The Spectrum Analyzer is an epic, recyclable item in ARC Raiders that quietly underpins some of the strongest late‑game weapons. It never does anything on its own in a raid, but it breaks down into high‑tier materials that are otherwise slow to stockpile.
Finding it is the hard part. It only comes from scavenging in Exodus zones and has no guaranteed trader or quest source. Once it drops, you then have to decide whether to cash it out for Raider Tokens or recycle it into components.
What the Spectrum Analyzer is and why it matters
The Spectrum Analyzer is an epic‑rarity loot item tagged as recyclable. It weighs 1.5 kg, stacks up to three per slot, and has a sell price of 3,500 Raider Tokens in Speranza.
Recycling and salvaging are where it earns its reputation:
| Action | Result |
|---|---|
| Recycle in Raider Den | 1× Sensors, 1× Exodus Modules |
| Salvage topside | 2× Processor |
Sensors, Exodus Modules, and Processors sit in the ingredient lists for high‑end projects and heavy weapons such as Tempest, Vulcano, and Hullcracker. Burning one Spectrum Analyzer on recycling is effectively a shortcut through several slower loot grinds, which is why players treat it as a late‑game resource rather than a quick cash item.
How Spectrum Analyzer drops work
The Spectrum Analyzer only drops through scavenging in Exodus regions. It cannot be bought from traders in Speranza and is not a fixed quest reward.
It appears as RNG loot in high‑value containers and stashes, especially in industrial or tech‑heavy interiors. Cabinets, lockers, tech crates, and dense loot rooms are more reliable than open-world junk piles, although it can still appear in general Exodus loot.
Because it is epic rarity, expect a low drop rate. The practical way to farm it is to chain short, high‑density raids through the best Exodus zones instead of roaming across entire maps.
Best map to farm Spectrum Analyzer: Stella Montis
Stella Montis stands out as the most efficient place to hunt the Spectrum Analyzer. The map has several compact Exodus sub‑areas with stacked containers and multiple vertical levels, which means a lot of chances to roll epic loot in a short run.
Key Spectrum Analyzer locations in Stella Montis
Medical Research is the first stop. Head for the upper floors around the auditorium and business lounge. Shelves, side rooms, and wall lockers in these corridors are prime loot spots for tech items, including Spectrum Analyzer drops.
Assembly Workshop is next. This cluster of industrial rooms is packed with tech crates and tool chests. Working through this wing systematically, opening every crate and cabinet, gives multiple rolls at epic‑tier items in a very small footprint.
Sandbox is a quieter Stella Montis corner with tech stashes and fewer players if you route correctly. It’s still inside an Exodus region and keeps the high‑value container density, which makes it useful when you want fewer PvP interruptions while you farm.
Lobby Metro and connecting stations round out the loop. Metro halls, stairwells, and debris piles between levels can spawn high‑value loot. These areas double as both traversal routes and scavenging lanes, so it is worth checking every side alcove while you move between Medical Research and Assembly Workshop.
Night raids help. Nighttime runs on Stella Montis increase the effective drop rate of higher‑rarity items across containers, which indirectly boosts how often you see Spectrum Analyzers. If you can handle the reduced visibility and heightened AI threat, schedule your farming around night instances.
Other places to look for Spectrum Analyzer
Stella Montis is not the only place where Spectrum Analyzer can appear, but its layout makes it the most reliable. The item can spawn in Exodus regions on other maps as well, typically in tech‑leaning or high‑tier loot areas.
Players report Spectrum Analyzer drops in several spots outside Stella Montis:
- Dam Battlegrounds: Caches along the highway in the gap and in raider outposts east of the broken bridge. These are good to hit if you are already running objectives nearby.
- Buried City: Pharmacies in areas like Piazza Arbusuto share the same general tech‑medical loot pool. While ESR Analyzer is the specific quest item for “A Reveal in Ruins,” Spectrum Analyzer can still show up as regular loot on bodies or in containers around exodus‑tagged streets.
- Spaceport: Launch tower interiors and server rooms act as classic tech loot rooms with dense container spawns. If you are rotating through different maps, it is worth sweeping these rooms rather than just sprinting past them.
Across all maps, night raids again tilt loot tables toward rarer items. If you already have your routes down and are comfortable extracting in the dark, nights are the best time to stack attempts.
