This was my first mic. At the time, it was recommended to me as a good budget mic for a MD (I knew nothing about recording, had to rely on reccs and didn't really know who to ask, but that's another story...)
It's fine until you know better, and I used it with reasonable satisfaction for a few years. It wasn't until I got my iRiver, needed a mic that runs hotter (the pre on MD's mic in is obviously at a higher gain than the one on the iRiver's mic in) and upgraded first to AT831s and then to CMC8's that I realised what I had been missing. The sony h as nothing LIKE the definition of some of these other mics.
That said, if you're on a strict budget and pick one up 2nd hand for cheap and consider it a "starter" mic, you probably won't be unhappy. Top of the line? No, absolutely not, and there are choices for not a lot more money (around the $100-150 range) that give you far better definition and overall clarity. But it'll do until you get something else. If you're willing to go up to $200, there are definitely better choices.
Something which I wasn't told until AFTER I had already bought gear - and something which is practically a litany around here - is that you'll get the most bang per buck by putting your money into the front end, iow your mic and pre. It seems to me mics make the most difference of all, so (having learned the hard way) that's where I would put more of my money. FWIW.