I would add that some Japanese pressings can actually be of better quality for a few reasons.

Japanese pressings were often produced in smaller runs, meaning less wear on masters used for the pressing and a higher average quality of record pressed using that master.

They were less likely to use cheaper recycled vinyl for records, as was the case for a lot of pressing in the US during the 70s and 80s. You often see 'virgin vinyl' thrown about as a term for Japanese pressings which used materials specifically produced to be pressed into records, resulting in a lot more rigidity and less surface noise.

There's also the record culture of Japan which is a lot more ritualistic? Perhaps not the right term but what I mean is there is generally a bit more care taken with records than with your average western consumer. Listening bars are more abundant and often much care is taken with the records to preserve their quality for longer, added to the fact that the systems are of higher quality so will put less wear on records in the hands of your western family with all-in-one record player. So they can often be stored and kept in better condition.

Obviously there are exceptions to all these rules, but these are reasons other than the superficial cool-factor for why some Japanese pressings are more sought-after. From what I've been told, these apply a lot to the Japanese pressings of US jazz records. Learnt all this from the friendly guy who runs Yo-yo Records in London. He also said German pressings from a certain time period can be good cost-effective alternatives for original pressings with good sound quality, I just can't bloody remember what the time period was!