The FSE family was Rohde & Schwarz's high-performance analyzer range, optimized, in R&S's words, for general-purpose work and for testing advanced digital communication systems from GSM to DECT. The FSEA30 is the 3.5 GHz model with the low-frequency and low-noise features turned on. The 30 models start at 20 Hz instead of 9 kHz, and they come with the low-phase-noise OCXO and FFT filters down to 1 Hz as standard, which is how the FSEA30 gets a displayed noise floor below -145 dBm. You can add a vector signal analyzer, a tracking generator and a built-in PC, so two FSEA30s can be very different instruments. It has a 9.5-inch color TFT screen rather than a CRT, plus a floppy drive and a hard disk, and it weighs about 50 pounds. The cheaper FSEA20 looks almost the same, so read the label.
FSEA20 (9 kHz to 3.5 GHz, without the OCXO and FFT filters as standard)FSEA30 (20 Hz to 3.5 GHz)FSEB30 (20 Hz to 7 GHz sibling)
1 Hz to 10 MHz (FFT filters standard on this model)
Noise floor
<-145 dBm, 10 MHz to 3.5 GHz (10 Hz RBW)
Phase noise
<-120 dBc/Hz at 10 kHz offset (500 MHz); low-noise OCXO standard
Display
9.5-inch color TFT LCD, 640 × 480, with VGA output
Interfaces
GPIB (IEEE 488.2, SCPI) standard; two RS-232 ports, Centronics; floppy drive and hard disk
Mains input
100–120 V or 200–240 V
Weight
22.7 kg (50 lb)
Also listed as
R&S FSEA30, Rohde Schwarz FSEA 30, FSEA 30
Typical eBay ask (Oct 14, 2026)
$2,725–$3,850
Options and accessories
What should come with it
FSE-B7 vector signal analyzer
FSE-B8 3.5 GHz tracking generator (FSE-B9 adds an I/Q modulator)
FSE-B15 built-in controller (PC)
FSE-B16 Ethernet interface
FSE-K4 phase noise measurement software
FSE-K10/K11 GSM application firmware
Check the listing photos and the rear panel against this list, and ask the seller about anything you can’t see. A missing option or probe should come off the price.
What to check
It's a 1990s computer as much as an analyzer, with a hard disk and a floppy drive inside, and old drives are the parts most likely to have aged. The TFT screen can also lose pixels, so look at it closely.
01Boot: Ask for a short video of it starting up from cold. It should boot to a live sweep without disk errors or error messages.
02Model number: Ask for a photo of the rear label with the order number. An FSEA30 ends in 35, and one ending in 25 is the FSEA20.
03Noise floor: Ask for a photo of a sweep with the input terminated. The noise floor should be smooth, with no large spurs.
04Options: Ask which options are fitted, especially FSE-B7, FSE-B8 or FSE-B9. The listing and the analyzer's own setup screens should agree.
05Screen: Look at the screen in the photos for dead pixels or dark patches. A stray pixel is within spec, and a dark area isn't.
06Calibration: Ask for the certificate if the listing says calibrated. A dated cert from a named lab with measured data counts, and a sticker alone proves little.
07Packing: Ask how a 50 lb analyzer will be packed. Double boxing with foam on every side and the front panel protected is the standard to ask for.
We'd buy svsurplus's FSEA30 at $3,838 delivered, because it's a US unit with the .35 order number, titled with the FSE-B8 tracking generator, and its photo shows a live sweep. There are at least 10 for sale, mostly China resellers asking $2,637–3,050 delivered under copied titles and shared photos, and one of those photos shows a modern R&S analyzer, so the $2,725–3,850 band is a loose read. The esssurplus auction, also a .35, sits at $696 delivered with no bids and will climb. On any of them, ask for a cold-boot video to a live sweep with no disk errors and a photo of the rear label, check the line-voltage setting before power-on, and ask how a 50 lb analyzer will be double-boxed.
Listed now
10
For parts
0
Typical ask
$2,725–$3,850
Full range
$500–$6,424
★Cheapest
$695.67est. delivered
A US unit with the FSEA30's .35 order number, at $500 with no bids, or $696 delivered at the current price. It isn't titled tested and the photo shows it switched off, so stay well under the $2,725 bottom of the band unless the seller shows it booting to a live sweep.
A US unit with the .35 order number and the FSE-B8 tracking generator as titled, and the photo shows a live sweep. Ask how it'll be packed, since a 50 lb analyzer needs a double box with foam on every side.
Delivered prices include shipping as eBay quoted it to a US address on Oct 14, 2026. Many sellers charge by distance, so your total may differ. eBay shows yours before you pay.
Snapshot
For sale on eBay
8 of 10 listed
Checked . Some may have sold.
Delivered prices include shipping as eBay quoted it to a US address on Oct 14, 2026. Many sellers charge by distance, so your total may differ. eBay shows yours before you pay.