Best way to produce good quality DVDs?

Hi,
Am using FCE, external LaCie DVD burner and Toast.
When I convert a FCE project to quicktime, then transfer to DVD, using an external LaCie burner and Toast, the resulting quality is very poor.
I had previously thought this was just par for the course with the footage I was producing, however I recently had a film shown at a cinema (straight from tape) and the quality was amazing - even on a large screen.
I commented to one of the guys who worked at the cinema that I was surprised by the quality of the footage given that my DVDs are so rubbish. He told me that they are so poor because of the equipment I am using to burn them and that if I had it done professionally, the quality would be much better.
What causes this?
Is there any software/hardware I can upgrade to which will produce good quality DVDs?
Nicola

Hi,
Am using FCE, external LaCie DVD burner and Toast.
When I convert a FCE project to quicktime, then
transfer to DVD, using an external LaCie burner and
Toast, the resulting quality is very poor.
Which version of Toast are you using? Are you using Toast's encoder to create the disc image? The latest version of Toast (Titanium 7) is supposed to have a much improved encoder. Also iDVD5 and iDVD6 show big improvements over earlier versions. However, I don't think MPEG2 DVD will be the full equal of the original DV, but it should come close. I suspect high-end DVD mastering programs are needed to get the best results.
867 MHz PowerPC G4   Mac OS X (10.3.9)  

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