These Sony xb 500 beat any other headphones and I have tried them all. I use them in the studio to produce music or just listen to music. They deliver nice phat bass and you can even feel it by the vibration of the set. I am mpressed with the cushion which covers the whole ear, which is nice because it gets annoying when I have cusion pressed to my ear for longer periods. The only con is that the cord is a little too short, would be nice if it was at least 20" longer. But that is not a big issue because I use it form my laptop which is right in front of me. I have tried overpriced sets of beats by Dre and those are poor on many frequencies and dont deliver a balanced range. Also the overpriced Bosse arent loud enough and not as comfortable. Sony did a great job on these and if I broke it or lost it, I would buy a new one right away even if I had to pay 4 times as much. These headphones is a dream come true.