My sadowsky is thirsty

If I were you, I'd look in the Yellow Pages for a technician. That instrument is too expensive to muck about with randomly.

Chances are it's incorrectly wired such that the battery remains connected even when the plug is disconnected. It could very well be a case of a single wire connected to the wrong tab on the output jack. The issue is knowing which wire and which tab.

 

Contact Roger, Kevin, or Rob @ Sadowsky for the possibilities. All are VERY responsive. I would also agree to have a tech do the actual work.

 

There are wiring diagrams on the Sadowsky site.

http://www.sadowsky.com/media/download/wiring_diagrams/pre_with_tone.pdf

The first thing to verify is that the 9V battery ground wire (probably black going) is going to the ring of the jack (see diagram above). The ring is not connected to ground when unplugged. The ring connects to ground when a plug is inserted.

The second thing to verify is that the ring terminal is not shorted to ground when unplugged. If you measure impedance between ring and ground, that is what is draining your battery. This could be a bad plug or a wiring fault that needs to be tracked down.

A third thing to do if the first two all check out is to measure the current draw off the battery into the preamp when an instrument cable is inserted. This would require adding an ammeter in series with the battery. If this does not make sense, you probably should find someone who understands how. Or ask me and I can elaborate.

The wiring in a Sadowsky is very neatly done. This makes it easy to follow and trouble shoot (you should try trouble shooting the rat's nest in a G&L). It is a very nice instrument so if you are not well versed in trouble shooting and soldering, you might want to find someone who is. On the other hand, the electronics are pretty sturdy and the cheapest thing to replace if you make a major mistake. Use common sense and measure twice, cut once.

Dave