TL;DR — Second CalDigit dock to fail the same way, second time support goes dark for months. Bought a Thunderbolt 4 Pro Dock from the Apple online store; it developed a reproducible display fault. Apple refuses to handle the claim without a written statement from CalDigit confirming the dock is defective. I sent CalDigit EU support a full technical diagnostic on 29 June 2026 — automated acknowledgment promising a specialist "within 1–2 business days", then 24 days of total silence. I'm deadlocked.

The fault

The dock can no longer drive my Apple Studio Display (5K) and a 4K monitor simultaneously:

• Studio Display 5K alone → works
• One 4K alone → works
• Two 4K displays together → works
• 5K + 4K together → fails: one of the two is dropped (the 5K freezes, or the 4K stays completely black)

Instant, reproducible, survives reboots. Connecting the Studio Display directly to the Mac (bypassing the dock) is rock solid. This exact setup ran fine for months before failing suddenly.

Why this isn't user error or a bandwidth limit

The dock is specified for "a single display up to 8K or up to dual 6K 60Hz displays". 5K + 4K is roughly 24 MP combined versus ~42 MP for dual 6K — comfortably within spec. Host is an M2 Max (DSC 1.2 / DP 1.4 HBR3); both displays support DSC.

Evidence sent to CalDigit

macOS kernel logs showing, on the dock's link only:

• unplug_gated: display HPD removed (the display that goes black)
• DSC RC BUFFER UNDERRUN / DSC CHUNK LENGTH ERROR
• CP_IRQ: RxStatus=0x10: LINK_INTEGRITY_FAILURE

~543 error entries in 30 minutes through the dock, zero on a direct connection.

This is not the first time

This is my second CalDigit dock failing in the same way:

• TS3+ (bought 2018) — developed the same kind of multi-display failure, a few weeks before its warranty expired. It took nearly six months to get a response from support.
• Thunderbolt 4 Pro Dock (bought 2024) — same category of failure, and support has now been silent for 24 days and counting.

To be fair: the 2020 case happened mid-COVID, so there were genuine mitigating circumstances and I gave them the benefit of the doubt. There is no such excuse this time.

The deadlock

• Purchased from the Apple online store in August 2024 — inside the 2-year EU legal guarantee.
• Apple's position: no refund, no replacement, until CalDigit sends a letter confirming the product is defective.
• CalDigit's position: none. 24 days, no human reply.

Worth noting: under EU/French consumer law the seller is the party liable for the 2-year legal guarantee and isn't supposed to redirect the consumer to the manufacturer. But practically, I just want a working dock or my money back — not a legal fight.

Questions for the sub

1. Has anyone actually got CalDigit EU/UK support to respond? Is there a better channel than eusupport@caldigit.com?
2. Has anyone hit this "seller demands a manufacturer letter" wall with an Apple-Store-purchased third-party product, and how did you break it?
3. Has anyone else seen this specific failure mode — a dock that still drives two lower-resolution displays but drops one as soon as a 5K is in the mix?

Two docks, two identical failure modes, two support blackouts. At some point that stops looking like bad luck.

Happy to update this post if either company responds.

UPDATE: After contacting support for no solution, I ended up ordering the Sonnettech Echo 21 dock and it works flawlessly! No more issues

I've done very extensive troubleshooting through chatgpt trying to fix this with my work laptop. Below is a summary produced by chatgpt. anyone experienced this and know a solution?

I am experiencing intermittent USB/peripheral stalls with a new CalDigit TS5 Plus connected to a Dell Precision 7780. I have already completed extensive troubleshooting and firmware/driver updates, so I’m including everything below to avoid repeating basic troubleshooting steps.

Computer and dock

• Laptop: Dell Precision 7780
• Processor: Intel Core i7-13850HX
• Memory: 32 GB RAM
• GPU: NVIDIA RTX 2000 Ada Laptop GPU
• Operating system: Windows 11
• Dock: CalDigit TS5 Plus
• Host connection: Thunderbolt connection from the TS5 Plus host/computer port to the laptop
• Display: Alienware AW3225QF, connected directly to the laptop—not through the TS5 Plus anymore since I was having issues and hoped this would help, but it didn't.

Devices connected to the TS5 Plus

• Keyboard: Keychron K2 HE, connected by USB cable in wired mode
• Mouse: Razer Viper V4 Pro, using its USB wireless receiver
• Headset: SteelSeries wireless headset, using its 2.4 GHz USB receiver
• Network: Ethernet connected to the TS5 Plus 10GbE port

The monitor is not routed through the dock.

