Most sim pilots have the basics: A stick or yoke, a throttle quadrant, and often rudder pedals – but most of us stop short of more dedicated hardware such as the Rowsfire B107. Why? Well, the increase in immersion is often offset by the expense and cumbersome nature of the setup. Most of us, therefore, resign ourselves to mouse controls for many of the functions not immediately related to stick-and-rudder flying.
Lately, however, we have seen a boom in affordable, immersive hardware. I had the opportunity to review the Rowsfire B107, one of Rowsfire’s lineup targeted to this niche: Flight sim hardware that delivers the right balance of immersive feel for the home simmer, at a price that doesn’t break the bank. The B107 is their Boeing 737 overhead panel replica. For an aircraft with so many switches to flick and knobs to twist, this is a natural fit.
The Rowsfire B107 was extremely fun to use. Over my weeks putting it through its paces for review in Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024, the B107 established itself as an excellent addition to my sim setup – even though I faced numerable (self-imposed!) challenges to setting it up ergonomically. The decision as to whether or not the Rowsfire B107 is right for you, therefore, must come down to whether or not you can overcome these challenges with your own setup, and whether the aspects of Rowsfire’s cost-cutting – where they do manifest – are worth it to you for the price it commands.
Rowsfire B107 Review Setup and Disclaimer
This Rowsfire B107 Review was completed using Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 on a PC running Windows 11. It was reviewed over the course of approximately three weeks of heavy usage. My go-to pairing with the Rowsfire B107 was the Thrustmaster Boeing yoke, Honeycomb Bravo throttle quadrant and Honeycomb Charlie rudder pedals. I am a certificated commercial pilot and Advanced Ground/Instrument instructor, with extensive access to active airline 737 full-motion simulators for comparison – though policy prohibits sharing those comparison photos here.
The Rowsfire B107 is available from their website for $659.99, although Rowsfire frequently runs sales. Rowsfire often runs bundle deals with their own mounts, for example, and you can see multiple different prices if you’re looking at various parts of their site. I am reviewing this and making conclusions as if this costs $659.99.
Rowsfire kindly provided the review sample of the B107 for review and has confirmed that it is identical to retail versions that any customer would purchase. Although the review sample was provided by Rowsfire, and we have been in communication during the review for questions and clarifications, Rowsfire has not had any editorial input prior to publication. All opinions and conclusions presented herein are my own. For more details, please read FSNews’ Editorial Policy.
Unboxing and Initial Assembly
The Rowsfire B107 arrived in a well-packed outer box with a layer of bubble wrap between it and the inner product box. The B107 itself was protected by two layers of foam: one on the top to protect the switches in shipping, and one to cushion the unit itself. Rowsfire has designed the B107’s packaging to survive all but the most enthusiastic couriers, although I would like them to investigate more recyclable packaging options (like molded cardboard) as their line of products expands. A USB-A to USB-C cord is included, and it should be long enough for most use cases. I received the “V2” version, which is shipping now, including improvements to their mainboard for longer service life.
Weirdly, the included setup booklet includes two pages on Rowsfire’s “Brand Profile” as if you haven’t already bought the product. Its instructions to connect the device to the Rowsfire app is to select the “RowsfireApp” option from Rowsfire’s homepage, which no longer exists as described (It’s now under a different top-level menu). Alternatively, you can use your phone to scan a QR code… on your phone, not the PC on which you need to install the app. The app version referenced in the included booklet is 1.8.0.0, significantly out of date with multiple differences in the setup workflow. The B107’s primary install guide video, from June, also shows an outdated version of the software. It’s not too difficult to figure out, but Rowsfire should fix this and ensure that users experience even less friction in the initial setup process.
The panel itself did require some assembly. All 63 switches have nuts that must be tightened around their stems to secure them to the panel. Two black and two red guards are included and must be secured as well. Each switch also has a silicone cap that must be placed on the tip of each switch. Be sure to remove the protective peel film before tightening all 63 nuts; although, if you don’t, it can be removed with a bit of careful pulling. Ask me how I know.
