Customer Ratings & Reviews

Big movies deserve big sound. Unfortunately, it’s not always possible to compromise on what movies me and my spouse would like to see. Sometimes I’m looking for an action film when they’re looking to slow down for the evening. In the past, this has meant I went into the basement to use the smaller TV (still with surround sound), so they could enjoy the quiet and head to bed. It’s also been nice to hear dialog a little better. My hearing isn’t what it used to be. The solution had been to turn up the main volume, which was sometimes too loud for my spouse and children (if they were around). With this neckband sound system, I can turn up the volume for myself without making it loud for everyone else. The sound quality and experience are about what you would expect from a mid-priced sound bar. The neckband manages to add directionality which a soundbar doesn’t have. All of the movie sound effects are similar to how things have sounded on my component based surround sound system. On baseball and football games, this includes the crowd noise in the background. In a Star Wars movie, it means I could hear the ships and the shooting all around me. The depth of sound is not quite the same, but the immersive feeling is there. The wireless nature of this speaker also means I don’t have to find the “sweet spot” in the room for the best sound experience. I can even hear the movie as it was intended while washing dishes in the nearby kitchen! Overall, this is a nice product if you can afford it. It’s on the higher side for a personal listening device, but it meets a need which hasn’t been addressed so far in the market. It’s geat that someone has finally come up with a solution to meet our aging population.

The Sony SRS-N57 Neckband Speaker is a new way of listening. It rests around your lower neck and fires sound upwards to your ears. While I love earbuds and headphones, I get tired of wearing them after a little bit. Headphones get hot and earbuds become uncomfortable after a while. This neckband speaker remains comfortable to me for long periods. When I first put it on I felt bass from speakers radiating downwards and once in position I was amazed at the bass feeling I was getting from the neckband. I get clear well balanced sound across the spectrum using these. I have access to several streaming services that have music in Dolby Atmos and Sony 360 audio. The music that is well mixed in the dimensional sound formats is really amazing. The music that is available in Hi Def, master recordings and the like really shine on this neckband. The neckband comes with a Bluetooth transmitter that attaches to a USB port and a Toslink socket on your TV to send Surround and Atmos sound to the neckband. The first movie I watched with the neckband was The Empire Strikes Back, the sound effects were more pronounced than on my home theater system. I have yet to use these long enough in one sitting to have to recharge. Sony claims that the neckband lasts up to 12 hours on a full charge and a 10 minute quick charge will give you 60 minutes of play time. This neckband works and sounds great on phone calls. I love wearing this out on a walk or a bike ride because I can hear everything going on around me. The small downside is that others can hear what you are listening to and that prevents its use on a plane. As great as this is for music listening it is really amazing as a 3D home theater sound system that sits on the base of your neck.

SETUP Do yourself a favor and leave the setup documentation in the box. It's standard Bluetooth pairing with your favorite device and it works just like every other device in the category. The suggested Sony Headphones app is a very basic, stripped-down program that allows you to see what version of firmware the speaker is on. It also has a no-frills equalizer with five presets and room for two custom programs. Really, though, I don't see this app staying on my phone for long. Included in the box is a coupon code for a free trial to any one of a handful of music services. I initially chose Amazon Prime Music because that name stood out to me. You should note, though, that you are warned to pick you service carefully because once you do, you cannot change your mind. Apparently, at some time in the past I already used a free trial to Amazon Prime Music because I was given the message that the Sony free trial could not be used. I suppose that it does not matter that a had a coupon code to use. Other services may or may not have the same restriction. I was able to go back to the service-listing page and chose Tidal, the only other service I recognized by name. Signing up for the trial was exactly the same as signing up for any other trial these days -- name. credit card, etc. I suspect that I could have just gone to the Tidal site and signed up on my own without the coupon code as there was nothing that really acknowledged this was the reason I was signing up. It's a perfectly fine service, but you'll probably stick with whatever service you currently have. Nothing I've seen leads me to believe there's anything available on the service that's made for showing off these particular speakers. The speakers connected to Bluetooth just fine and paired quickly to both an iPhone 13 and an iPad Pro. PERFORMANCE I love these speakers for listening to podcasts, but I will not be listening to a lot of music with them. I was surprised how good podcasts sounded with them. The speakers are worn around you neck and so are very near your ears. However, since they are not covering your ears, you can obviously hear your surroundings very well and the speakers -- firing up toward your head -- make for a great listening experience. For me, the best of both worlds. The (huge) problem with these speakers occurred while listening to music and it may be specific to my body. The entire speaker system sits like an open ring around the neck, with the two ends resting on your collar bones. It's the collar bones that cause the problem. I have used (and love) bone-conduction headphones that you wear around your head, with the ends resting on your temples. That design intentionally uses your skull to transfer vibrations from the headset to your inner ear. They work well for me and I've used them for years. The Sony NS7's, however, send vibration into the collarbone and listening to any music with bass is very unpleasant after a while. At first, it was kind of cool, but once that new sensation wore off, I actually started to feel a little nauseous. I moved the speakers off of my collar bone and the feeling started to go away. I did not have access to any Dolby Atmos content, a Sony Bravia XR TV, and could not test that aspect. Note that the side of the box claims that a firmware update by Jan. 2022 will be required to use the 360 Spatial Sound on the Bravia XR sets. SUMMARY I will definitely continue to use these speakers for listening to podcasts and likely a few audio books that I haven't gotten around to listening to. For music, though, I can't see myself using them if I'm just sitting back and listening. It is quite possible, though, that I'll have a different experience wearing them while moving around (thereby eliminating or minimizing direct body contact).

