Pros: - Good layout - Plenty of USB ports of various versions - Sturdy - Worked the first time with the components I have - BIOS provides everything I need, and then some - Windows 10 Pro like it

Cons: - None thus far. - If anything, the available software utilities are the typical bloatware, but solved by simply not installing them.

Overall Review: I’ve been using Gigabyte MBs for years, since Asus had a capacitor QC problem over a decade ago. I have never had a reliability problem with Gigabyte. I am not used to assembling much of anything that works the first time. So, I am impressed that this build has worked right out of the chute with no backtalk. What I have thus far is: • Gigabyte B550 Aorus Pro AC motherboard • AMD RYZEN 5 3600 Processor • G. Skill Flare X Series 32GB (2 x 16GB) DDR4 Memory Model F4-3200C16D-32GFX • SAMSUNG 970 EVO Plus M.2 2280 1TB SSD • Noctua NH-U12S Chroma (bought elsewhere, they only had the Chroma model in stock) • EVGA GTX 1660 SC Ultra • Existing Corsair HX650 Power Supply • Fractal Design Define C case using 2 Silent Wings 3 140mm and 1 120mm PWM fans Everything went together, POSTed properly and booted the first time. It came with the F1 BIOS which I updated to F2 and later F3 without any issue. It passed numerous Memtest cycles, including a 24-hour test, and a considerable amount of time running Passmark. Windows 10 Pro installed without any complaints (other than the Resume on Alarm note below) and has not given me any problems thus far. This build worked harder on the test bench than it will in service. As for the motherboard, itself, the layout is good, it feels substantial, and the overall quality does Gigabyte proud. The layout looks to be a good design. It has plenty of fan headers. Overall, there is nothing I want that it does not have. The BIOS is easy to work with. The heatsinks included for M2 SSDs are appreciated, and fairly beefy for stock units. There are a ton of various USB ports on the back plane and headers on the MB. I don’t care about LEDs, other than the diagnostic ones on the motherboard (which work). The memory installed and was recognized fine, although initially at 2133 vs. 3200. I enabled XPM in the BIOS, and it responded with a memory profile with the correct timings and adjusted voltage, then everything was fine. That configuration is what Memtest and Passmark have run on without failure. I installed the device drivers from Gigabyte's web site, but not the utility software. I have used Gigabyte software before, and while some may like or want it, there is nothing there I need for my application and I don't want to install it for the sake of installing it. I set the fan profiles in the BIOS and don't want their software monkeying around with it. If anyone is going to use the Resume on Alarm function to automatically power the system up at a specified time, it did not work for me initially regardless of the BIOS settings. That turned out to be a Windows registry entry. If anybody is interested, make sure HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Session Manager\Power, HiberbootEnabled DWORD is set to zero. My installation had it set to 1 by default. This is not a motherboard issue, but a Windows feature that speeds startup but wreaks havoc with Resume on Alarm or Wake on LAN. Amazing what one can find on the internet! Based on what I have seen thus far, I have no reason to expect any hardware or compatibility problems going forward. While this build will not be worked hard, it needs to work reliably.

Pros: - It works, and at the speeds it is supposed to - No RGB, which for me is a pro - Passed a marathon of Memtest runs and stability tests, and has been extremely stable in operation

Cons: - None that I can think of

Overall Review: I'm using the G.Skill Ripjaws F5-6000J3238F16GX2-RS5K kit on a Gigabyte B650 Aorus Elite AX v2. There were some initial issues, but once I got past those the combination has been extremely stable.

Pros: The board is well laid out and solid The heat sinks do a good job, including those over the SSDs BIOS is easy to work with despite having an almost overwhelming number of options and settings Minimal RGB, which for me is a plus Windows installation was very quick and easy It passed Memtest and various burn-in stress tests at the XMP profile regardless of how long it took to boot It has been extremely stable thus far

Cons: After initial success, the RAM LED came on consistently, whether everything seemed okay or not There were times it would take forever to boot, (around 105 seconds). At one point I was on the verge of RMA-ing it or trying different memory. There was no obvious common denominator about when it would happen The audio CODEC is not cutting edge, which is not a problem for me but should be noted