The full assembly took me about 30 minutes. The biggest struggle was fully tightening the nuts with their tight clearances and awkward angles. I designed a quick and simple 3D-Printable tool to help with this, which you can download on Printables or Makerworld if you experience similar struggles.
Rowsfire B107 vs. Real 737 Overhead Panels
Rowsfire has not included every switch, dial or indicator on the B107 and this is an intentional, smart choice to save cost. All of the important functions are replicated. What is an “important function,” you ask? Well, Rowsfire’s focus appears to be on the functions that you would use on every single flight for normal operations. You can complete startup from cold and dark all the way to shutdown with the Rowsfire B107 with ease – with one exception.
The EMER EXIT LIGHTS guard actuates the switch in the “ON” position, whereas the actual aircraft guards the switch in the “ARMED” position. When guarding this down during startup, you will have to go back to the panel in-sim and move the switch back to “ON”. Fortunately, the position of the switch does not seem to override the sim back to “ON.” Rowsfire has omitted guards for the STANDBY POWER and BUS TRANSFER switches, and unfortunately you cannot move the EMER guard to either of those positions due to insufficient clearances with the switches around them. Rowsfire has acknowledged this functionality and would like to hear from users as to whether they prefer a software toggle or some other solution. Frankly, I don’t think this deserves such an approach to correct it- Rowsfire obviously knows about this, and should have designed a solution in hardware or software.
I particularly enjoy the inclusion of cockpit lighting controls: The dome light switch and overhead panel rheostat controls are fun to play with. I also love the “ATTEND” and “GRD CALL” buttons below the seatbelt signs. Though I can’t actually call a flight attendant to bring me coffee, having a dedicated bing bong button really tickles me. Rowsfire has also included an APU EGT gauge driven by a cheap, noisy servo that responds as the APU does – this is a wonderful function, but I wish that they had not limited this to the EGT gauge. Why not include Duct Pressure or fuel temperature indicators as well? Cabin Altitude I can understand: those dials are massive compared to the amount of space that Rowsfire has given themselves here, but I think those others could be fit and offer an even greater sense of immersion and delight.
Panel lighting is excellent. Though it is not as clean as the real thing, it still shines with a warm yellow glow that is extremely accurate in low light or nighttime conditions. Annunciators, though significantly dimmer than the real ones, provide an accurate “vibe” considering the scale. The only incorrect lighting I can see is the FLT ALT/LAND ALT displays which are yellow, while most 737s use white lights – though this could vary with older models of NG. It’s important to remember that many airlines opt for slightly different configurations which could slightly alter the panel layouts. I genuinely leave this lit up after sim shutdown as I “cool down” after an evening flight. The warm lighting is pleasant in a very autumnal way.
Non-normal procedures can often be replicated as well, especially if they are related to pressurization, fuel or electrical systems as the functions of these panels are the most fully replicated. However, you will likely find yourself moving the camera for indicators and controls that Rowsfire has excluded. Alternate flight control systems are completely omitted, as are annunciators for doors, pitot heat, electrical voltage and current monitoring, pressurization and cabin altitude, doors, fuel valves, and others. I understand the reasoning behind each exclusion, but it still means that for most annunciations on your glareshield (You do perform the RECALL CHECK per the checklists, right?), you will have to move the sim camera instead of looking at your hardware. The Rowsfire B107 is designed for typical day-to-day operations, not non-normal or emergency simulation.
One disappointment is that none of the switches are the pull-to-unlock type that are used in all critical functions. These safety-critical designs ensure that relevant switches are not knocked out of their intended position by mistake. Critical systems such as electrical, fuel, hydraulics and pressurization are all protected by this type of switch. However, all of the switches on the Rowsfire B107 are simple. Although, where applicable, they are two- or three-position switches, and many are sprung as they would be in the real aircraft – such as the APU Switch being sprung back from the “On” position. Notably, the engine start switches do not spring back from the GND position, needing to be manually repositioned once engine start is complete.