This Sony neckband speaker system is a game changer for me and is superior to headphones especially when you want to be able to hear and react to other sounds around you; for instance while riding a bike or even just walking around your neighborhood. The speakers get plenty loud enough, but you can still hear traffic noise and other things going on around you for the sake of safety. One issue I have had with larger headphones especially is my ears get hot and sweaty, especially in the summer, whereas these of course just wrap around your neck. These fully charged for me in less than an hour vs. the advertised 4 hours, and battery life has been excellent even at loud volume. I love singing along to my music and these make doing so fun. If this were a 10 point system, I would give it 9/10 though because I do feel there are opportunities for improvement here. 1) At this price point, I would expect the ability to charge it wirelessly, even if a wireless charger were an added cost accessory. They don't include a charging block and I don't ding Sony for that, I have a drawer full of them as most of us do I am sure; but Qi charging makes sense here. 2) Again at this price point, I expected some kind of case. These are splash proof but not totally waterproof, so an inexpensive protective case would have been a welcome addition. However, as far as sound quality, build quality, and innovation, this is awesome. One feature I am not able to test, yet, is that this interfaces with the Sony Bravia line of TVs; I may very well end up getting one just to experience these speakers with it.

Sony did a great job with this one. First and foremost, this is very comfortable to wear and is lightweight. The sound is quite good and you can actually "feel" the bass. I also use this for work to take and place calls. Sound is crystal clear and beats the traditional speakerphone or ear buds. The fact this is also Dolby Atmos ready is what tops this off as an absolute winner!

I have an expensive ($500) ear covering headphone set that is superb, alas, it is not great for walking outside because it masks ambient sounds somewhat -- even when noise Canx is off. With noise canx on, I hear my music pretty much exclusively and am not aware of external sounds ( dangerous when walking outdoors). Though comfortable, there is weight involved and that limits how long I can comfortable wear them. I have expensive earbuds that are superb. Downside is not weight, but again -- not great for walking outside because the buds mask ambient sounds somewhat -- even when noise Canx is off. Sony has a remedy and they call their product a wireless NECKBAND SPEAKER. The weight is minimal and hardly noticed because the device is worn around the neck with weight born by shoulders. There is nothing masking ambient noise but your volume setting, instantly adjusted with touch up, touch down, and mute control buttons to deal w any situation. The most important feature of any sound playing device is the quality of the sounds it produces. The NS7 Neckband is top notch. The lows, mids, and highs are rich, full, velvety. The bass is actually extraordinary because the speakers vibrate to the point you feel the bass (in a nice way) as well as hear it. Part of this is speaker quality. Another part is ear customization. During the set up process (via the Sony app loaded on my iPhone), you hold the phone and move your head side to side so that images of your ears are taken, and analyzed, and the NECKBAND creates settings that are customized for your ear category. I can't over-stress the sound quality. This product produces 360 degree Spatial sound when music is received from several spatial sound transmission services (such as Amazon Unlimited -- subscription required). Unlike headphones, and earbuds, this NECKBAND actually generates 360 degree sound. The sounds are cast left, right, in front, behind, and vary vertically. During setup, you are given the opportunity to hear stereo, and then 360 degree spatial. You can switch back and forth over and over. The 360 degree spatial is par excellance! I took and made phone calls with the NECKBAND. The microphones worked flawlessly, according to the folks I spoke to. My sole disappointment was using the NECKBAND to listen to my TV. Sony provides an adapter that is supposed to connect wirelessly via bluetooth to the NECKBAND for their Bravia TVs and others. My 1 year old 55" Hisense TV would not connect even though the Sony device indicated bluetooth was on, and I set the TV to PCM audio out as per directions. It is probably a Hisense TV issue, but still -- Sony needs to make the connection work with all major brands. If not for that blemish, I would rate the Sony NECKBAND as a 5 star product.

