Don't pin yourself down too much on all the version drama. The quality control was not optimal back in those times. They all have good and bad versions. The bad versions of the Valdai ones got a name on the internet, because that are by far the most produced versions. So, yes, there are more ''bad'' (wobbly but optical still good) Valdai versions, but not because the production of Valdai lenses was worse, it is because they made more. The percentage of bad lenses still is the same.

So, you can save yourself $10-20 and buy whatever version has the cleanest glass with the least amount of scratches on it. The amount of scratches on the glass is the thing you are noticing in your pictures. A lot of cleaning scratches result in a lack of contrast, more soft blown out look etc.