The switches all have the same silicone cap. While the real aircraft differentiates the pull-to-unlock switches and flippable switches with a different switch design and cap, the B107’s all feel the same. This also means that the landing light switches lack the bars that differentiate them tactile-ly from all the surrounding switches. This is an airline option, however, and I have seen quite a few 737s (Mostly older NGs) that lack these bars. Maybe you’re wondering: has anyone made switch caps you can just put on instead? And yes, I am glad you asked! I made some – in two different styles reflecting the 737 sims I have been in – and they are available on Makerworld and Printables if you have a 3D printer of your own.
Mounting the Rowsfire B107
The Rowsfire B107 does not come with a mounting solution. It has a 100mm square VESA mount on the back, compatible with M4 bolts up to 10mm in depth (plus the depth of your mount). Rowsfire cautions to only use 10mm screws into the B107 because longer ones can screw too far and damage the electronics behind the mount. I would argue that Rowsfire should either include protection or move the electronics away from the mount, as most TVs and monitors do. Having a standard mounting pattern opens it up to a variety of flexible mounting options, and allows you to tailor it for your setup. Rowsfire sells an adjustable VESA stand on their website, but much cheaper options are available if you do a little digging – and your setup supports it.
Beware, though, because this is where I encountered my first major hurdle when using the Rowsfire B107. I use a massive, 49-inch ultrawide monitor mounted to an articulating desk stand on a fairly small IKEA desk. This monitor is mounted such that it is relatively far forward. An audio panel and my PC tower share the rear of my desk as well. My office faces the outside wall with brick behind the drywall, which my landlord has requested not to drill into for mounting. To mount the B107 in a true “overhead” position for me, therefore, would require: an articulating mount with a small desktop footprint, that could extend outward almost three feet over the top of the monitor.
I tried three different off-the-shelf VESA monitors, including the one I linked above. I could not find one that mounted securely and met the criteria of the previous paragraph. The one linked above was fantastic until I extended its arm to the full length and height required to mount the B107 properly, at which point its mounting started to slip. The stand that Rowsfire offers appears to have much more secure mounting and a much more stable base – although, unfortunately, such a wide and stable base does not fit on my desk.
None of the above issues are Rowsfire’s fault, and I mention them only to make sure that you have a plan for mounting the B107 before you buy. A wall mount is by far the most secure, but many of us will be required to use desk mounts for one reason or the other and you need a mount that can support the full 6.2lb (2.8kg) weight of the panel, cantilevered out over your monitor(s) and mounted up high. This is a tall order (pun kind of intended) for most off-the-shelf monitor mounts. Eventually, I gave up and designed my own mounting stand with non-slip feet for my desk. You can also download that on Printables or Makerworld if you need this solution. Although this made the B107 less of an overhead and more of a switch panel, it did not dampen my enjoyment of the product at all.
Rowsfire B107 Hardware and Build Quality
The Rowsfire B107’s chassis is made of aluminum alloy with a solid, one-piece plastic graphic across the top. While the top surface has none of the texture of the real aircraft, it is printed crisply and has absolutely no flex. It is held in place by a dozen or so H.2 bolts and this should make it easy to service, if necessary. Rowsfire has located these bolts in the same places as the real aircraft’s mounting hardware, where they happen to overlap, which is a nice touch. Keep in mind that all of those 63 switch nuts also hold the faceplate in place, so they must be removed.
The plastic rotary selector switches are injection molded. Other rotary switches, such as the fuel cross-feed switch, FLT ALT and LAND ALT selectors are 3D-printed. So is the ring around the EGT indicator and the EGT dial itself, and all of the mounting inserts/light guides for the annunciator lights. The annunciators themselves may be printed – I see the textured hallmarks of the build plate on their surfaces – but if they are the shine-through text is extremely impressively etched.
I have seen other reviews mention this as a downside, but I want to call out that these production parts are quite well-printed. I don’t even mind the contrasting feel of the switches. The filament used is matched to the color of the other switches nicely and the printing itself is good enough that you can’t tell the EGT components nor the cabin pressurization knobs are 3D printed unless you look closely. Even the CROSS FEED selector looks great – it just shows the stair stepping that is endemic to FDM (Fused Deposition Modeling) 3D printing due to its gently curved shape. This component stands out in an otherwise cohesive package.
