Sadly, I can't do much to replace the "thud" (well... I might have a vintage episode of Batman lying around
)
But for color, things are different since you can't just chuck a channel in the bin.
This is what I do most of the time:
I scan the image with Epson Scan through Photoshop (the only way to get 48 bit color with Epson Scan).
I use no sharpening, Digital ICE (Infrared Dust Removal) is on. I always choose some out of this world resolution... not because it's necessary but because I simply can
Once in 'shop, once I'm done with the dusting, fixing, shrinking... I do some LAB sharpening.
This is a process that sharpens without making ugly artifacts or looking too strange (unless you overdo it).
1. make a snapshot of the image (for safety)
2. convert the image to LAB color
3. select the Lightness channel
4. do an unsharp mask with the following settings
Set amount to 100-150%
Radius = Image DPI / 200
Threshold = zero
Just eyeball it to your liking.
5. convert the image back to RGB 16 bits per channel.
I made an action set for it... it's very fast to apply.