I used two scripts written by Joss Crowcroft and a site called paulund.co.uk to make a Japanese Yen and U.S. Dollar currency calculator. You can convert from one to the other. The script gets the current rate exchange every hour. Google can do the same thing just not as nice.
Japanese Express Mail package
I had five music CDs imported from Japan using Tenso shipping. I ordered them through Amazon Japan and had them shipped to Tenso. Once all of them arrived at Tenso, I “consolidated” my shipment into one package. Tenso literally opens up all your packages and puts the contents into one package which saves you money. My shipping cost was 3,570 yen ($45). Shipping them separately by Japanese Express Mail would have cost 8,450 yen ($106). Tenso shipped my package on May 23 and it arrived at my door 2 days later.
Kaleido Star: The First Amazing Mini Album
At-X Anime Gun Frontier OST
POWER DoLLS～Omni Senki 2540～
Gatekeepers TV Original Soundtracks
the Indigo: My Fair Melodies 2
I also ordered the Gungrave OST from Amazon U.S. used. Gungrave’s OP has striking visuals and a haunting melody. The CD’s artwork is eye-catching. Notice the stains on the jewel case. It washed off but this was sold on Amazon as “Used – Very Good.”
GUNGRAVE OST 1 Uno "Righthead"
I ordered 6 CDs from Rightstuf. Most were anime soundtracks. Most were not my first picks but had OPs and EDs that I liked. The price was good $1.99 – $5.00. Yoko Ishida’s “all of me” was included containing many popular OPs and EDs (i.e. Ai Yori Aoshi). I cannot believe it was only $5.00 AND included a mini DVD. Open Your Mind, the OP to Ah! My Goddess was included on the DVD. The quality is a bit grainy–probably not 480p. My shipment also included 3 DVDs; Toradora! set 1, Strawberry Panic, and K-ON
Yoko Ishida: all of me
Puni Puni Poemy OST
GUN X SWORD OST
Tetsujin28 Music Collection
J2 The Counterattack of Siberia Yagyu
Don’t judge anime by the porn sites you visit. You know nothing of Japan.
Mio (MIQ) Perfect Best arrived from Yesasia.com. I love her deep silky voice and her songs. She’s been around since the 80′s. Having the OP to Aura Battler Dunbine was reason enough for this CD.
MIO (MIQ) The Perfect Best
I purchased The Vision of Escaflowne~lovers only for Mystic Eyes. I had forgotten how gorgeous the soundtrack was. I had trouble finding the artist information. Actually, it was there on the CD but I couldn’t read it in Japanese. I found a site called ocrgrid.com that can read Japanese from scans. It did a fair job which helped me find the artists. It also helps if you search the CD title in Japanese on Google. Some Japanese sites will list track information. Just copy and paste the page to Google Translate. Did you know Ikue Ohtani on track 16 is the voice of Pikachu?
I also purchased the CD single version of YOU GET TO BURNING. It’s probably one of the best OPs of all time.
VISION OF ESCAFLOWNE~lovers only
YOU GET TO BURNING
I wasn’t expecting an Amazon package but they cleverly repackaged an Amazon box with my CDs. My CDs arrived in good condition. I was surprised in the excellent condition of my CDs. A rating of “Used – Good” on Amazon Japan is closer to “Used – Like New.”
Tenso package: Unopened
Tenso package: Opened
Chance Triangle Session -Diva-
Kaitou Saint Tail BEST OF BEST
Kirameki Project Maxi Single
Atsuko Enomoto: Be My Angle
I decided to consolidate four separate packages into one to see if it was cheaper. I have four CDs from Amazon Japan at Tenso right now. Individually, shipping would cost ¥ 1,690 yen ($21.00 dollars). However, the cost per CD is only ¥ 818 yen ($10.00 dollars) if I ship them together. After requesting my CD packages to be consolidated Tenso gave me a shipping estimate of ¥ 3,270 yen ($41.00 dollars). They will notify me of the actual cost once it is done.
