Yes, yes, and yes again. I don't even need to write up separate audio reviews for each of the films. You know why? Because these lossless DTS-HD Master Audio 6.1 surround tracks are perfect. Not perfect like, "Yeah, they seem generally true-to-source and, no, there's no muffling or anything," but perfect like, "Yes. Hell yes. This is what sci-fi should sound like." Perfect as in completely exemplary in all the ways you'd hope they'd be. Superlative. Grade-A. Certified Gold.
Okay, let me calm down for a second before I fly off in a tornado of hyperbole. Really, though; these tracks are that good. If you've yet to experience John Williams' Star Wars theme in glorious 6.1 channel lossless audio, you've got quite a treat coming. Williams' cues are some of the most recognizable and hummable in the known universe, and they sound spectacular here, from the lilting and quiet heartswelling of Leia's theme to the balls-out, brash militancy of Vader's unstoppable death march, which feels like the brass section of the orchestra is clubbing you in the face with their instruments. In the best way imaginable. All of the music is grand, filling every channel, with distinct placement of the instruments in the soundspace. Rich, dynamic, full—you name it, that's what these scores are.
And that's before we even get into the good stuff—the sound effects. Sound design has been a part of the movies since the late 1920s, but the Star Wars series emphasized it in a way that few films had previously done. The audio really is integral to the storytelling. Think "Star Wars sounds." What do you hear? The electric hum of swinging lightsabers. The crisp pew-pew of laser blasters. The low ambient, oscillating rumble inside the Death Star. The high-pitched language of the Jawas. Darth Vader's heavy, respirator-assisted breathing. You could go on and on. How many films can claim to have made noises iconic?
But that's only the start of it. What makes these new 6.1 tracks so wonderful is how precisely and expressively they're mixed. Sound design and score achieve an ideal balance, each forceful and clean without drowning the other out. And the action sequences. Oh, the action sequences. Lasers criss- crossing the soundfield. Spaceships swooshing in every direction, their pulsing engines roaring past with a kind of down-shifting Doppler Effect. Massive explosions that send concentric arcs of debris spreading out from front to back. The thunderous LFE roar of an Imperial Star Destroyer drifting overhead. Even in the quieter moments there's ambience in the rears; the bleat of a tauntaun on Hoth, pouring rain before the Obi- Wan/Jango Fett fight in Clone Wars, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera. Obviously, the effects in the prequels are a bit more sophisticated, but you'll be surprised by how epic the original trilogy sounds. Throughout it all, dialogue is always easy to understand, and I didn't hear any disconcerting crackles, hisses, or dropouts. Fans couldn't have asked for more.
Each film includes English Dolby Digital 5.1 descriptive audio, Spanish, French, French-Quebec, and Portuguese dubs, and optional subtitles in English SDH, Spanish, French, and Portuguese.