The situation with RAM prices is so desperate that there are already those who build their own memory at home

The crisis we are experiencing with RAM memories and its exorbitant price is shaking the technology industry in multiple ways, precisely because they are components that found in the vast majority of devices that we use in our daily lives. Faced with the crazy prices, there are users who have not given up and have resorted to extreme solutions: building their own RAM memories.

Untenable. Memory prices have skyrocketed to unsustainable levels. DDR5 modules that previously cost between 100 and 150 euros now easily exceed 350 euros in many markets. You can blame the AI. And the demand for DRAM for artificial intelligence applications has absorbed a large part of global production. OpenAI alone has accounted for 40% of all productionleaving home users paying the consequences.

The worst thing is that it doesn’t look like this is going to be solved soon. And it is that according to analysis firm IDC, the shortage could last until 2027.

cheap adapters. In recent weeks we have seen how some users have chosen to build their own RAM memories to face the price crisis. One of the approaches is to use SODIMM to UDIMM adapters. In a video The Hardware Canucks YouTube channel shows how they have tested this solution on Ryzen 7000, 9000, Intel LGA 1700 and LGA 1851 systems without too many problems. The approach is simple: buy DDR5 SODIMM modules (the ones for laptops) that are still relatively cheap and connect them to the system using adapters that cost between 10 and 15 euros.

It must be said that this method also has its limitations, and that is that the data transfer speed that these adapters achieve is quite a lottery. In the tests carried out by Hardware Canucks they say that some do not exceed 4,800 MT/s stably, while others reach 5,600 MT/s or even 5,800 MT/s, although it depends a lot on the adapter model and the platform.

In terms of performance, the good thing is that the difference is practically imperceptible. According to the content creator’s tests, with an RTX 5090 and a Ryzen 9800X3D, the difference is between 5 and 7% in the worst case compared to conventional DDR5-6000 memory.

A more radical solution. Another approach is the one that the Russian modder VIK-on has opted for. And just as they count From Videocardz, the enthusiast has built a functional 32GB stick by combining chips from two 16GB SODIMM modules from SK Hynix, a Chinese PCB, and a heatsink from AliExpress. The total cost: 17,015 rubles, about $218. As explained in the media, in Russia an equivalent module costs at least three times more.

Images: VIK-on

After physically assembling the parts, a process that requires BGA reballing stations and considerable soldering experience, the modder then integrated ADATA firmware to enable an XMP profile that allowed the memory to run at a speed of 6,400 MT/s. In this way, VIK-on has achieved a functional 32 GB stick that any motherboard could recognize and that according to the modder works stably in games.

Between the lines. That making a RAM from home is economically viable says a lot about the state of the market. Furthermore, not everyone experiences the situation in the same way, since in some markets such as Russia prices are especially prohibitive. Of course, soldering memory chips is not trivial, as it requires specialized equipment, technical experience and taking risks of damaging expensive components.

The adapter method is much more bearable, but it is most likely that these homemade solutions will continue to be a niche. Most users will prefer to pay the extra price rather than risk soldering components or dealing with third-party adapters. Although if the forecasts end up being true and the crisis extends for several years, the emergence of a secondary market for professionally refurbished modules taking advantage of surpluses is no small feat. It would probably be the last solution we would resort to, but in other markets there might be enough demand.

Cover image | Andrey Matveev

In Xataka | The computers of the future have found an unexpected ally to store information: fungi