The toggle switches used should have no trouble lasting thousands of actions, but I wish Rowsfire had selected switches with less side-to-side play. Sprung switches feel mushy and the tactile action is not nearly as crisp as it is on other hardware such as the MOZA AY210 (whose crisp toggles I particularly enjoyed). To be clear: I never experienced an instance of a failing switch or inconsistent switch behavior. This is just another place where we can see Rowsfire’s cost-down strategy in practice.
The Rowsfire B107 has a 1-year warranty and a 30-day return policy. Rowsfire will pay for shipping if the return is due to a defect or if damaged in transit, but asks the user to pay shipping if the return is due to a change of mind. I think this is totally reasonable.
Software: The Rowsfire App and Website, PC connections, and 737 Addon Compatibility
Rowsfire advertises “Plug and play” capability using their Rowsfire app to control the B107 and all other Rowsfire products from one interface. I generally agree with this sentiment. The Rowsfire app is one of the more competent pieces of sim-support software that I have used and does more than others to both ease the user’s experience with the B107 and troubleshoot the software.
When connecting the B107 to my computer for the first time, I initially encountered problems with the Rowsfire app detecting the panel. This was resolved by plugging the panel into a dedicated port in the back of my PC, which Rowsfire recommends. With USB ports at a premium for simmers, if you do use this with a hub, be sure it is a powered USB hub.
The Rowsfire app automatically detects the 737 model that you are using in the sim and loads the correct profile. All you need to do, once loaded into the sim, is click “Run” and the app automatically minimizes to get out of the way. You can manually start and stop the panel, or select the addon manually, if it somehow fails to detect.
The Rowsfire App’s debugging page is its standout feature. It presents a running log front and center, easily exportable for troubleshooting. It presents a live panel view as well, highlighting whenever a switch is moved or a button is pressed alongside a live serial monitor. It provides several pack-in hardware tests, and a calibration tool for the zero-point of the EGT gauge. I particularly like the “state check” feature in the debug screen, where you can compare the B107 to aircraft states as they should be on the runway or cold and dark. Check this before you load into the sim, and you will never be caught off-guard by a rogue switch when spawning in.
The Rowsfire app has a function to update itself and the panel firmware and will automatically pull new firmware and configurations as they become available. It will also install a simulator bridge on first launch to ensure it is able to connect to your simulator effectively. I did have to restart my computer once before the Rowsfire app would detect my panel, so it is possible that this install needs a restart in general and it is just not signposted in the installation wizard.
The only complaint I have about the Rowsfire App is its banner advertisements for other products in the main page. I don’t appreciate the advertisements – I already bought the product. The current EULA of the Rowsfire app (Version 3.2.3.0 at time of writing) is also nonsense. It discusses a “V1 Beta” and discusses penalties for disclosing information related to the Rowsfire app. When asked, Rowsfire ensured us that they are working to correct this.
Addons Tested
I was only willing to give up enough coffee to purchase the 2024 version of the PMDG 737-800, and the B107 performed flawlessly. Rowsfire advertises compatibility with all PMDG 737 models across MSFS 2020 and 2024. I also verified perfect compatibility with the iFly 737 MAX 8. Interestingly, the Rowsfire B107 does not support the included Asobo 737 MAX 8. I think this omission deserves correction. As excellent as the addons are, there’s no reason why a simmer should be excluded from this fantastic piece of hardware simply because they choose not to spend extra money on these extras.
Though I did not test the Rowsfire B107 on X-Plane, Rowsfire advertises compatibility with the LevelUp and Zibo 737s in X-Plane 12. Rowsfire does not currently advertise support for any 737 on X-Plane 11, nor for Prepar3D.
B107 Mobiflight compatibility
If the Rowsfire app does not somehow satisfy your use case or are a total whack job and you want to use this on an Airbus, then Mobiflight is your friend. The Rowsfire B107 is built on openly-available technology that home cockpit builders have been using for years – the Rowsfire App just simplifies that for those of us who don’t want to deal with configurations and more time-consuming setup. I count myself among this number. If you want to use Mobiflight instead – perhaps the B107 is part of your larger, multi-vendor cockpit setup – you can find Rowsfire’s Mobiflight User Guide here.