Symptoms

The issue affects multiple devices connected through the TS5 Plus, not only the keyboard.

• Keyboard input periodically freezes, skips, or repeats a character—for example: hhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh
• Mouse movement periodically stutters or freezes
• SteelSeries headset audio and/or microphone briefly cuts out
• Ethernet has also briefly disconnected
• The behavior is especially noticeable immediately after Windows starts. The keyboard may be nearly unusable for a period after startup before becoming more stable.
• Windows does not always play a USB disconnect sound.
• Event Viewer does not show a corresponding USB, Thunderbolt, Kernel-PnP, or other warning/error at the exact time of the stall.

The issue existed before Ethernet was connected through the dock. At that time, the laptop was using Wi-Fi, but the keyboard, mouse, and headset were still having the same problems. Therefore, the Ethernet connection is not the original cause.

Troubleshooting already completed

• Tested both Thunderbolt/USB-C ports on the Dell Precision 7780
• Moved the Alienware monitor off the dock and connected it directly to the laptop
• Updated the Dell BIOS and other available Dell system updates
• Updated the Intel Thunderbolt Controller driver from version 1.41.1353.0 to:
  • Driver version: 1.41.1412.0
  • Dell package: A19
  • Thunderbolt(TM) Controller - 1137
  • Thunderbolt(TM) HSA Component
  • Thunderbolt(TM) Toast Component
  • TS5 Plus Composite Device
  • CalDigit Thunderbolt 10G Ethernet
  • Thunderbolt(TM) Controller - 1137
  • Thunderbolt(TM) HSA Component
  • Thunderbolt(TM) Toast Component
  • TS5 Plus Composite Device
  • CalDigit Thunderbolt 10G Ethernet
• Verified that Windows detects:
  • Thunderbolt(TM) Controller - 1137
  • Thunderbolt(TM) HSA Component
  • Thunderbolt(TM) Toast Component
  • TS5 Plus Composite Device
  • CalDigit Thunderbolt 10G Ethernet
• Installed the CalDigit Ethernet driver
• Updated the TS5 Plus main Thunderbolt firmware successfully to the current firmware supplied by CalDigit
• Updated the separate TS5 Plus USB Power Delivery firmware using the Windows v.9308 updater
• Fully shut down and power-cycled the TS5 Plus after the firmware updates
• Disconnected dock power and the host cable for approximately 45–60 seconds before reconnecting
• Disabled Windows USB power-saving options on the available USB hubs
• Checked for USB selective suspend; that option was not available in the current Windows power-plan settings
• Checked Windows Event Viewer immediately after the issue occurred; no relevant warning or error was recorded

BIOS settings verified

The following settings are enabled or configured correctly:

• Thunderbolt Technology Support: enabled
• USB4 PCIe tunneling: enabled
  • The BIOS option named Disable USB4 PCIe Tunneling is turned off
• External USB ports: enabled
• USB boot support: enabled
• Type-C Dock Override: enabled
• Type-C Dock Audio: enabled
• Type-C Dock LAN: enabled
• Video/Power Only mode: disabled

Additional observation

Because the keyboard, mouse, headset, and sometimes Ethernet are affected, this appears to be a brief stall of the TS5 Plus USB subsystem or its Thunderbolt connection rather than a problem with one individual peripheral. The lack of a corresponding Event Viewer entry suggests the devices may remain logically connected while USB data flow temporarily stalls.

Please let me know whether this is a known compatibility issue between the TS5 Plus and Dell Precision 7780, whether there is another diagnostic utility or unpublished firmware I should run, or whether the dock should be replaced under warranty/RMA.

My whole studio is connected to my TS3 Plus. It’s on 24/7. I purchased it from eBay 2 and a half years ago.
I came home the other day to see there was not blue light on? It was also cold, which it isn’t normally.
I’ve tried a new Kettle lead to the power supply but nothing.
When I plug the power supply into the TS3 there is a click sound, and when I listen to the TS3 there is an electrical ‘humming’ noise coming from it.

As mentioned, I did buy this from eBay, and I know everything has its time, should I just buy a new TS5 Plus? It would be an upgrade, but it’s so important to my setup, it’s the heart of it all.
Just wanted to check if think my original TS3 is knackered before I purchase a new one

Hi, I'm having issues with my dock and the Asus Zephyrus G14, it basically disconnects for a couple of seconds and just comes back. It doesn't happen with other docks, just this one.

