@David_Ramsey good to know. Do you know who you're taking class with and which shop they teach out of?
Reasons for asking is that things like masks/snorkels/fins have really high margins and those are some of the items that I try to recommend you purchase from the shop you're taking the class from. You're not going to save any appreciable amount of money by ordering online on those things, so it's worth going for. If you're going to be buying from Divers-Supply I have no qualms about recommending you to buy online on any of those items. It's basically like buying from Best Buy instead of Amazon vs an actual mom-and-pop store.
I'll tell you what I dive
I have each of these wetsuits. They're epic and I love them. They are some of the highest quality suits on the market, come with pockets, are insanely comfortable, and since they're clearing them out, they're cheap. 3mm for travelling or summer diving, 7mm for diving in the spring/fall in the quarries.
Wetsuits - Thermal
I dive these fins. In black. They also come in blue, but as I went to NC State, you won't catch me dead in those things. These fins are powerful, lightweight, and comfortable. You won't find better fins out there, I've been trying to years
Deep 6 Eddy Flippers
These aren't bad either if you want to buy from Divers Supply. Eddy's are better IMO. The one caveat to the Eddy's is if you don't have legs in good shape and try to flutter kick, you'll get cramps. It means the fins are working. Learn to frog kick and you'll be much better off.
Mares Avanti Quattro Fins
Masks. I have a couple of these, and I have a couple of Atomic framed masks that I got cheap. There is no appreciable difference between the stupid expensive mask and the $30. DGX has a liberal return policy if it doesn't fit.
DGX Ultra View Frameless Mask | Dive Gear Express®
Extra $10, but at Divers Supply. I have a couple of these two. They're nice, I wouldn't pay an extra $10 plus sales tax over the DGX one though
Sea Elite Frameless 1 Mask with Box Black-Black
Snorkels. Just get a cheap, basic one. They're hard to find good ones these days because they're full of stupid gimicks. You're going scuba diving, not snorkeling. If diving in the ocean, keep one with you *a rollup one in the pocket of the Deep6 wetsuit is a good place for one*, but for quarry diving, don't bother carrying one. You'll have to for class, but that's it. Get as cheap and basic of a snorkel as you can get. Buy this one since you can fold it into a pocket for ocean diving. It's $16 and cheap
Seac Turtle Folding Snorkel Black
Boots
I have really wide feet so I use the NRS Paddle Shoes which are boxier than most booties for scuba are. If I'm diving warm water, I will just dive barefoot in Chaco's. I'm hunting for cheaper boot options, but haven't found any yet. The Deep6 boots are also REALLY good, and if you get fits and/or wetsuits from them, I recommend getting their booties. They just aren't wide enough for me.
https://www.rei.com/product/881348/nrs-paddle-wetshoes-mens
I think that's it. After that, since you're in Charlotte, before you buy a BCD or regs, send me a message and we'll schedule a day at lake jocassee or one of the PDRA quarries for you to try a bunch of stuff before you buy.