A NEC2500A is only $89 and a

Ritek 4X 50 DVD-R spindle only costs $39 at Newegg. If I were you, I would just burn DVD. A DVD to VCD conversion takes about 2 to 4 hours depending on your machine's speed. IMO, that is too long and the conversion process degrades video quality no matter what settings you use. If you insist on doing DVD to VCD/SVCD conversion, then I would recommend DUP-DVD (shareware) or DVDx (Freeware). DUP-DVD produce crisp and clear video. It is so easy to use that you have to be stupid to mess up the conversion.