The Vesta Fire Stereo Delay

“Stereo Signal Device”

Something I enjoy doing when I have the time is gambling on an online purchase of a pedal listed as “broken,” “as-is,” “project,” “repair,” and so forth. Often the only thing wrong ends up being a broken ground connection, a missing battery clip, or some other easy-to-fix issue, and bringing such items back to life makes me happy. At other times, the problem is less obvious, and it’s a nice challenge to diagnose the mystery and attempt the repair.

In that spirit, I picked up the following unusual pedal for $12.50:

This is the Vesta Fire Stereo Delay, made by the Shiino Musical Instrument Corporation in Japan, about which I have found almost no information online. This is not one of their later digital pedals (which were labeled “Vestax” rather than “Vesta Fire,” and about which I did find a little information), but a BBD-chip analog delay. They clearly didn’t like the simplicity of the term “pedal,” opting instead for the lofty “Stereo Signal Device” subheading.

Speaking of labels, if you have ever used any delay pedal, you will see an issue here with their knob labels.

What is “time” for? The obvious: the delay time. Then what is “delay” for, since on most delay pedals that controls the delay time? It’s what most other delay pedals label “delay level” or “mix” or “blend”: the volume of the repeats. Keeping those two knobs straight would be a minor annoyance, especially on stage. “Feedback” is as expected: the number of repeats of the original signal.

Note the serious original price of this one, as well as the unhelpfully-for-my-research blank space next to “Model.”

So what’s inside? For one thing, there are the MN3005 and MN3101 chips, the same as in my favorite 1980s delay, the DOD FX90.

Also notable is the precarious LED mounting, supported by its own two long leads with a brown legwarmer on one side (below, far right). There are also two trimpots inside: the blue one near the bottom (controlling maximum delay time), and the upright one on the far left. Sadly, there is not one that controls feedback/repeats, so this pedal will not self-oscillate at its highest feedback setting.

There were some very suspicious capacitors inside, especially this leaking/corroded one. I replaced most of the electrolytic caps.

Once reassembled, the pedal worked flawlessly. How does it sound? It’s similar in tone to 1980s Boss and DOD pre-digital delays: the repeats are more analog-warm than those of crystal-clear digital delays, which is of course the appeal of these old analog delays. The maximum delay time is a little shorter than that of a Boss DM-2/3 or DOD FX90; it’s ideal for slapback guitar or the opening of the Dead Kennedys’ “Police Truck” or maybe reggae rhythm playing. I like the firm spring action of the unusual-looking stomp switch (which controls a Boss-type momentary switch, not true-bypass), but my picky side wishes it were centered, for no good reason. The top part of the wedge-profile enclosure (black) is sturdy metal, while the bottom part (gray) is plastic, featuring a spot for a battery-cover plate that was probably lost long before the Berlin Wall fell.

That’s about all there is to tell about this odd delay pedal. I’m not entirely sure what inspired me to do a deep dive into this thing, but I hope I have given it the minute of attention that it deserves.