Skip to main content
MusicRadar MusicRadar The No.1 website for musicians
UK EditionUK US EditionUS AU EditionAustralia SG EditionSingapore
Sign in
  • View Profile
  • Sign out
  • Black Friday
  • Artist news
  • Music Gear Reviews
  • Synths
  • Guitars
  • Controllers
  • Drums
  • Keyboards & Pianos
  • Guitar Amps
  • Software & Apps
  • More
    • Recording
    • DJ Gear
    • Acoustic Guitars
    • Bass Guitars
    • Tech
    • Tutorials
    • Reviews
    • Buying Guides
    • About us
Don't miss these
Simon Phillips
Artists “I got a hacksaw, chopped down the stand and put the hi-hats down there”: How Simon Phillips learned to play left-handed
Carmine Appice in Vanilla Fudge
Artists “People say I hate John Bonham because he stole my stuff”: The legendary drummer who influenced Bonzo and many more
JIMMY KIMMEL LIVE! "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" airs every weeknight at 11:35 p.m. ET and features a diverse lineup of guests that include celebrities, athletes, musical acts, comedians and human interest subjects, along with comedy bits and a house band. The guests for Monday, September 8 included Spinal Tap (Nigel Tufnel aka Christopher Guest, David St. Hubbins aka Michael McKean and Derek Smalls aka Harry Shearer) and Marty DiBergi (aka Rob Reiner) ("Spinal Tap II: The End Continues"), and musical guest Spinal Tap. (Disney/Randy Holmes) SPINAL TAP  (Photo by Randy Holmes/Disney via Getty Images)
Bands Five basses! Spinal Tap recruit Tal Wilkenfeld and Thundercat for bottom-heavy Jimmy Kimmel performance
The Seymour Duncan Joe Bonamassa Bolin Burst Signature Pickup Set replicates the same humbuckers that are in the blues superstar's 1960 Les Paul Standard once owned by Tommy Bolin.
Artists Seymour Duncan expands Joe Bonamassa range with humbucker set based on pickups from his ‘Bolin Burst’ Les Paul
Simon Phillips
Artists “I didn't recognise him. I found out later it was Dave Gilmour!”: Simon Phillips' chaotic session with Pete Townshend
Geezer Butler's signed Ashdown amp heads from Black Sabbath's Back to the Beginning show are being sold exclusively via Reverb, signed by the man himself.
Artists “Your chance to own the sound that defined heavy metal”: Geezer Butler bass amps from Sabbath’s final show to go on sale
James Hetfield of Metallica plays his iconic white V-style live onstage, wearing his trademark black T-shirt, and black leather vest.
Guitars “He wanted all that at an undoable selling price”: Mesa/Boogie founder Randall Smith confirms rumours that it built James Hetfield a signature model – and it combined three iconic amps in one
Alesis Nitro Ultimater
Electronic Drums Alesis's new 9-piece Nitro Ultimate electronic drum kit is its new flagship, and the hi-hat is the star
Craig 'Goonzi' Gowans and Steven Jones from Scottish metalcore heavyweights Bleed From Within pose with their weapons of choice: Goonzi [left] has an ESP LTD M1000, while Jones has a Caparison TAT Special
Artists Bleed From Within’s Craig ‘Goonzi’ Gowans and Steven Jones on the high-performance shred machines behind their heavyweight metalcore sound 
Vanilla Fudge
Artists “We could have been as big as Led Zeppelin”: The heavy rock innovators whose drummer was a star before John Bonham
Roland V-Drums VAD 5 series
Drums Roland's big V-Drum 3 and 5 series drop adds 6 kits to its e-drum range, including V71-lite modules and on-trend acoustic-look options
Spinal Tap's Nigel Tufnel plays a custom Marshall stack Jackson guitar while David St Hubbins sticks to the classic Les Paul in this live pic from 1992.
Artists Seymour Duncan celebrates Spinal Tap sequel with custom pickup that has an “eye-watering” 111K DCR
View from behind a drum kit on stage
Drummers 11 live mistakes every drummer makes
Roland VAD316
Electronic Drums “Roland has always been extremely good at marrying the playability of its samples with the physical feel of its hardware - this kit is no exception”: Roland VAD316 review
Fuchs Audio Joe Bonamassa JB-ODS: the new signature 100-watt combo is inspired by the Dumble Overdrive Special but has key differences, such as reverb – and it has Bonamassa's signature Celestion speaker
Artists Joe Bonamassa just teamed up with Fuchs Audio on a signature tube amp that might just save you spending $175,000 on a Dumble
More
  • Black Friday plugin deals
  • JoBo x Fuchs
  • "The most expensive bit of drumming in history”
  • Radiohead Daydreaming
  • Vanilla Fudge
  • 95k+ free music samples
  1. Drums
  2. Drum Kits

