Right now, I've nuked everything that is between the search bar and the start of the available forums, simply because it's causing me to scroll 3+ pages before the important stuff starts (using uBlock Origin).
I don't mind the components - except the "recommended for you" component, which you cannot turn off - but I mind them there.
I still think the header is huge on my 1366x768 laptop screen, but at least I only have to scroll only 1 page now. Please note that in my case your vertical real estate is 605 pixels and well over a third (266 pixels) is used up to and including the search bar.