Overall Review: Ive used Gigabyte motherboards for about 20 years. This one seems to be up to their standards, which is good since I have not had one fail once it is in service. Like a previous reviewer, I got this on a weekend deal at a price too good to walk away from, otherwise I might still be in the analysis to paralysis mode. The build consists of this board is paired with a Ryzen 9 7900 (non X), 32 GB of G.Skill Ripjaws F5-6000J3238F16GX2-RS5K (from the Gigabyte QVL), a Samsung 990 Pro 2 TB NVMe, a Gigabyte 4060 graphics card, and a Seasonic Prime 750 watt power supply. I put a Noctua NH-U12A cooler on the CPU. The system was on my test bench for a few weeks going through a tougher treadmill than it will see when it is put in service. The build presented a few challenges and had me scratching my head a few times. That all relates to the fickleness of DDR5 memory in general and not this board or any of the components in the system. Once I got that stabilized, it has been rock solid. Coil whine concerns with Gigabyte AM5 boards almost pushed me to an MSI board (not the worst thing in the world). This board does not have that problem, at least that I detected. Nobody describes how these M.2 retainer clips work. The manual is silent, as is Gigabytes website, and what is online describes clips that pop open and get pushed shut. The retainers on this board spin open then snap back once they are let go with the SSD in place to secure it. It is simple and effective, but two words, they turn, would make them even simpler. Long boot times plague systems with DDR5 due to memory training and tight tolerances. I updated the BIOS, from F1 to F24c (not as bad as it sounds, the versions go straight from F2 to F20). Unfortunately, 24c removed or relocated the Memory Context Restore setting someplace I could not find. That is generally the workaround to the long boot issue. I rolled back to F21 and Memory Context Restore was back. From what I read it may be in F23, as well. The key to getting past any memory-related issues, apparently confirmed by Gigabyte, is to install one stick of RAM, start the system with Memory Context Restore on Auto or Disabled, and let the system boot however long it takes. Walk away from it for a few minutes and let it do its thing. Then install the second stick of memory, reset the BIOS, and boot again (take another walk). If there are more than two sticks of memory, keep going through that process. The final step is to boot again but this time into the BIOS, set Memory Context Restore, Power Down, and Geardown to Enable. The system then only retrains the memory if something changes or goes south, not on every boot. The motherboard RAM LED light only comes on until it locks on to the RAM timings, then it goes out. Some people have had memory problems with Memory Context Restore enabled, so it is not necessarily a magic bullet. Memory training exists for a reason. Since mine was passing marathons of Memtest regardless of the boot time and never failed any sort of burn-in or stress test, I was confident I will not see memory issues once the system has booted. That has proven to be true thus far. My only caution with this board would be the coil whine issue, which varies by the individual board and may be more noticeable with an X-series CPU or during gaming. The AM5 platform and CPUs have some major improvements over AM4. But because of the DDR5 training issues, people should seriously consider whether they want to make that leap right now. It also should be pointed out that some combinations of a particular motherboard and memory seem to have no issues. Mine is behaving very well, it just took a few days to get to this point. All in all, I am happy with the outcome and would recommend this board, along with a good d

Pros: - Like its predecessors, it imports the non-financial information from the previous year and will eventually ask i there was a tax related entry on some line the year before that is missing this year. - Various services like audit protection are available when it is time to file - Turns doing taxes into a fairly easy process that can be done as information and forms are received, rather than stacking them up and having to sort it out in one painful weekend.

Cons: None really. I guess they could offer similar product for trips to the dentist, DMV, or other painful tasks.

Overall Review: I've used TurboTax for probably 15 years, and it can turn what would have been a disaster of tax forms to research and fill out into a few minutes of data entry. There is not much to say about the latest version. It installed, ran, and has updated a few times since. A detailed review at this point is not possible since the only thing I have done so far is transfer over the personal information from last year. Anything that makes doing taxes as simple as data entry (with no knowledge of what form it should go on required) or importing information is a plus.

Pros: • Typical Fractal Design quality • Well laid out and easy to work with considering its size • Full power supply shroud with removable panels, if desired • Good airflow given it is a compact mid-tower • Includes two 140mm intake and one 120mm exhaust fan • Good cable organization options • Plenty of fan and radiator options • Roomy enough inside, especially when considering length for graphics cards • USB-C and 3 ports • Convenient access to ports/controls • Looks good

Cons: • A bit narrow, which limits CPU cooler height and leads to tight cable space behind the motherboard plate • No HDD LED, which is becoming increasingly rare among cases • Fans are not PWM

Overall Review: I’ve gone with Fractal’s compact mid towers for the last few builds I have put together. As such, I am used to some of the space constraints from the compact versions. Handling it is not rocket science and a few minutes organizing the cables solves the problem, and is a good idea for airflow. The Meshify 2 Compact is sturdy. Airflow is good, keeping temperatures down. The unit lives up to my past experiences with Fractal cases, which has been good without exception. I resolved the lack of an HDD LED by installing one of my own. The LED I used had a 16" lead which was nearly the perfect length. The power LED bank is white, so I used a blue 5mm LED for the HDD activity, attached a black cable tie mounting pad to the underside of the power LED bank, and tied the LED to that. Problem solved, and it looks good centered under the white LED bank. The mesh front helps tame the LED brightness. A picture is attached to this showing the results. There are plenty of options for mounting 2.5” SSDs, and a couple of spaces for 3.5” HDDs in the tray in the power supply bay. The tray can be removed, and should be if you are not installing HDDs since it will provide more room for power supply cables. I would recommend removing it before you install the power supply and cables. A modular power supply will also help alleviate some of the clutter in the power supply bay. If I were going to change anything, I’d probably add about another half to three-quarters of an inch of width to give a bit more cable clearance behind the motherboard and some additional clearance for the CPU cooler. For now, if the extra space is needed Fractal offers the Meshify 2 which is both wider and deeper. But, if your CPU cooler fits within the specs, the Meshify 2 Compact is an excellent option.

Pros: - Typical G. Skill quality - Worked well in an MSI MPG B550 Gaming Edge WiFi - No problems

Cons: - None really, but memory is either stable at the speed it should or it doesn't

Overall Review: I've been using G. Skill in builds for years. This set is in a Ryzen 5 3600 setup, on an MSI MPG B550 Gaming Edge Wifi motherboard. It is on the MSI compatiblity list, which is why I chose it. Plus it was on sale when I needed to buy memory, otherwise I may have gone with G. Skill Flare X, which I have used before. Memory was recognized right away as 2133. Went into the BIOS, selected XMP Profile 1, rebooted and it came up as 3200. It has passed several MemTest sessions with no issues, and also did its part in PassMark burn ins, again with no issue. I am yet to have a problem with G. Skill memory, which is why I stick with it.

Ordering Noctua Cooling products from Newegg is transparent. The shipping and order processing is identical. No problems at all.

Ordered a case for a Plantronics 5200 from PartsCom along with several items from Newegg. The case arrived in the same time frame as the rest of the order. Good quality product, as well as fast shipping. I would have no hesitation to order from them again.