Schecter S-1 Custom review

  • £679
  • $999
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The S-1 Custom is similar in design to the Les Paul Junior.

MusicRadar Verdict

Unless you're a true brand loyalist you should check out what Schecter is doing in the mid-range sector before you fork out for a budget US-brand guitar.

Pros

  • +

    A viable, high-spec alternative to lower range US-made guitars. Cool looks.

Cons

  • -

    Neck 'bucker gets a little muddy at higher gain settings.

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The S-1 Custom is similar in design to the Les Paul Junior.
The S-1 Custom is similar in design to the Les Paul Junior.

Schecter S-1 Custom

The S-1 Custom can be said to be Schecter's take on the Les Paul Junior. Fans of Avenged Sevenfold will recognise the S-1 with its deep Satanic body horns as the basis of Zacky Vengeance's 6661 and ZV Mirror signature models.

The guitar's compact mahogany body is crowned with a slice of flamed maple, while the slim three-piece set mahogany neck is topped with an ebony fingerboard.

"The S-1 Custom is fitted with quality Tone Pros hardware."

The 'board is finished with 22 medium frets and a bunch of well-executed mother-of-pearl split crown inlays. The S-1 Custom is fitted with quality Tone Pros hardware - a set of locking tuners with pearloid buttons.

The S-1 Custom's engine room is packed with a pair of US-made Seymour Duncan humbuckers: a SH-11 Custom Custom in the bridge position and a '59 SH-1N at the neck.

You get a pair of volume controls and a master tone that doubles as a coil-splitter. The S-1 Custom boasts excellent playability, with access to the upper frets unhindered thanks to the deep cutaways and a tapering of the body at the neck heel.

The S-1 does pretty much what you'd expect from a well-equipped, double humbucker guitar. It has bags of power and clarity at all gain levels with the Custom bridge unit engaged and only really loses definition when you flick to the neck pickup. Switching to the single-coil mode sorts that one out.

Ed Mitchell