This took me a bit to find a good explanation concerning "offset": http://users.pandora.be/satcp/eacoffsets00.htm.
If I understand this correctly, every ODD has a read and write offset which can be compensated for by certain software such as PlexTools and EAC. Obviously, burning an Audio CD of already extracted files will cause a WRITE offset that may produce an Audio CD where a few milliseconds of audio will be lost to the listener, either at the beginning of track one or at the end of the last track.
Would there not also be a READ offset incorporated into the burn that is independent of whether the files to be burned are from a harddrive or a source CD?
If so, wouldn't it be important to correct BOTH read and write offsets when burning MP3's or FLAC's from the harddrive to the blank CD?
If PlexTools can correct for these offsets, and does it automatically (very cool), then I will surely reinstall it and start using it to improve the "correctness" of the audio tracks. (I know that offsets have nothing to do with the quality of the burn, just quantity, so to speak.)
Also, am I correct in assuming that correcting for offsets will make the burned CD more compatible for a variety of players? I already understand that lead-in or lead-out areas utilized for offset placement of audio can not be read by a lot of players. My question is more about being able to skip to a different track and have the player go to precisely the beginning of the track.
An offhand question, prompted by the fact that the first track's audio can be missing the initial few milliseconds due to offsets, I have experienced a few milliseconds of missing audio at the beginning of the track that is on my harddrive after double clicking the file and opening it up with Windows Media Player 9.x. If I start the audio over again from within WMP, all is well. Is there a problem with WMP, my harddrive, onboard Realtak 97'Audio, MSI Neo2 Platinum motherboard,etc?? Doesn't happen often, just is strange.