# HANDOFF — 2026-11-12 (bitrate + audio-clock fixes; sync number pending)

## State

- `main`; `b265d42` is the latest pushed commit. Everything after is local.
- **Bitrate saga closed.** An @8 stream averaged 5.1 Mbps because the args were capped VBR, not CBR
  (measured: 9 kbps vs 1951 kbps at a 2000k target on a static frame). `700c7a8` adds `-rc cbr` for
  NVENC/AMF, nothing for QSV (infers CBR from bitrate == maxrate) or OpenH264 (no measurable gain).
- Ladder `1708667` (12/10/6); floor `93719a2` (tier YouTube minimum); rate box `f2cab5c`; rate history +
  consent proposal `b0f8263`; pre-release 60 fps switch `1e3a4f7`.
- **Audio drift closed** (`47f409f`, `102cb96`, `751d9b1`): the mix is driven by the monotonic clock,
  counts only audio whose write reached the pipe, and starts its clock at session open. Measured
  across three recordings: +2.1% long → 226 ms short → 137 ms short → **lengths now match (34 ms in
  13 s)**.
- **Sync answer (measured, settled).** Mic delay ships at **0** and should stay off; with it off the audio
  path runs ~100 ms behind, so the **global** LIP-SYNC offset is **−130 ms**. Both offsets default to 0 —
  a correction belongs to one camera, never to the product (`AudioSyncSettingsTests` pins it).
- **675 tests green, 0 warnings.** `scripts/avsync.py` measures any recording in seconds.

## Next action

- Creator: set the mic delay to 350, record ~15 s, run `./scripts/avsync.py "<clip>" --crop
  764x764+1032+159`. Target: `offset` inside ±30 ms and `lengths match`.
- Then resume the queue: **40·A/C/D → Move → 9·5 → 14·16/17/18 → 66 → 67 → 68 → 69 → 70 → 36**.
- Do not push app commits absent a checkpoint request.

## Landmines

- `Assets/starting-background.jpg` is modified in the working tree, **awaiting the creator's visual
  check** — do not commit it with another unit.
- **Never read a field the constructor assigns later** (`RefreshRateProposal()` at ctor 354 reads
  `_framePump`, built at 468 — 8 failing tests, `e654a16`).
- **Never pipe a long job through `tail`** — it buffers, so a live gate looks dead, and verify's phase-3
  build writes to `/dev/null`. Use `vstest --logger:"console;verbosity=normal"`; it names the failure.
- A killed test run leaves `testhost.exe` holding `LlamaCasty.dll`; every later build then fails on the
  copy. `taskkill.exe /F /IM testhost.exe` before rebuilding.
- `ChromaKeyRealClipTests`, `AudioPipelineTests.Mix_*`, `AppLogRotationTests` and
  `NotificationAreaIntegrationTests` flake under load; each passes alone.
- Every rate change is a full encoder relaunch; rates go through `MainViewModel.EffectiveQuality`.
- `MainWindow` tests need a temporary `LayoutPathOverride` cleared in `finally`; read render numbers in Release.