But the real reason I wanted to post is to point out what I think is an uncharacteristically cavalier attitude towards the audio changes...
In addition to being a professional film composer, I have worked for 12 years as a feature film sound designer and mixer, so I have a great appreciation for the advances we've made in sound reproduction, and imaging (or matrixing options, like 5.1), as well as the huge dynamic range increase that digital affords us, etc..
But for a feature film audio mix, the internal balance between dialogue, music, and effects is crucial to the overall perception of the drama. Turn the music down too far, and the impact of a scene can be all but obliterated. There has been a trend towards louder sound design vs music in recent years, partially because the new capabilities allow for more punch and viceral effect ("kids love the boom," as we say) as well as the fact that as film music has gotten worse, directors and mixers have come to trust it less... few composer's music can truly stand up to presence-scrutiny as well as John Williams' for example.
Spielberg (an avid music fan) always gets his mixes right... he has a tremendous amount of confidence in John Wiliams, and in the hands of mixer Gary Rydstrom, this has led to some of the most impactful moments in film history. This is the same sort of internal balance that the ORIGINAL Star Wars mixes featured: they were very "music-heavy", and more powerful for it. The THX Definitive Editions changed the internal balance between the Dialogue, Music and Effects, to showcase the new sound design, most likely, at the expense of the most powerful aspect of audio drama, the music. It's easy to hear, especially in certain scenes, like the inside of the sandcrawler... but few champion the preservation of that original mix sensibility.
We are afforded very little opportunity as an audience, to ever "A/B" a mix with more/less music, but it is an experience that forever changes your understanding of what creates drama in a soundtrack. People by music CD's and go to concerts all the time; very few people drive around listening to sound effects. That's because they aren't particularly interesting or dramatic. Now.. in an overall soundtrack, great sound design SHOULD be able to stand on its own somewhat, and the best mixes perform a continual dance between sound design and music, letting each one take center stage when appropriate.. but again, it's about balance.
Everyone here defends obvious character compromises, like Han shooting first, or rails against the gratuitous, poorly executed CG of Jabba the Hutt... and "Better Sound" sure sounds easier to get behind, until you realize that terms like 5.1, "louder", cleaner, "truer to the source", etc., are meaningless when held up to the ultimate factor, the internal balance. I, for one, don't even mind the improvements to the sound design.. all I care about is that the balance is restored.. for it was that balance that made the heroic moments heroic, and the epic themes powerful.
Mike