Jason Bonham's Led Zeppelin Experience drum setup in pictures

News
By Joe Bosso last updated 27 February 2020

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.

Jason Bonham's Led Zeppelin Experience drum setup in pictures

Jason Bonham's Led Zeppelin Experience drum setup in pictures

"We just started this new leg of the tour," says Jason Bonham, "but so far, so good." The drummer is standing on the stage at the State Theatre in New Brunswick, New Jersey, the second stop on the spring run of Jason Bonham's Led Zeppelin Experience. It's a few minutes until soundcheck, and Bonham is examining his DW Vistalite kit (which also features a Ludwig Anniversary snare).

"We've made a few changes to the setlist from what we did last year," he says, giving his drumheads a quick tune-up. "I might tinker around with the show still - we'll see."

Bonham admits that he didn't initially plan on bringing the multi-media JBLZE show back for another tour - at least so soon. "But the reception we got last year was just over the top, completely exceeding my expectations. So. here we are. But I should add: People should come now. I can't tell you if you'll see this show again."

The other day, MusicRadar presented Jason Bonham himself providing a video tour of his beautious drum kit. On the following pages, we give you an up-close-and-personal look at this one-of-a-kind set.

  • Find your next setup with our guide to the best drum kits
Page 1 of 10
Page 1 of 10
Kick drum

Kick drum

"You look at the graphic and that says it all," says Bonham. The kick is fitted with a Remo Clear Ambassador head on the front and a Power Stroke III on the batter side.

Page 2 of 10
Page 2 of 10
Snare

Snare

A Remo Coated Emperor X head is changed nightly. Those sticks, by the way, are Bonham's own signature line of Pro-Marks, made from maple.

Page 3 of 10
Page 3 of 10
Rack tom

Rack tom

A Remo Clear Emperor on top and a Remo Clear Ambassador on the bottom, changed nightly.

Page 4 of 10
Page 4 of 10
Floor toms

Floor toms

Remo Clear Emperors on the tops and Remo Clear Ambassadors on the bottoms, changed nightly, of course.

Page 5 of 10
Page 5 of 10
Hi-hats

Hi-hats

Unlike his father, a lifelong user of Paiste cymbals, Jason favors Zildjians. “Zildjian have been in my family for over 25 years,” he says. "I have so many great friends over there."

Page 6 of 10
Page 6 of 10
Crash Ride

Crash Ride

Jason likes the Zildjian 21" K Crash Ride so much, he has not one but...

Page 7 of 10
Page 7 of 10
Light and Crash Rides

Light and Crash Rides

...two! Next to the Crash Ride is a Zildjian 24" K Light Ride, which is a favorite.

Page 8 of 10
Page 8 of 10
Pedals

Pedals

How do you get that famous Bonham bass drum sound? Being a Bonham helps, but it doesn't hurt to have DW pedals.

Page 9 of 10
Page 9 of 10
Gong

Gong

And if you're playing Led Zeppelin songs, occasionally you have to 'bang a bong!'

Page 10 of 10
Page 10 of 10
Joe Bosso
Joe Bosso

Joe is a freelance journalist who has, over the past few decades, interviewed hundreds of guitarists for Guitar World, Guitar Player, MusicRadar and Classic Rock. He is also a former editor of Guitar World, contributing writer for Guitar Aficionado and VP of A&R for Island Records. He’s an enthusiastic guitarist, but he’s nowhere near the likes of the people he interviews. Surprisingly, his skills are more suited to the drums. If you need a drummer for your Beatles tribute band, look him up.

