Sony is no stranger to home audio equipment, but the company's latest piece of home theater equipment may seem a bit odd. Sony's SRS-NS7 wireless neckband speaker looks like a cross between a neck support pillow and a desktop speaker, but it may be the next big thing in personal audio.

The SRS-NS7 neckband is like a single home theater speaker setup. Unlike most personal audio, it is not headphones, but a neckband with multiple speakers built in. Paired with it is the new Sony WLA-NS7 wireless transmitter, a wireless TV audio adapter that can do more than Bluetooth.

The SRS-NS7, billed by Sony as "the ultimate personal cinema experience," is a hands-free speaker set that hangs from the neck and over the shoulder, putting a multi-speaker array right next to a single listener. The neckband design is a bit unusual, but it enables Dolby Atmos sound, and the balanced combination of upward-facing speakers and passive radiators produces a rich sound that cannot be achieved with sealed headphones.

The neckband design is covered in fabric and lined with flexible silicone to fit the curvature of one's neck. The built-in battery provides up to 12 hours of runtime (up to 5 hours at maximum volume), and the fast-charging feature provides up to 1 hour of extended listening time with just 10 minutes of charging via USB-C.

Made for private listening, Sony advertises that the open-ear design allows users to pay attention to other things going on around them, but also claims that the upward-facing speakers deliver audio to users without disturbing others, and It is not clear to what extent this listening experience is private.

They are also made for uses other than TV viewing. The neckband has a built-in microphone for hands-free calls and a multipoint connection that allows users to jump from the TV to another device, such as a smartphone or laptop, with the click of a button.

Sony claims that the device will provide cinematic sound for devices large and small, whether it's a big screen TV or a smartphone watching Netflix. And because it's wireless and free to run around the house, the Sony also has an IPX4 rating for moisture resistance. (However, it would be dangerous to wear the SRS-NS7 while showering.)

The device's companion is Sony's WLA-NS7 wireless TV adapter. Unlike most Bluetooth adapters, it is compatible with Sony's 360 Spatial Sound, which delivers multi-channel audio wirelessly and allows you to fine-tune the sound with the Sony 360 Spatial Sound Personalizer app.

The WLA-NS7 wireless transmitter works with most TVs and connects via USB cable and optical audio cable. However, some features may be exclusive to Sony Bravia XR TVs. For example, these features are described in the Sony Bravia XR A80J OLED review.

The wireless transmitter is not named a Bluetooth adapter because it uses a different standard for connectivity and provides a fuller audio experience, but it can also do Bluetooth. So if you have Bluetooth headphones, you can transmit wirelessly to them as well; the WLA-NS7 will likely find a home on our best Bluetooth TV adapters page.

The Sony SRS-NS7 Wireless Neckband Speaker is available for pre-order through Best Buy and Amazon for $299.99.

The Sony WLA-NS7 wireless transmitter is also available for pre-order for $59.99 and is available through Best Buy and Amazon.

Both products will be available later this month; BestBuy and Amazon's product pages differ slightly in the actual release dates of the products, with BestBuy giving October 18 and Amazon giving November 1.

Sony's product page lists the release date as October 27.