are you multitasking while you are doing your converting? how many programs do you have running in the backround while you are doing your converting? what are you system specs? in convertxtodvd you can speed up the encoding times, have you tryed that? also convertxtodvd is one of the best and the fastest programs out there.
Nero Vision in the Nero suite will convert AVI to DVD, but I can't say that it's much faster. If you're using the trial, ConvertXtoDVD will mark the video output. The Nero trial is full function and no marking.
I use WinAvi Video Converter - it's pretty quick, only takes about 20-25 mins. There is a free version I think, and there is a guide here that shows u how to use it. It's pretty easy otherwise - pretty self-explanatory.
