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Electronics hobbyist converts $120 DDR5 SODIMM kit into ‘$1000’ desktop kit to fight RAM crisis — ICs from SK hynix DDR5-5600 16GB modules used to create DDR5-7800 desktop sticks You have to be lucky to find such cheap DDR5 SODIMMs, and specialist equipment and skills are required for success. What if you could buy a cheap used DDR5 SODIMM (laptop memory) kit and transform it into a super-fast DDR5 desktop kit? That’s what electronics hobbyist Blighted Agent recently did when they succeeded in converting a SK hynix 2x 16GB DDR5-5600 SODIMM kit they got from Facebook Marketplace for $120 into a 2x 16GB DDR5-7800 desktop kit, claimed to be worth around $1,000. They also had to buy some blank DDR5 desktop memory PCBs from AliExpress for around $16 each, and a set of heatsinks for around $18. In the above video, our hero says they bought the donor laptop 2x 16GB DDR5-5600 sticks for just $120, which is a bargain. With extra bits and pieces from AliExpress (desktop DDR5 PCBs, etc.), the total bill of materials came to $175. Blighted Agent comments that the SODIMMs used what he believed to be SK hynix A-die modules, which are the same as the ICs used in expensive desktop DDR5 modules like the G.Skill Trident Royal line. The process began with taking the memory ICs from the donor modules using a hot air station. Then they were cleaned and had 0.45mm leaded solder balls added, using a DDR5 stencil, reballing jig, and hot air. Next, the blank desktop DDR5 PCBs were prepared. A little solder was added to the plethora of BGA connectors to be ready for the memory chips to connect to. The old DDR5 ICs and the new desktop modules could now be mated, using flux, the preheater, hot air, and watching and prodding carefully with a dental pick. Blighted Agent’s experience lets him know when the BGA chips have successfully mated with the PCB. You can eyeball when they pop precisely into place due to surface tension, and offer up a modicum of resistance to pick prodding. Finally, the enthusiast added the SPD chip and BIOS chip from the SODIMMs to the new desktop DIMMs. These new desktop DIMMs were quickly tested in a PC before they were finished off with carefully applied thermal pads and the fancy-looking heatsinks. Blighted Agent felt lucky that there were no issues with the newly created desktop modules. There’s a lot of intricate things that can go wrong during such a process. The initial boot verification showed them recognized in his Asus ROG Maximus Z790 Apex Encore motherboard as two “SK hynix 16,384MB 5600MHz” modules, which was correct. Some tuning resulted in rock-steady performance at DDR5-7800 CL38 and 1.40V. This was verified by stress testing for 90 minutes, which the enthusiast reckons was ample for a gaming PC. It is very likely a better result than using those mechanical SODIMM-to-DIMM converters you can buy, which can be problematic. Blighted Agent seems to specialize in BGA soldering work, and has also successfully upgraded several graphics cards with double the VRAM. Though videos like this are edited to be brief, and they make the process look easy, the TechTuber admits there is a lot that can go wrong during this kind of rework. Moreover, with RAM modules, they lack the testing equipment to locate an issue with any particular IC on the PCB. So, if this module didn’t work, they might have ended up in a world of pain, not knowing which memory chip had an issue due to either an internal fault or a BGA soldering glitch. Get Tom's Hardware's best news and in-depth reviews, straight to your inbox. Looking around at used DDR5 SODIMMs, it looks like Blighted Agent was very lucky to get a used working 32GB kit for $120. I just checked eBay U.S., and the best deal there was $320. Meanwhile, the best price for a new 32GB DDR5-6000 kit seems to be $449 at the time of writing. We reported on Russian enthusiast VIK-on succeeding in a similar project earlier this year, but all their costing was in Rubles, and they went the extra mile in flashing custom firmware so the remade modules would be auto-detected with 6400 MT/s XMP support on most motherboards. In late 2026, DDR5 RAM continues to be too expensive. Follow Tom's Hardware on Google News, or add us as a preferred source, to get our latest news, analysis, & reviews in your feeds. Mark Tyson is a news editor at Tom's Hardware. He enjoys covering the full breadth of PC tech; from business and semiconductor design to products approaching the edge of reason. - Simonhayteruk Its ram cost + labour (rule number 1, never take your time for granted, your time is money) doing stuff for yourself is great but your not saving hundreds if your time could be spent making money. The only exemption is when you profit from making the videos. The time it would take me to carry out this process, I would have earned enough money to buy it new. Also, I much prefer it from the manufacturer, just because it posts now doesn't mean it will in a week or year, Ball Grid Arrays (BGAs) and Chip Scale Packages (CSPs) are notorious for bad joints. Even with the best technology in the world there is a high chance of the joints not being perfect and severely degrees the longevity of the product - that's why these manufactured use XRAY. It is the only way to be sure the product is sound, and these machines start at around £40K for the most basic model. Reply - Pierce2623 I just got a 2x16GB SODIMM Kingston Fury 56000 which is likely to be Hynix as well brand new in Walmart for $130 because it had the old price tag on it still and Walmart policy is they have to honor it. I’ve been contemplating whether it would be better to use the cheesy adapters or try to get a repair to make it into normal rdimms. I wasn’t going to build a second DDR5 system because of DRAM prices but when God dumps cheap RAM in my lap what am I supposed to do?Reply - usertests Simonhayteruk said:Its ram cost + labour (rule number 1, never take your time for granted, your time is money) doing stuff for yourself is great but your not saving hundreds if your time could be spent making money. The only exemption is when you profit from making the videos.It is a YouTuber with 9.38K subs, and they've gotten over 600K views so far. A hobbyist might actually enjoy doing a bit of soldering in their "free time". But the RAM kit prices are high enough at the moment that it might make economic sense for some shops (e.g. in Shenzhen) to do this kind of transplantation. That won't always be the case. DDR5 prices will eventually decline and so will the franken-repair stories. Reply - USAFRet Pierce2623 said:I just got a 2x16GB SODIMM Kingston Fury 56000 which is likely to be Hynix as well brand new in Walmart for $130 because it had the old price tag on it still and Walmart policy is they have to honor it. I’ve been contemplating whether it would be better to use the cheesy adapters or try to get a repair to make it into normal rdimms. I wasn’t going to build a second DDR5 system because of DRAM prices but when God dumps cheap RAM in my lap what am I supposed to do?Try the adapters first. Non-destructive. Reply - usertests Pierce2623 said:I just got a 2x16GB SODIMM Kingston Fury 56000 which is likely to be Hynix as well brand new in Walmart for $130 because it had the old price tag on it still and Walmart policy is they have to honor it. I’ve been contemplating whether it would be better to use the cheesy adapters or try to get a repair to make it into normal rdimms. I wasn’t going to build a second DDR5 system because of DRAM prices but when God dumps cheap RAM in my lap what am I supposed to do?Another option would be to buy an appropriate system using SODIMMs and use them in that. Such as a mini PC. There are also mini-ITX desktop motherboards taking two SODIMMs, such as the ASRock X600TM-ITX, and a bunch from Minisforum. Reply
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