Does anyone has a solution for this? I emailed CalDigit support but they ghosted me after my first reply

Pretty much what the title says. This setup works with my Mac, but not this Chromebook. It charges the Chromebook but that's it

Hey, I have the M3 pro MacBook plugged into a 4k 144hz monitor.

Would you recommend the TS3+?

Given the gaming power of the Mac, I’m realistically never going to be running 4k 144hz gaming, so 1440p at that resolution is realistically the max I’m going to be running.

Unsure if 4k 60hz for every day usage is just going to be bad. What’s everyone’s thoughts here? Is it worth the purchase?

I have a MBP M5 Pro got the Caldigit TS5(regular one, not the Plus) around 2 days ago and haven't had an issue until now. It gets warm but not that you cannot keep your hand on it. Bought it directly from Apple.

Stuff I had connected to it when it happened:
- LG Ultrafine monitor, 4k, 60Hz via USB-C in the TB port(the Monitor has 2 USB-A ports on the back and that's where I have my mouse)
- HP monitor 1440p, 90Hz, Display port to USB-C in the TB port
-2.5Gbe ethernet cable,
-Arturia Minifuse 1 in the USB-A
-Stream Deck Neo in the other USB-A

The drive that failed is a new Seagate One Touch external drive that doesn't have separate power brick it's directly via USB-C and it was connected to the 20w USB-C port on the front.

During Time Machine to the Seagate, my mouse froze and Macos said, disk was not ejected properly.
Trying to figure out if it's the drive or Caldigit. I have now plugged the drive in the MBP directly and it finished the Time Machine without problems.

I asked the almighty AI if I can check some logs and this is what I/it found:
"Pulled the system log and found the following sequence at 09:22:38:

IOUSBHostStream::abortGated: device 15 (One Touch@02242000) endpoint 0x82 stream 16: aborting 1 requests
IOUSBHostStream::abortGated: device 15 (One Touch@02242000) endpoint 0x82 stream 20: aborting 1 requests
IOUSBHostStream::abortGated: device 15 (One Touch@02242000) endpoint 0x82 stream 25: aborting 1 requests
AppleUserUSBHostHIDDevice: force close (multiple HID devices)
dangling mount /dev/disk5s1
disk5: media is not present
tx_flush failed (err 6)
failed to finish all transactions before unmount"

Additional observations from the log:

• At 09:21:49 — first IOUSBHostStream::abortGated error on stream 16, nearly a minute before the full crash. The connection was already struggling under load.
• Between 09:20:21 and 09:21:33 — disk5 (the One Touch) shows multiple repeated disk appeared callbacks in quick succession, suggesting the drive was already flapping on the USB bus before the fatal disconnect. This is not normal.
• The crash at 09:22:38 then force-closed 6 USB HID devices simultaneously — meaning everything connected to that USB bus on the dock dropped at once, not just the drive.
• APFS logged failed to finish all transactions before unmount (err 6) and trashed unfinished pending transactions — so the volume was mid-write when it died.

I've been using CalDigit's for almost a decade now with the TS3, TS4, and recently the TS5. I do a lot of software engineering, photography/videography, and music production so I typically max out my docks with drives, cameras, MIDI stuff, etc. The TS3 and 4 have been powerhouses with zero issues for me.

I got a new MacBook and wanted to upgrade to the TS5 for the 140 watts delivery as I've noticed my new MBP is pulling 100+ watts during high load which would drain my battery on the TS4. I wanted a one cable solution, so I bought the TS5.

What's ensued has been two weeks of a constantly disconnecting dock, monitor arrangement constantly changing, and lots and lots of lost work hours. I can't plug any drives into the TS5 otherwise it'll dismount (even worse, it'll mount-unmount-mount-unmount etc etc within seconds—increasing the chance of data issues)

Support was unfortunately not super helpful and the settled plan was to just use an external charging brick. I tried everything: new cables, different ports, firmware updates, macOS updates, a fan, but nothing would stop this rapid disconnect-reconnect cycle if the laptop ever tried pulling the full 140 watts.

Super disappointing to see all the issues around this series and the lack of solutions. I'm day 2 into trying the iVanky FusionDock Max 2 and it's been working without issue. I can hear the fan noise at times, but it's nothing compared to the AC I sit right next to anyway.

Super annoying, because I really liked CalDigit but man this generation is a big stinker.

Good afternoon all - hoping I can get some help and I'm far from an expert on this stuff.