How to structure a Spectrum Analyzer farming run
Running the same hot zones in a tight loop is more productive than trying to clear entire maps. Stella Montis makes that strategy straightforward.
Step 1: Queue for Stella Montis during a night instance if possible. Load into a free or light‑population server to reduce PvP pressure in key rooms.
Step 2: Push directly to Medical Research. Prioritize the upper floors, moving quickly through the auditorium, business lounge, and adjoining corridors. Open every medical cabinet, office locker, and container you can reach.
Step 3: Drop or route across to Assembly Workshop. Work the tech crate clusters methodically. Avoid lengthy firefights that burn through time; the goal is container volume, not kills.
Step 4: If the raid timer and your loadout allow, swing through Sandbox and then down through the Lobby Metro stations, scanning debris piles and side rooms. Use zip lines and metro access to move between levels instead of retracing surface routes.
Step 5: As soon as you find a Spectrum Analyzer, put it in your safe pocket. Then head for the nearest raider hatch or metro exit rather than staying to greed more loot.
How to extract safely with a Spectrum Analyzer
Losing a Spectrum Analyzer to a late‑fight death or extraction ambush is painful. Once it is in your inventory, securing it matters more than squeezing out extra loot.
Step 1: Move the Spectrum Analyzer into your safe pocket as soon as you loot it. If your current Augment does not offer a safe pocket, plan your extraction path before you start looting and commit to a quick exit.
Step 2: Choose the closest low‑traffic exit. Raider hatches and metro exits away from main combat hotspots are preferable to central hubs where other squads funnel through.
Step 3: Avoid re‑engaging fights on the way out. Use alternate alleys, upper floors, and zip lines to break the line of sight. If you are solo, prioritize stealth over killing stray raiders.
Step 4: Extract as soon as it is safe instead of finishing every side objective. The time saved can go straight into the next raid, which is how Spectrum Analyzer farming becomes efficient over multiple runs.
Sell, recycle, or salvage: how to use Spectrum Analyzer
Once you are back in Speranza and safely in the Raider Den, the Spectrum Analyzer turns into a fork in the road. Each option has a clear payoff.
Recycling Spectrum Analyzer for crafting materials
Recycling a Spectrum Analyzer in the Raider Den yields one Sensors and one Exodus Modules. Both are bottleneck materials for high‑end weapons and augments, and the Spectrum Analyzer essentially fuses those resources into a single slot that you can farm and stockpile.
If your focus is crafting late‑game weapons like Tempest, Vulcano, and Hullcracker, recycling is usually the best choice. Those projects lean heavily on Exodus‑tier materials, and buying or passively looting enough can slow progression significantly.
Salvaging Spectrum Analyzer topside for Processors
Choosing to salvage the item on the surface instead of extracting with it produces 2× Processor. Processors feed into a different branch of crafting recipes. If you are specifically starved for Processors and already have a healthy stash of Sensors and Exodus Modules, salvaging mid‑raid can make sense.
This path is inherently riskier. Salvaging topside locks you into using the output immediately or trying to extract with the new materials. It is only worth doing when you are explicitly farming Processors and have no pressing need for Exodus Modules.
Selling Spectrum Analyzer for Raider Tokens
Traders in Speranza will buy a Spectrum Analyzer for 3,500 Raider Tokens. That is a sizable one‑off payout, especially early on when gear and consumables feel expensive.
However, over the long term, the crafting materials you get from recycling tend to be worth more than the instant currency. Weapons and augments built from Sensors, Exodus Modules, and Processors are hard to replicate with store‑bought alternatives. Tokens are relatively easy to grind through contracts and regular loot, while epic crafting materials remain gated behind RNG and map knowledge.
A simple rule of thumb: sell only your first one or two Spectrum Analyzers if you desperately need a specific purchase, then pivot to treating them as material bricks for crafting.
The Spectrum Analyzer sits at the intersection of map knowledge and long‑term progression in ARC Raiders. Learn the Stella Montis routes, lean into Exodus interiors, run more raids at night, and always protect the item in your safe pocket once it drops. Over time, a small stack of these epic scanners quietly turns into the Sensors, Exodus Modules, and Processors that power the rest of your build.
