Media students at Great Yarmouth College are benefitting from new sound equipment, with top of the range software and hardware.

It provides surround sound and makes the college 'the only college in the area looking to explore 5.1 surround sound in depth' according to Phil Bury, media course tutor.

Phil explained the importance of the new equipment. He said: 'Before the introduction of the new sound equipment students could not listen to what they were recording which added time to the process. The new equipment provides a dedicated 5.1 surround sound system which they can listen to throughout the process of creating it. This will enable them to create better quality work in shorter time and importantly is far more aligned to industry standards and practice.'

Phil explained the college is also in collaboration with Dolby Digital to help develop the studio space. They are hoping to create a Dolby Atmos environment which would provide HD/4k equivalent audio, making a 360 degree sound environment. This means it would be possible to hear sound all around the room. Phil said: 'It would be a big step forward, providing students with far better capabilities in audio.'

The equipment cost around £5,000 and includes a 27ins Apple Mac, and editing software. In installing the surround sound, it took some time to try and find the best way to lay the room out, with the aim of pin pointing the best acoustics. But Phil added: 'It's incredible when it's up and running.'

Harry Mitchell and Siobhan Penn are two students who have used the equipment to help them create a short film, and also in their lessons.

Harry, who studies media, said: 'It helped with filming because it's much easier to focus - it's a private area with no distractions.'

Media student Siobhan said it helped her with her work in sound productions, and that it has much better sound quality than what they have used before.