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You can record S-VHS quality on regular VHS tapes if you put a hole in the cassette in the right place, or if you get an S-VHS-ET VCR. S-VHS-ET was my favorite format for TV archiving (it is hard to tell the difference between it and live cable) until I switched to DVD-R a while back when blank tapes began becoming hard to find.
The remote situation depends on the VCR. Some of my JVC units have all user adjustments available on the front thru the menu buttons, others do not need an original remote to access anything except the timer recording functions. I got all my S-VHS decks from the local thrift shops for under 10$ a piece...They show up quite often here.
As a fellow otaku I'm sure you have found your self playing parts of tapes with the still frame function. In my experience a JVC with a good still frame JOG knob (especially the ones that boast a Pro Speck Drive) do a much better job tracking a still frame or scrolling thru frames getting much less video noise or snow than any normal 4-head HIFI VCR I've owned. Most S-VHS/-ET decks I've owned (And I own at least 6 S-VHS/-ET decks) tend to give better playback on normal prerecorded VHS tapes than my regular VHS machines.
You must have had an interesting model of JVC for the remote to cost a C-note. The remotes for mine cost me 30$ on ebay (which after using my machines regular for a couple of months I considered a worth wile entertainment expense) a couple of years ago and 1$ from the thrift stores later on when I found more remotes. I've also found that the remotes for the newer models work on the older ones.
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