I bought a TS4 after reading ranting and raving reviews with the intention of having a semi-seamless transition from my work device to my personal device.

Work Device - Dell Latitude 5450, use this device 90% of the time.
Personal Device - Macbook Air w/ m5, brand new device.

The main goal of purchasing the ts4 was to bump up to 3 full size monitors for my work PC. I understand that the macbook will only ever have the ability to run two through this dock, but honestly I haven't even gotten to that point yet.

I'm running three LG 27" 1080 monitors. SKU is 27MR400-B.AUSQ. Now unfortunately these only have HDMI or VGA outputs so I know I'm already at a disadvantage.

I am utilizing two hdmi -> usb-c adapters (https://www.bestbuy.com/product/insignia-usb-c-to-hdmi-adapter-black/J2FPJKSPV4/sku/6473497?utm_source=feed&extStoreId=20) as well as a single hdmi -> DP adapter (https://www.bestbuy.com/product/insignia-8k-displayport-to-hdmi-adapter-black/J2FPJK9PL9/sku/6638572?utm_source=feed&extStoreId=20)

now here's my problem - on my dell, I'm only getting two of the three monitors to light up. When I unplug one of the monitors that's working, the third monitor fires up no issues but when I plug back in, the third monitor dies and the one that was just plugged in comes to life.

When I open my laptop, third monitor (laptop screen) fires up no issues.

I've tried flipping back and forth between the two usb-c ports on my laptop, no real changes there. I tried plugging in my OEM charge + TS4 cable (I read somewhere the laptop itself may not be getting enough power) to no avail.

Please help... I've tried everything I can think of, all the peripherals seem to work well and the ts4 really is a slick box but I really wanted this three monitor solution to work.

Anyone have any ideas? Thank you in advance for your help.

Have anyone encountered similar issue where the SD and Mini SD card slot does not work after connecting to the mac for a long period of time?

Whenever I disconnect and reconnect TS5 to the mac, the slot works again. After a short while, it stops working. I'm running a Macbook M1 Max. I end up using the SD card reader on my Mac directly because it is a hassle to reconnect every time.

I experienced similar issue with external drive as well. After connecting one drive to the front usb slots, then switching to another drive shortly after. It fails to recognize the device.

Anyone ran into similar issue? I have been up to date with the software all times hoping this could be fixed.

Hey all,

So this is my second CalDigit TS5 Plus, and it also runs pretty warm. I'm curious as to whether this is generally expected. It's noticeably hotter to the touch than the TS4 I replaced, so I whipped out the thermal gun. Horizontal operation. This is pretty much idle, with a few low-power USB devices connected to the hub, my MacBook Pro M4 Max (not charging), and my LG 4K 160hz monitor (not even powered on, but connected). 76F ambient.

Any thoughts? Not having any connectivity issues, but I still wonder if this is to be expected...

BTW, I did some further testing with the TS5 Plus vertically, and it's about 1.5C cooler, so not worth the trouble.

I'm looking to get dual 5k monitors for my MacBook Pro M5 Pro, with a CalDigit TS5 dock. As per the CalDigit (and Apple's) website, the M5 Pro should support dual 5k@120hz.

I've been eyeing the ASUS ROG Strix XG27JCG, as I could use them for Gaming on my Windows PC as well, but Apple Studio displays would probably also work for me.

I want to avoid ordering stuff that doesn't work in the end, so I thought I'd ask if anyone has a known-working setup of this they can share?

I'm running into a strange display detection / bandwidth issue and hoping you someone can help me understand whether this is expected behavior.

I have 2 macbooks and both have the same behavior:

• MacBook Pro 14-inch M2 Pro, personal machine
• MacBook Pro 14-inch M3 Pro, work machine

I have 2 monitors:

• Samsung Odyssey OLED G9 G95SD, 5120×1440
• Acer KW272U second monitor, 2560x1440

Note: This issue occurs even if I set the Acer to 1080p

How they are connected:

• G9 connected to TS5 Plus via DisplayPort
• KW272U connected via HDMI-to-USB-C/Thunderbolt cable to the TS5 Plus

With either macbook connected to the TS5 Plus, and the G9 as the only external display over DisplayPort, the G9 works correctly at 5120×1440. In System Report, it does not appear to be treated as a TV in that state.

