P5104 40kV 20MHz oscilloscope probe

[Plow]

I'm curious about the P5104 HV/HF oscilloscope probes https://www.alibaba.com/product-detail/20MHz-P5104-1000X-40KV-High-Voltage_1313156951.html It looks like the only HV/HF probe that's even moderately affordable.

I've never used anything but standard passive probes that come with cheap oscilloscopes. Is there anything to know about using probes like that above? is it as simple as set to 1000x and plug and play? Will it function on any 1000x scope? I have a Rigol DS1102E, probably will upgrade to the DHO804.

[PartialDischarge]

The only caveat with these probes is that the pulse compensation is important and not something that will be plug and play, it has to be adjusted for each scope. This said mostly everyone uses this probes for 50Hz not for pulses so few ppl care.

[bdunham7]

It looks plausible, but the compensation box has "20kV 100MHz" printed on it, so who knows what you're getting.  It also lists an input impedance of 1000M and 0.5-1.5pF, implying there is just a 999M resistor with the scope in series.  That's not a plausible, IMO.  So I doubt anyone will know exactly what you are getting until someone opens up a package and does some testing.

[tggzzz]

It looks plausible, but the compensation box has "20kV 100MHz" printed on it, so who knows what you're getting.  It also lists an input impedance of 1000M and 0.5-1.5pF, implying there is just a 999M resistor with the scope in series.  That's not a plausible, IMO.  So I doubt anyone will know exactly what you are getting until someone opens up a package and does some testing.

If that's the case and you set the scope to AC (cf DC), then the entire 20kV would be across the scope's input capacitor. Oops.

The other point is to be very careful of the maximum voltage vs frequency. If you can't find that spec, then don't buy the probe. Hint: what's the current from a 20kV 100MHz signal flowing through a 1pF capacitor

The Tektronix P6015, (and P6013) are properly specified.

[S57UUU]

The tek HV probes have 6 (six!) compensation adjustments on the box, so there is definitely more than a series resistor there. They are not as hard to compensate as that might suggest, I did it several times. (I used them to see HV pulses on magnetron radar transmitters).

I suggest you look for an used tek probe, just be careful to get the new, "dry" one, the freon liquid for the old type is extremely hard to get.