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JohnFen 3 days ago

I don't know about the details of this device, but in general, simply being high-voltage doesn't automatically mean it's dangerous. One of the machines I work with in my day job has probes that put out around a thousand volts, but it's totally safe to touch them with your bare hands. You won't even feel a tingle.

That said, it's always prudent to treat any live electrical line as dangerous unless you know for a fact that it isn't, of course.

giveita 3 days ago | parent [-]

Why is the 1000v safe? My guess is energy released is small e.g. a small capacitor. Or internal resistance is high so it becomes much less when you touch it. Or you mean touch one end and it is DC.

JohnFen 3 days ago | parent [-]

I'm no EE, but my understanding is that it's partially because the amperage is very low and partially because the signal is AC operating at a frequency that causes a large impedance mismatch between the probe and people.

It's counterintuitive enough that the probes actually have an "anti-warning" label to inform people that they are safe to touch.