You are correct. You would only threaten a critical hit with that weapon if a 19 or 20 actually shows on the d20.
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Basically you roll to hit and add all your bonuses to hit. If the roll is a natural 20 you automatically hit and threaten a critical. If you roll a natural 19 and hit the target AC you also threaten a critical. If you roll a 19 and do not hit the target AC you miss. If you threatened a critical you roll another d20 and add all the bonuses from the previous roll. If this second roll hits the target AC you have confirmed the critical and deal the extra damage from the critical hit. This assume your weapon has a 19-20 threshold.
If the weapon has a higher critical threshold like a rapier then a natural roll of the appropriate number threatens and you roll for conformation. So if you are using a rapier then a natural roll of 18 or higher threatens a critical and you roll for conformation. If the weapon has a 20 threshold only a natural 20 threatens.
The important thing to keep in mind is that you can only critical on a hit. Since a natural 20 always hits it is always a threat.
Say a weapon requires a 19 or 20 to get a crit. I was under the impression that you had to roll a 19 or 20 on the d20 to get a crit, not add your attack bonus to what you roll.
Is there some example that makes you think otherwise? As others have said, your original impression is correct. For crits the die roll matters, for non-20 die rolls that threaten a crit you also have to hit, which usually doesn't matter (its rare that a roll of a 19 wont get a hit, but its possible).