Quote Originally Posted by Merriweather View Post
Yes, Japanese CDs are more pricey due to JASRAC's fees, so labels add bonus tracks to entice people to buy the Japan version versus a cheaper import. I'm sure they are better than Chinese or Taiwanese versions.

But they have gained this weird "ultimate" version status because some western buyers have decided that someone at a Japanese pressing plant is a better judge of audio quality than Jethro at a plant in Kentucky.

I'm not meaning to shitpost. I admit to having plenty of Japanese CDs and a couple SHM-CDs. Are they "better?" I don't know. So I wouldn't necessarily advocate for chasing down copies. Some people may think they're superior. Some may think that they're just CDs with Blu Ray coating. YMMV.
As a collector of alternate/import versions of CDs, I can tell you (for me) the Japanese version is almost always the ultimate one, but it's solely due to the obi strip and kanji characters all over the packaging. The bonus tracks are icing on the cake.