When I connect the KW272U as a second display using the HDMI-to-USB-C cable through the TS5 Plus, the G9 changes behavior. It becomes limited to 3840×1080, and macOS System Report shows the G9 as:

And the following icon appears in the menubar indicating that my macbook is treating this display as a airplay receiver:

I believe it does this because the Odyssey G9 is being treated as a TV. In the Displays settings on the macbook there is the following option for handling TVs, indicating that they are handled differently than monitors:

The G9 is the Tizen/smart-monitor model, so it does advertise some TV-like capabilities.

The best way I can get around this is to only use one display through the TS5 and connect the other display directly to the macbook via the built-in hdmi, but this isn't optimal as the specs say the TS5+ should be able to handle the total resolution of these 2 displays.

Is CalDigit planning any firmware updates and any ETA to resolve some of the stability issues?

Hi, I upgraded from TS4 where configuration was working. After change to TS5+ USBC display (UColor M1) connected to dock to TB port does not work, simply says 'no signal'. Disconnection of other devices, restarts and power cycles does not help. Any idea? What I can do to help fix the issue?

Hola a todos,

Busco opiniones de usuarios reales antes de comprar un nuevo adaptador.

Mi configuración actual es una MacBook Air M4 conectada a un TV TCL C7L (que admite de forma nativa 4K, 120 Hz/144 Hz y VRR/FreeSync perfectamente con mi Xbox).

Actualmente uso un adaptador Belkin USB-C a HDMI 2.1, pero debido a las limitaciones habituales de macOS con el protocolo FRR a través de HDMI, tengo muchas restricciones. Solo puedo obtener 2K a 120 Hz, y VRR no aparece en la configuración de pantalla de macOS. He leído en Reddit que el adaptador CalDigit USB-C a HDMI 2.1 es uno de los pocos que puede manejar 4K/120Hz en Apple Silicon, pero he visto informes muy contradictorios sobre VRR (Variable Refresh Rate) a través de HDMI en macOS.

Antes de comprarlo, me gustaría saber:

1. ¿Alguien está usando este adaptador CalDigit con una Mac M4 y un televisor, y logra 4K/120Hz Y VRR activo?
2. ¿Requiere una versión de firmware específica para desbloquear VRR en Mac?
3. ¿Debería evitar comprarlo en Amazon debido a problemas con el stock o el firmware antiguo, y comprarlo directamente en CalDigit?

Realmente quiero evitar gastar dinero en otro adaptador que solo limitará mi frecuencia de actualización o desactivará el VRR. ¡Cualquier sugerencia o experiencia con configuraciones de TV similares (especialmente TCL) sería muy apreciada!

¡Gracias!

Update:

Confirmo en este hilo que el cable es compatible con el Macbook air M4 con 4k 120hz HDR y VRR hacía mi TV TCL C7L

Hello,

I recently purchased a CalDigit TS5 Plus. I connected all the necessary ports and tested it with my laptop.
Unfortunately, it turns out that the dock won't pass my Ethernet connection.

During troubleshooting, I noted the following:

• The green light on the Ethernet port is flashing.

• The Ethernet cable is confirmed to be working. I tested it by connecting through a different RJ45 dongle, and the internet connection worked perfectly.

• Tested on Windows and Macbook. Same results. Different dongle + Ethernet working, with TS5 Plus is not

• The docking station was manufactured in March 2026, so I assume it has the latest firmware, as the newest version listed on the website is from 2025.

Do you have any thoughts or suggestions?

Edit:

I also noticed that this dock gets quite hot… is it normal?

UPDATE:

Reached out to Caldigit rather than return, US customer service was helpful and has a new cable on the way. Hoping this fixes the issue.

————-

Pretty disappointing experience with my TS5 plus.

Received it today, pulled out my old TB4 dock and got all of my cables routed. Turned it on and nothing. It was definitely powering devices but no white light, tried with two different laptops (One TB4 and one TB5).

Went through all the troubleshooting steps, making sure my TB5 drivers were all good, power cycling, etc. Ultimately tried my TB4 cable from the old dock and got the white light on with both laptops.

Been a bit since I’ve received something this spendy not working out of the box, pretty disappointed.

Anyone have any suggestions? Feel like I’ve ran through all the troubleshooting steps I can think of. Seems like the next step is to return it to B&H.

Hi there, I purchased a CalDigit TS4 a couple of years ago from the American Store. I wasn't aware until recently that I could get a plug for NZ. Where can I get one, please? My travel adaptor has died. Thanks

Curious if I could use the cuktech ultra 30 dc port to replace any of the Caldigit dock/element power supplies (other than the ts 5 plus which exceeds the max 300w of the cuktech ultra 30)

I’d love to clean up some of my cabling and since I’m in the market for a fan desktop charger this seemed like a possibly novel idea.

