Schecter Nick Johnston Traditional H/S/S — Atomic Green

Some guitars are built for the masses. The Schecter Nick Johnston Traditional H/S/S was built for one person — and that makes it extraordinary. Every specification on this guitar reflects the hard-won preferences of Canadian guitar virtuoso Nick Johnston, a player whose music spans prog rock, fusion, and instrumental metal, whose collaborators include Paul Gilbert, Guthrie Govan, and Marco Minnemann, and who has toured with Between the Buried and Me, Plini, and — as of 2025 — serves as guitarist for Mastodon. At $899, the Traditional H/S/S puts Johnston's signature feel and tonal DNA within reach of any serious player who wants more than a generic mass-market instrument.

The Atomic Green finish with its matching mint green pickguard and chrome hardware is one of the most striking and immediately recognizable looks in the modern guitar landscape — bold and retro-futuristic at the same time. This isn't a finish that blends into the back wall. It demands attention, and then the playing backs it up.

A Body Built for Tone, Comfort, and Stage Presence

The Traditional H/S/S is built on a contoured alder body — the same tonewood at the foundation of classic Stratocaster-style instruments for decades. Alder delivers punchy, balanced midrange, clear highs, and a full low end that translates beautifully whether you're playing clean, crunch, or high-gain. The contoured body edges keep it comfortable against your body during long playing sessions or extended gigs, and the overall weight is well-balanced on a strap.

Nick Johnston's Neck — The Centerpiece of This Guitar

If you ask owners what they love most about this guitar, the neck comes up every time. Schecter built it from roasted maple — a heat-treatment process that stabilizes the wood, improves resonance, and produces a naturally silky satin feel that players consistently describe as the fastest, most comfortable neck they've ever put their hand on. The Vintage "C" profile fills the palm without feeling blocky, perfectly balanced for both chord work and high-speed single-note runs.

Capping the neck is an ebony fretboard — a premium wood choice known for its glassy smoothness, exceptional density, and cutting, responsive tone. The 14" fretboard radius over a 25.5" scale provides a flat-feeling surface that makes bends feel effortless across all 22 positions. 22 X-Jumbo frets give you the full expressive range with room to bend aggressively without fretting out. Brass circle inlays add a subtle, refined visual detail that sets this instrument apart from standard dot-inlay designs. The Graph Tech XL Black TUSQ nut reduces friction at the nut slots, keeping the guitar returning to pitch smoothly even after heavy tremolo use.

A Pickup Configuration That Does Everything

The H/S/S configuration is the Swiss Army knife of electric guitar pickup layouts, and Schecter has loaded this one with Johnston's personally selected components. The neck and middle positions carry Nick Johnston signature single-coil pickups — voiced for the sweet, glassy, singing quality that defines classic Strat-style tone. Clean, they're expressively dynamic. Pushed, they add harmonic complexity without ever getting harsh.

The bridge position houses a Schecter Diamond '78 humbucker — a pickup with full-bodied warmth, focused midrange punch, and enough output to drive an amp into rich, sustain-filled overdrive. The push-pull tone pot activates a coil split on the bridge humbucker, converting it to a single-coil voice for classic positions 1 and 2 tones that blend seamlessly with the middle and neck pickups. The 5-way switch gives you five distinct tonal positions, and with the coil split engaged, that effectively becomes ten usable sounds from a single guitar.

Tremolo, Tuning Stability, and Hardware

The Diamond Vintage Tremolo is a smooth, classic-style 2-point tremolo system designed for expressive vibrato and dives that return reliably to pitch. Paired with Schecter locking tuners, the system holds tuning impressively well — a combination that player reviews consistently single out as a standout feature at this price point. Chrome hardware throughout ties the retro-modern aesthetic together beautifully.

Who Is the Nick Johnston Traditional H/S/S For?

• Players who want a signature-spec guitar without a custom shop price tag
• Fans of Nick Johnston looking to play what he plays
• Strat-style players ready to upgrade to premium tonewoods and hardware
• Versatile players who need clean sparkle, crunch, and high-gain in one instrument
• Intermediate and advanced players who want a serious gigging and recording guitar

Full Specs at a Glance

• Body: Alder, contoured double-cutaway
• Neck: Roasted Maple, bolt-on, Vintage "C" profile, satin finish
• Fretboard: Ebony, 14" radius, 25.5" scale, brass circle inlays
• Frets: 22 X-Jumbo
• Nut: Graph Tech XL Black TUSQ, 42mm
• Pickups: Nick Johnston single coils (neck & middle), Diamond '78 humbucker (bridge)
• Controls: Volume / Tone with push-pull coil split / 5-Way Switch
• Bridge: Diamond Vintage Tremolo
• Tuners: Schecter Locking
• Hardware: Chrome
• Finish: Atomic Green with mint green pickguard
• Price: $899

Buy the Schecter Nick Johnston Traditional H/S/S at Town Center Music

Town Center Music is proud to carry the Nick Johnston Traditional H/S/S in Atomic Green — one of the most celebrated signature guitars at this price point, from one of the most exciting guitarists working today. As always, every guitar we sell receives a full professional setup at no charge — a $75 value, included free. Action, intonation, and neck relief are all set before it leaves our hands, so the moment yours arrives, it plays exactly the way Nick Johnston's guitar is meant to play. Order yours today and experience the difference a truly purpose-built instrument makes.