penguinofgreatness said:

yoda-sama said:

I keep seeing people ask if Hairy's 5.1 reconstruction is 'better' than the Blu-ray audio, to which the response is always that it blows it out of the water. What I'm wondering is in what aspects exactly does it best it?

The best way to truly understand is a direct comparison. Listen with headphones or good speakers for the best effect!

Here is a direct comparison of the Bluray and the one used in 2.1 (Hairy_Hen posted this awhile back, but the link went down). The differences are very noticeable. The bluray has added effects, a flat droning bass sound and is first in the comparison. If you listen, you will notice that the Bluray is very muddy (lacking much of the treble sound) and lacks any dynamic range. The sound levels are noticeably clipped and distorted when the death star blows up

http://www.mediafire.com/?avv1d8izol8hy3t

Here is also a description of what is precisely wrong with the "official" mix: http://originaltrilogy.com/forum/topic.cfm/Star-Wars-1977-70mm-sound-mix-recreation-stereo-and-51-versions-now-available/post/548812/#TopicPost548812

The hum from the lightsabers almost drowns out Vaders dialogue. Quite intrusive.