A printhead assembly includes: an ink manifold comprised of a first metal; printhead chips mounted on the ink manifold and receiving ink therefrom, each printhead chip having a plurality of bond pads; a PCB mounted on the ink manifold, the PCB having a plurality of contact pads; a plurality of wirebonds interconnecting the bond pads and the contact pads, the wirebonds being comprised of a second metal; an encapsulant material encapsulating the wirebonds, the bond pads and the contact pads; and a voltage source. The ink manifold and the wirebonds are electrically connectable to the voltage source to provide cathodic protection of the wirebonds.