I own a pair of the Q20 headphones, and could not be happier with them, until I sat on them that is, and cracked the plastic. I thought getting the latest model, ie the Q30, would be at least be as good, if not better, but they are actually worse! Much worse. I thought perhaps I had a faulty pair, but the real issue is not the noise cancelling, but the construction. With everything switched off, the Q20 do a much better job of blocking out background noise. The ear muffs just feel better constructed, more snug, and fit better over the ear. At least for me they do. And that seems to make a big difference in blocking out noise.