Product Support and the Rowsfire Website
Rowsfire has a step-by-step self-support hub on their website. I did try this out, contriving an issue of failure to detect the panel, and the support workflow guided me to the solution that worked. When I told the page that it did not solve my problem, it pre-populated a support email template with the troubleshooting steps that I had already tried. I did not send this, of course, but this is an encouraging feature that should enable most users to fix problems themselves and guide Rowsfire staff when a user reaches out. In all our interactions through the FSNews team, Rowsfire staff have been kind and responsive. My only suggestion to Rowsfire on this front would be to incorporate a link to this support workflow within the Rowsfire app itself to further streamline the support experience.
The website itself is a mixed bag. It shows the hallmarks of significant AI usage, and I was confused navigating it in many cases. There is a lot of fluff and very wordy product information that often made it take an extra read or two to understand the information or find exactly what I was looking for. It opens new tabs on many links, which makes navigating trickier. As mentioned in an earlier section too, references in the included setup guides are now missing from the website or severely outdated. Rowsfire should do a better job of streamlining the navigation experience and ensuring that they update all reference material in tandem.
Conclusion: Flying with the Rowsfire B107 is So Much Fun
It may seem like I have been quite nit-picky in my critique, and part of that may be because the website sells it as transformational. I would like to hold it to the immaculate standard by which it is presented, and in some ways it doesn’t fully match the website’s lofty descriptions. So I want to step back and make it clear: The Rowsfire B107 is a ton of fun to use and fly with. The 737 is the perfect aircraft for a hardware accessory like this. There are so many switches to manipulate and functions to keep an eye on, and there is a delightful satisfaction in bringing that out of the sim and to your fingertips.
It’s so much fun to complete the startup sequence without moving the camera all over the cockpit and move all of the bleeds to their correct positions. It’s a weird thing to say that “I enjoy cross-bleed starts because I get to move the switches more”, but it is true, and I am proud to say it. It makes me wish that Rowsfire had included more annunciators and more functions for non-normal operations, as executing these is both easier and more fun with the B107 overhead panel.
I definitely recommend the Rowsfire B107 as an excellent addition to your 737 cockpit. I do not, however, recommend it as the first hardware accessory beyond the yoke, throttle and pedals. It requires a commitment to both the airframe you like to fly most and the physical space it takes up in that setup. It requires more consideration for mounting and ergonomics than, say, an MCP panel or one of Rowsfire’s own A108 PFD/ND display combos, and will make less of an impact on your simming than one of those accessories. Most consumer-focused sim accessories include bindable switches that can be used for the most critical functions that you need to perform without moving the camera during critical phases of flight. For most other procedures, on a well-simulated aircraft, it is still very fun to fly the overhead panel with a mouse. And, of course, $659.99 is a really good chunk of change – think of all the cups of coffee (or 737 addons) that could buy instead!
If you are in that market, though, I can’t find anything else in this price bracket that I think I could recommend more. While it is abundantly clear that Rowsfire has made compromises in the design and manufacture of the B107, these compromises are generally well thought out and make sense in the context of what Rowsfire states they are trying to achieve: “real switch feel, backlit panels, and the ability to do a cold start without touching a mouse […] both affordable and truly immersive.”
The Rowsfire B107 looks the part and functions well, and it employs some smart cost-cutting to get to its price point. While I wish that they would maybe have splurged a little bit more on the switches themselves (if not on pull-to-unlock switches, at least switches with less play and better tactile feel) they have succeeded in bringing a package to market that has fewer compromises than its competition. It is bolstered by excellent lighting and fun touches that aren’t always necessary for the basic functionality, such as the EGT gauge. The Rowsfire App has smoothed out the rough edges of the semi-DIY solutions that were the previous best option at this price point, returning the focus to flying and not futzing with the hardware or software.
The Rowsfire B107 is available directly from the Rowsfire store here for $659.99.
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