Since its introduction in mid-late 1990, it became Bettencourt's primary guitar and it is marketed by Washburn as his signature model.

The N4 features a distinctive superstrat form-factor, two humbucking pickups, floating tremolo system and the Stephens Extended Cutaway enhanced bolt-on neck joint, a patented design[1] that allows easier player access to higher frets.

It features a five-bolt curved joint, intended to give the player greater access to upper frets while maintaining proper and comfortable hand position, due to its 'heel-less' design.

The standard N4 bears a Seymour Duncan SH1n (nicknamed the "'59 Model") at the neck position and a Bill Lawrence L500 at the bridge.

Like all Washburns the N4 had the Buzz Feiten sticker on the headstock but used a normal Floyd Rose nut.

N4s all have a serial number on the back of the headstock using the following form: For instance, a 9512nnn would be the nnnth N4 produced in December 1995.

Early N4s have a Kahler tremolo, a distinctively large control cavity rout, a rounded-rectangle shaped pickup selector cavity, a sloped Stephen's Extended Cutaway front side, a barrel jack, and a thinner neck.

From a recent testimony by Terry Atkins, who was in charge of the early Washburn N4 production, some of these early N4s were not (entirely) made by Stephen Davies : Starting from July '91, some bodies were also produced in La Jolla (California), while necks were produced in a cabinet factory in Chicago.

[citation needed] Padauk is extremely dense and heavy, providing a deeper/darker tone than alder, while still conserving good high end frequencies.

[citation needed] Washburn Guitars also produced a version of the N4 with a body of swamp ash, a wood considered to have an "aggressive" trebly emphasis, granting this N4 a distinctive tone.

These are readily recognized because of the typical swamp ash porous veins showing behind the stain.

Another reason for the difference in color is the oxidation of the reddish pigments in padouk wood by UV light over time.

All padauk darkens with age from a red/orange to a deep purplish brown, and the time between runs likely contributes to the differentiation in color.

Even though these models feature all the characteristics of early N4s, they lack any visible serial number and do not have the 'Made in USA' written on the back of the headstock.

A very limited run of 20 US-made units based on Nuno's third ever Washburn prototype, which had a maple fretboard and two Bill Lawrence L500 pickups.