Originally posted by: Gaffer Tape

The ship computer synthesises explosions for the benefit of the pilot.

Yeah, because we know they're not really dead until they hear an "earth-shattering kaboom!"

Think how much you use sound to get by on a daily basis, or, to put it in more contextual terms, when playing a strenous video game. Think how much harder some games would be to play if you couldn't here your enemies sneaking up near you... Like Resident Evil, for instance. It's not just the explosions either; the engine sounds of the TIEs are supposedly sythesized as well to let pilots know they are near by.