| Shipped Separately | Shipped Together | |
|---|---|---|
| CD #1 | ¥ 1,690 | ¥ 818.50 |
| CD #2 | ¥ 1,690 | ¥ 818.50 |
| CD #3 | ¥ 1,690 | ¥ 818.50 |
| CD #4 | ¥ 1,690 | ¥ 818.50 |
| Total | ¥ 6,760 | ¥ 3,270 |
Log in to Tenso and click the consolidation button (see below). You’ll be presented with a page of items available for consolidation. Click the checkboxes of each item you want consolidated then submit the form. Tenso will warn you this process cannot be undone.
It helps if you’re navigating the site in English. Click アカウントサービス (account) on the upper right corner of Amazon Japan’s page. Under Account Settings, click Manage Your Address Book. Click Add Japanese Address. Your Tenso address will look like this:
John Smith
120-0023
Tokyo-to 足立区 千住曙町４２－４－３階
TS555555
TENSO
Fill in the fields as shown below. Make sure and use your own TS number.
Adding address (English form)
Adding address (Japanese form)
Ai Yori Aoshi Soundtrack 1
A couple of CDs arrived a few days ago. One is the soundtrack to Ai Yori Aoshi (Bluer Than Indigo). It’s one of the first anime I’ve seen. I love the OP and ED. I’m sure you would recognize “Promise” from the ADV trailer. The other CD is “Indigo suite Best Indigo Music.” The Indigo did several EDs to Ai Yori Aoshi. I notice there are two different covers. One version has a photo while the one I bought has an illustration on the cover. I was listening to “UNDER THE BLUE SKY” which sounded familiar so I looked it up on ANN. Turns out this is the ED to Someday’s Dreamers.
The Indigo: Indigo suite Best Indigo Music
Today Chobits 002 arrived. I’m listening to it now. Chii sings Let Me Be With You! 
More dialogs on 002 this time with Hideki and Chii. K-taro Takanami did a good job with the soundtracks and the character song collection.
CHOBITS ORIGINAL SOUNDTRACK 002
Say you want to make a playlist out of all your j-pop CDs but not all of them have the j-pop genre. Right-click on an album or a track and select Get Info. In the comments box add your tag “jpop.” I would use letters and numbers only with no spaces. If you would like to add a another tag for anime soundtrack add “animesoundtrack.” You don’t need commas between your tags just leave a space, “jpop animesoundtrack.”
Now you can create a playlist from your tags. On the toolbar select File then select New Smart Playlist. On the first drop down box select Comments. On the next drop down box select “contains” then type your tag in the box. If you would like to add multiple tags, click the + button then repeat the previous step as needed (make sure to change the “all” button to “any”).
To make a “best of” playlist you’ll have to rate tracks first then make a smart playlist. On the toolbar select File then select New Smart Playlist. On the first drop down box select Rating. iTunes will automatically make this 5 stars. Next, click the ellipsis button to add your tags. On the next drop down box select Comments. On the following drop down box select “contains” then type your tag in the box. If you would like to add multiple tags, click the + button then repeat the previous step as needed. Make sure to change the “all” button above your tags to “any.” Compare your options with my example below.
Yes, you can buy them and use them for purchases on the Japan iTunes Store. I’ve been buying mine from JBOX since last year. Someone on the AN forum suggested JBOX after I told them I was dying to get a song on iTunes but was presented with “This Apple ID is only valid for purchases in the US iTunes Store” notice. The iTunes page on JBOX will show you how to set up your account to redeem an iTunes card.
I recommend purchasing the ￥3,000 yen card since it costs about 8 dollars less than buying two ￥1,500 yen cards. JBOX also gives you the option of having your card’s redemption code e-mailed to you–a real time saver. These cards aren’t cheap so I recommend searching for your music through U.S. iTunes or Amazon first. I’ve found some great deals on Amazon. I buy used CDs from Amazon all the time.