.

[@BType13X2]

Gonna correct on thing with your statement EK doesn't machine any of their own stuff in house, they farm that out. Their failure is in not checking the quality they are receiving from their venders. I work for a large mining company we do not have the capacity at our facility to rebuild every project we get so I have a few trusted venders that I get machining support from. I send them checklists for each component, and they send them back to us, our QA then checks what they made, audits their machining checklists, hell we sometimes call them up and ask if we can drop in for a visit all our venders are doors open for us to do quick spot checks. EK needed to be doing the same thing, check fit and finish, stop in every now and then. or hell just get a few machining cabinets and have some of your own capacity.

[@AndrewB23]

I just built my first water-cooled system and was going to go all ek but changed my mind after some research on performance, now I'm glad I went heatkiller and bitspower instead

[@mediziniert]

you were one of THE persons (with my dad lol) who motivated/inspired me to put a custom water loop in my pc, i also use ek products.. thanks a lot tho! i really enjoy your content :)

[@geekydee]

Looking forward to your chat with Steve!

[@Computerguy64]

remember when a year ago Jay talked about Asus? Pepperridge farms remembers

[@Cosmodjinn]

I was shocked to find out they don't do their own manufacturing. It seems like it would be such a niche, low volume product that I can't see how contract manufacturing (which is what GN suggested is the problem; minimum order quantities) is sustainable.

[@REAVER781]

was waiting for Jay to put out a video on this.

[@anthooktt1403]

as someone who lives next to Slovenia.. I have never heard of EK until I watched one of your vids few years back, NOT A SINGLE PC shop close to me is selling or recommending EK stuff... and I have been actively building PCs for others past 3-4 years and building my own PCs past 7-8 years

[@starview7045]

Its a shame to hear all that. The damage to EK's reputation is considerable. I do really hope that it indeed is fixable, and that employees and vendors (including you) get paid. TY.

[@CHATTNERDS423]

you know its fucking serious when there is not raspberry and subscribe at the end of the video

[@nexusyang4832]

Facts.

[@tvw4951]

Really my nitpick lately with EK is the "Exact-mount" system. I've broken quite a few of them, sure I might've over torqued a LITTLE bit but the parts themselves should not be that brittle/weak for it to happen. Add in the fact you can't buy replacement parts for them and its dead weight. Shoutout though to Spartan Liquid Cooling in the US, miss them and the owner was AMAZING. I've got so much free EK gear from him cause he was one of the best people I've delt with.

[@mycosys]

I can understand why you might have TTY bolts, or bolts that snap if you overtorque to stop breaking stuff, but to not have replacements for what is at that point a consumable is borderline criminal

[@PXAbstraction]

If anything, I think Steve was too generous when he called EK's situation recoverable. Even with all the cultural and management issues he mentioned, their main problem is business fundamentals. They serve a niche within a niche and have way too many SKUs and too much inventory of products that have very low demand. The core of their business is just not sustainable at their size. I think they are just going through the motions right now.

[@DarthRambo007]

To make it worse they were subcontracting manufacturing which is insane for such a big company. I mean buy the machines and make it for cheaper in house even at Texas . What were they doing in Texas if they were still subcontracting

[@fromaflafl2198]

it's odd. they used to make it in house. there are "EKWB Factory Tour " videos from 2019 that confirmes it. but they must have outsourced it in the last few years.

[@DarthRambo007]

@@fromaflafl2198 at that point you just need a warehouse. They clearly need to be bought out or smn the management seems in the gutter .. also I always wondered why they made so many products do people even buy half of that ??

[@xXtyler27Xx]

I would happily pay a subscription for uncensored Jay thoughts. The community needs more of this

[@kenjikodai]

It's insane even Jayz went through this, I've known EK because of you, like you said you're the watercooler guy for the community newbies. They're crazy

[@ToastenButter]

I was hoping you would throw us your "two cents" on your thoughts on this whole debacle.

[@krazeemunkee80]

i think he just threw the whole dollar at us about it.

[@Nobody-vr5nl]

As a PM from Fortune 500 company I've worked with said, "why would I pay them if they already did the work?" No one successful plays fair.

[@MrExdous69]

Because it will cost significantly more if you don’t when they sue the shit out of you. Especially if done by a F500 company

[@slateslavens]

that's not 'successful'. That's 'predatory'. I may be one very small fish in one big-ass pond, but I won't purchase from those kinds of companies once I'm aware of their business practices. While I won't have an impact on their bottom line, it adds up as others stop purchasing as well.

[@Nobody-vr5nl]

​@MrExdous69 they do it to make it harder to reconcile 6 months of work. There's going to be work that doesn't get paid for

[@MrExdous69]

@@Nobody-vr5nl I understand the principle of your statement. But what you must not understand is that even with the shitty worker protection the USA has, we view non payment for physical work a little differently. Take for instance say you own a home. You have this lien and that lien on your property. Someone may be the 3rd placed lien on your title but if they actually physically went and manually did work on the home and it sells, the person who did physical labor on the home gets paid before say a water company lien. People get priority over companies. Any executive in a f500 company will know the lawsuit that would come over not paying people for their work wouldn’t be worth not paying. Because they will still have to pay plus millions more. So I don’t believe a f500 executive told you they wouldn’t pay people if they did it first

[@drabbitz2319]

Or when a water cooling company doesn't have liquidity.

