Finally got around to watching the DVD tonight and definitely heard the distortion when the tripods bellowed and also when Ray was yelling at his son on the battlefield. I watched it with DTS, but didn't check to see if DD has the distortion as well. Aside from that minor annoyance, however, I have to say this is one of the most powerful DTS tracks I've ever heard. Simply amazing!
I've now watched the R3 DVD twice on my projector and I must say that the picture quality is excellent. IMO, it was an accurate representation of the original material.