SNAKE OIL Marvellous Engine

Snake Oil Fine Instruments are purveyors of only the purest, homegrown tonal tweaking tools on the market. Fresh from the creative minds at Chapman Guitars, these rather luxurious bits of kit are made in the UK to the finest specifications. This particular specimen, The Marvellous Engine, is a distortion pedal that's both sophisticated and full of attitude, both charming and terrifying - in equal measure.

The Marvellous Engine is inspired by the old guard of British valve amps. Distinctly pronounced in the midrange with plenty of top-end bite, it has the capacity to tip into high-gain sounds when it calls for it. Although it sounds great out of the box, a simple set of controls provide you with everthing you need to harness its power. Tweak the gain to adjust the level of 'push' - give your amp a kick or set those valves ablaze. The distortion control takes you from subtle '60s overdrive to modern plexi-style chunkiness, while the tone control allows you to shape your tone with an intuitive EQ range. Volume does exactly what you think it does.

Snake Oil pedals are designed and built in the UK. Built to withstand the toughest of gigging schedules, they also look the part. An embossed metal enclosure and design would look just as good in a trophy cabinet as it would on your battle-scarred pedalboard.