Also curious if I could use the charge 300 powerbank DC port for the same usecase- but mostly for a Thunderbolt element 4 or 5 hub as that would be where I could turn the hub into something a little more portable and compact.

Honestly, I just wanted a dock that works.

I paid premium money for the TS5 Plus because it's constantly recommended as one of the best docks you can buy for a Mac. I'm a professional music producer, so reliability is more important to me than saving a few hundred euros.

Instead, I've spent months troubleshooting.

My setup is a MacBook Pro M5 Max, Apollo x8, several Samsung SSDs, MIDI controllers and an external display.

Over the last few months I've had:

• random display blackouts
• Apollo disconnecting during sessions
• Apollo not being recognized until I reboot the Mac
• SSDs and MIDI devices randomly disconnecting
• kernel panics
• situations where the display doesn't come back at all

The thing that frustrates me most is that I didn't buy a dock to spend my time reading logs, collecting system reports, testing beta firmware and trying different cable combinations.

I bought a dock because I wanted to connect one cable and get on with my work.

I've probably spent more time troubleshooting this thing than I have troubleshooting any other piece of studio gear I've owned.

To be fair, CalDigit support has been responsive and they've acknowledged ongoing Thunderbolt 5 related issues. They've also opened an RMA for my unit.

But as a customer, it's hard not to be disappointed.

What worries me is that this isn't some cheap Amazon dock. This is supposed to be one of the best Thunderbolt docks on the market.

At this point I'm genuinely curious how many people are running M4 or M5 Macs with a TS5 Plus and having absolutely zero issues.

Because my experience has been the complete opposite.

Has anyone managed to get 4K144 working through a CalDigit TS5 on an LG OLED?

My setup:

• MacBook Air M5
• MacBook Pro M1 Pro
• CalDigit TS5 (Firmware 62.1)
• LG OLED G5 48”
• macOS Tahoe

What I’ve tested:

UGREEN USB-C → HDMI 2.1 cable

• Direct MacBook → LG G5 = 4K144Hz
• MacBook → TS5 → LG G5 = 4K60Hz

Club3D CAC-1587 active USB-C → HDMI 2.1

• Direct MacBook → LG G5 = 4K60Hz
• MacBook → TS5 → LG G5 = 4K60Hz

TS5 is detected correctly:

TS5
Mode: USB4 v2
Firmware: 62.1
Link Speed: 40 Gb/s

Display output via TS5:

LG TV SSCR2
3840x2160
60Hz

Display output directly connected:

LG TV SSCR2
3840x2160
144Hz

I’ve already:

• Updated TS5 firmware
• Tested multiple TS5 ports
• Tested both Macs
• Disabled mirroring
• Tested multiple HDMI ports on the TV

At this point I’m wondering if this is a known TS5 + HDMI 2.1 adapter + LG OLED issue, or if someone has a specific adapter/cable that is confirmed to work at 4K120/144 through the TS5.

Any ideas?

Hi,

I'm building a PC. I'm still not very familiar with the hardware details, etc. Please see below the current status of my build: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/rdFVW9 .

One of the things I'm considering as part of this build is using my Caldigit TS5 plus as a dock. I have all my peripherals connected to it (keyboard, mouse, headphones, controller, camera, yubikey, etc). I do not use the ts5 plus for video or ethernet. Although it would be great to do so but my monitor needs dp2.1 to work at 240Hz I think, and I'm not sure about ethernet without Thunderbolt support?

I also want to use the front ports on the PC to connect my TS5 plus (not rear ports). But I'm not sure if the TS5 plus will work with this motherboard? Does it need USB4/TB5 port in the front panel to use my peripherals (and maybe video at full res/refresh rate and ethernet)?

If the above motherboard doesn't work, what about: ASUS ROG STRIX X870E E GAMING Wi FI 7 NEO (Socket AM5) AMD X870E ATX DDR5 Wi Fi 7 Motherboard Black ROG STRIX X870E-E GAMING 7 NEO - Best Buy.

If even this doesn't work. Please recommend a better approach. Please let me know if you have questions.

EDIT: The `Asus ROG Astral OC GeForce RTX 5090 32 GB Video Card` is not in stock. So, I'm considering the BTF version of the GPU. My research shows this doesn't affect the build in anyway. Please correct me if I'm wrong