I really wanted to like this neckband speaker but hear me out. First I think they are great for people that are hard of hearing or those that have roommates, spouces that work different shift etc. But for everyday watching TV or watching a movie I can't endorse these. Out of the box they feel nice and have some decent heft to them. They don't seem super fragile or cheap. Charge them up and install the app to adjust to your ear shape. I was able to connect mine to my Sony TV with ease. The audio is crisp and clear but coming from a 7.2.2 atmos system to this is depressing to say the least. The vocals and highs are crisp, mids come in nice during the vocals but the bass is non existent, it also vibrates on your neck a bit. You get zero realism from the action. Music was decent minus any bass and phone calls were great. My worst complaint is while watching a movie you must keep your head perfectly straight and upright, if you tilt your head, place your hand on your head etc, it totally changes the Soundstage. I didn't notice the effects of atmos either. Like I said before, this may be for some people but not for anyone looking for a great Soundstage. Great concept, comfortable and crisp just missing the wow factor.

Sounds amazing with movies and games and it’s ok for music. Also, the way it sits on your neck isn’t great. That design would be revamped for it to stay put and not keep moving back.

I bought this product because I wanted a good headset that doesn't cover my ears or need to be inserted into my ear, for comfort. A few points of note: - When I received it, I felt it was a bit heavier than expected. However, the weight doesn't bother me once I wear it around the neck. - It can be used as a headset for your online meetings and as your personal speakers - the sound is superb! - To the person sitting next to you, the sound can be heard but not very loud. - If s/he talks to you while you're using it, you can tell that someone is talking to you, but not to the level that you can carry out a conversation, unless you have the volume pretty low. - You can continue using it while lying down as well.

Amazing sound quality. Relatively comfortable to put in the neck. Perfect for doing chores at home.

Long battery life, good sound quality, and pairs easily with Mac or windows. I absolutely love this. Additionally the dongle that it comes with makes short with for pairing with any tv.

I love the idea of this product and for the most part it actually sounds pretty good. I was playing some games at home but needed to still be able to hear my kids put these on and was still able to hear everything around me. That part is great and the sound quality especially with music is very good and enjoyable. Now the problem, after about 20 minutes of using it I could feel it around my neck more and more especially if I moved around I would have to adjust it. I think a future version of this needs to be able to adjust to the wearers neck. Confort aside my biggest gripe is with sound quality when it comes to movies and to a certain extent gaming. This is touted as a movie watching device and it falls very short in that aspect. It has the same problems and stereo sound bars have when you are watching a movie mixed with surround sound because there is no dedicated center speaker hearing peoples voices was Incredibly difficult. I would have to raise the volume and then everything else was incredibly loud. Playing games was a it better but don’t expect to use these for any sort of competitive gaming as it hard to pinpoint where exactly the sounds are coming from besides left and right. I want to like this neckband speaker as I think it is a good solution for a problem i have, but unfortunately the execution just isn’t there yet, maybe the next version will solve these issues.

Blue tooth technology, easy to pair, awesome sound and long lasting charge. What else could you want?

My dad always has the T.V. blaring loudly. Bought this for him and resolved the problem. He doesn't like to put anything in or over ears so this was a great option.

Awesome my husband wears two hearing aids. This helps him so much .

I dont have this personally but i would purchase if you could get Dolby Atmos with any brand TV. Sony says you must have Sony Bravia XR that supports Dolby Vision and 3D audio.

NOT user friendly. I haven't been able to pair it with ANYTHING in the house. No tv's, no cell, no tablet. Nuttin'! Not happy. Very expensive speaker sitting in the box.