Deals not to miss
Simon Phillips
“I got a hacksaw, chopped down the stand and put the hi-hats down there”: How Simon Phillips learned to play left-handed
 
 
Carmine Appice in Vanilla Fudge
“People say I hate John Bonham because he stole my stuff”: The legendary drummer who influenced Bonzo and many more
 
 
JIMMY KIMMEL LIVE! "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" airs every weeknight at 11:35 p.m. ET and features a diverse lineup of guests that include celebrities, athletes, musical acts, comedians and human interest subjects, along with comedy bits and a house band. The guests for Monday, September 8 included Spinal Tap (Nigel Tufnel aka Christopher Guest, David St. Hubbins aka Michael McKean and Derek Smalls aka Harry Shearer) and Marty DiBergi (aka Rob Reiner) ("Spinal Tap II: The End Continues"), and musical guest Spinal Tap. (Disney/Randy Holmes) SPINAL TAP  (Photo by Randy Holmes/Disney via Getty Images)
Five basses! Spinal Tap recruit Tal Wilkenfeld and Thundercat for bottom-heavy Jimmy Kimmel performance
 
 
The Seymour Duncan Joe Bonamassa Bolin Burst Signature Pickup Set replicates the same humbuckers that are in the blues superstar's 1960 Les Paul Standard once owned by Tommy Bolin.
Seymour Duncan expands Joe Bonamassa range with humbucker set based on pickups from his ‘Bolin Burst’ Les Paul
 
 
Simon Phillips
“I didn't recognise him. I found out later it was Dave Gilmour!”: Simon Phillips' chaotic session with Pete Townshend
 
 
Geezer Butler's signed Ashdown amp heads from Black Sabbath's Back to the Beginning show are being sold exclusively via Reverb, signed by the man himself.
“Your chance to own the sound that defined heavy metal”: Geezer Butler bass amps from Sabbath’s final show to go on sale
 
 
Latest in Drum Kits
Man playing acoustic drums on the left of the image and electronic drums on the right
Is an acoustic or an electronic drum kit better for beginners?
 
 
Where to start with a drum kit
 
 
DrumCraft Urban Beats
“A good-looking kit which won’t break the bank”: DrumCraft Urban Beats review
 
 
Alesis Crimson III
Alesis’ popular Crimson e-kit just got an upgrade with version III sporting new heads and a new BFD-powered drum brain
 
 
Millenium MPS-850 E-Drum set
“Boasts an array of features above its relatively low price”: Millenium MPS-850 E-Drum set review
 
 
DrumCraft Urban Beats
DrumCraft’s Urban Beats delivers pro-quality looks and sound for the compact stage and budget
 
 
Latest in News
Neural DSP Quad Cortex floating with smoke in the background
“A generational leap in modelling technology”: Neural DSP gives Quad Cortex and Nano Cortex an almighty power-up
 
 
UNITED KINGDOM - APRIL 03: UNDERWORLD Photo of Sarah NIXON and Luke HAINES and BLACK BOX RECORDER, L to R - Luke Haines & Sarah Nixon (Photo by Brigitte Engl/Redferns)
Billie Eilish introduced them to a whole new audience, and now '90s indie band Black Box Recorder are back
 
 
Pope Leo XIV, Robert Prevost arrives on the main central loggia balcony of the St Peter's Basilica
Is God a DJ? Pope makes appearance at religious rave in Slovakia
 
 
ValhallaDSP Supermassive 5.0
Valhalla Supermassive 5 can do everything from clean delay to “nearly eternal space reverbs” – and it’s free!
 
 
Harley Benton Custom Line King-12CE NT: the cutaway jumbo 12-string features an all-maple build, gold hardware and Fishman electronics
Harley Benton unveils Custom Line jumbo 12-string with a $350 price tag that’s for the Byrds
 
 
Positive Grid Mini on a shelf
Positive Grid just set the tone for Black Friday with up to 30% off their range of top-rated smart amps and software - including the Spark 2, Spark Mini & Bias X
 
 

MusicRadar is part of Future plc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Visit our corporate site.

Add as a preferred source on Google
  • About Us
  • Contact Future's experts
  • Terms and conditions
  • Privacy policy
  • Cookies policy
  • Advertise with us
  • Accessibility Statement
  • Careers

© Future Publishing Limited Quay House, The Ambury, Bath BA1 1UA. All rights reserved. England and Wales company registration number 2008885.

Please login or signup to comment

Please wait...