I've been using the Sony MDR-V500 studio headphones for about two years. These headphones are a favorite of a lot of engineers for monitoring while recording and for checking mixes on. They are built well and have a full sound overall. This being said, they are headphones and they don't have a huge low end presence. While they aren't isolation headphones really, they do block out most of the sound when you are monitoring while recording, but won't block out all the noise - the ear phones just aren't big enough to fit snug enough to block out all the noise, although they do fit comfortably. The sound of the MDR-V500s is full and it covers the whole frequency spectrum except for the very low end. I would compare these headphones to the Sennheiser HD 280 Pro headphones as they are similar in price. While the HD 280 Pros have a much better low end presence, the overall sound quality is pretty comparable and both will deliver an accurate sound. I would say that I prefer the Sennheiser headphones better because of the low end presence that makes them better for mixing, although I never do too much mixing on headphones. I would say that these are best suited for monitoring while recording and for checking mixes rather than mixing itself. For this reason I would recommend these headphones to those looking for a great pair of headphones for overall use, but would also encourage those interested to check out the Sennheisers I mentioned as it is a matter of personal preference. The MDR-V500 are very reasonable in price, which is less than a hundred dollars USD, and are an overall great set of headphones that deliver a full sound for such a small set of headphones at such a small price.