[@_mnejing]

Eyy Red Mist, haven't thought of that build in ages. Not entirely sure, but I think that owner used to play WoW with me sometimes. If not, he had one of your other builds as he's an RL friend of yours. Always cool to remember old builds! :)

[@italianbasegard]

08:30 And for that, Jay, we thank you, and will keep comin’ back for more!

[@Juri14523]

Without JTC's videos about EKWB, I probably would never have bought parts from EKWB

[@realkekec4028]

I'm from Slovenia and this is our Artisan Builds. Sad but true,corruption is our middle name.

[@ExiledStardust]

It truly sucks. Slovenia is a great country but nobody who gets to know them by hearing about this kind of bullshit will believe it.

[@Disillusioned2022]

Former EK (US team) employee here Unfortunately, the CEO, COO & Office Manager knew things and the rest of us staff were kept in the dark about a lot. Being locked out of the building and fired on the spot when days before, we were told that we had nothing to worry about. It stunk but I hope the entire staff and everyone else who got got, can still get what they’re owed.

[@DanTAT1987]

Jay as always delivers a fully transparent situation. But just my 2 cents. Even if ek sort this out the right way I feel the damage is done for me as a consumer. Awesome video jay and the team

[@divi9912]

Feels wrong to "like" this (or Steve's) video, but i did. Ppl need to see this. I'm glad to hear you won't hurt too much under this situation. Take care.

[@blahorgaslisk7763]

The irritating thing is that EK has generally had pretty good to excellent products. But the way they have spammed product versions specialized was going to bite them eventually. I hate seeing people diving into the death loop like this when they really have both knowledge and experience with making their products.

[@singlsrvngfrnd]

They've been putting out subpar water blocks for years. Just search ek nickel plating and read the insane number of people who have had issues.

[@mz1929]

They should be able to immediately pull a few million just from equity lines of credit from their properties etc. Immediately pay all outstanding accounts and employees. The money they owe is probably not that much to what they can handle realistically

[@ryandeakyne3265]

Not trying to downplay the topic of the video, but I think this is the most I've heard you drop the F-bomb, and I'd like to hear more of it!

[@SelecaoOfMidas]

The F-bombs get 'stuffed' until it gets real. 😂

[@TheRealLink]

While I've been running Primochill and other brand cooling parts, I've had EK coolant and now, sadly, have to consider an EK block for my new TR system as there are so few full-coverage choices. While I do hope the product will be fine, all this fiasco doesn't give me confidence in EK's future until they themselves show change, respect to their employees, and everything else that Steve, Jay, and DerBauer touched on. Thanks for being as usual, totally candid Jay and explaining your situation. Can't believe they did this (contract stuff) for you, too.

[@Mitch-JA]

I find all this news really sad. I've always wanted to have a water-cooled build and EK has always been the brand I've planned to use. I really hope they come out of this for the better. Thank you Jay for your transparency with all of your sponsors, you've been my main influence for my custom PC hobby.

[@AngryBiker79]

I've worked with a fair amount of Slovenians, it's the culture(not that they are not very, very nice people) but what is theirs is theirs, they strangle hold it. I'm obviously speaking about a snapshot of the entire populace but yeah, lovely, lovely people but very odd, a strange bullish almost bullying way about them.

[@RamonInNZ]

Probably all the bloody wars been fought in that area for the last 1000 years....

[@grippscc01]

@@RamonInNZ all the eastern and southern countries of europe are extremely corrupt ... and its their culture.. not saying that everyone is corrupt but most if them are ...

[@HellGatefr2]

Had a very weird and frustrating expérience from Bagoros Performance, a slovenian company, it looks like they don't care and have no problem ignoring the customer to discourage him, felt very unprofessional...

[@issahumps]

That’s a bummer, last 3 builds have been all ek products 😬 yup performance pc saved my last build when ek was taking forever for a few things lol it all makes sense now haha

[@marksadler4457]

I'm very interested in hearing you and Steve do an ethics discussion. I've been teaching business ethics for the university/college since 2003 - it is an important point to revisit (especially in the USA).

[@NeptuneSega]

Waste of time these days. These companies see you as cows

[@marksadler4457]

@@NeptuneSega I disagree - cows are slaughtered and gone but consumers, especially in today's economic market, need to be repeat customers. Business cannot afford to tick off the customer beyond the "red line" - just revisit the Budweiser fiasco.

[@matthewb1601]

Love the uncensored content. Makes it more real. And congratulations on 4 million subs! 👍

[@AB-80X]

Sorry to see you in a bind Jay. It should not be like this. Fingers crossed for you guys getting paid what you are owed, but I suspect it won’t be easy. You say that it is not too late. I don’t know. I’ve bought a lot of things over the years from them, but I have a very hard time ever seeing myself buying anything, even if they turn it around. The mistrust is hard to overcome and personally I feel better just supporting a company with good intentions from the start. And any rate, I know I and thousands of others support you and your team and will continue to do so. Keep doing what you’re doing, because your content is top notch. 💪

[@AC-cg4be]

The C-Suite not getting paid? lawlz That'll be a cold day in hell.