diff --git a/web/zebra-spaces.html b/web/zebra-spaces.html
index 500c612..760af78 100644
--- a/web/zebra-spaces.html
+++ b/web/zebra-spaces.html
@@ -4050,55 +4050,14 @@ const streamAudio = new Map();       // uuid -> <audio> pulling stream
 function streamUrlFor(pubHex){
   return SFU_BASE + '/stream?room=' + encodeURIComponent(roomID) + '&pub=' + pubHex;
 }
-/* Tap-to-resume queue: when mobile Firefox/Safari blocks autoplay
- * (auto-enrolment runs too far away from the entry-button gesture
- * for the activation window to still be alive), we stash the audio
- * element here and retry its play() on the first user touch anywhere
- * on the page. One global listener handles every queued stream at
- * once. Idempotent install. */
-const pendingAutoplay = new Set();
-let tapResumeInstalled = false;
-let tapResumeRetry = null;
-function uninstallTapResume(){
-  if (!tapResumeInstalled || !tapResumeRetry) return;
-  document.removeEventListener('pointerdown', tapResumeRetry);
-  document.removeEventListener('touchstart',  tapResumeRetry);
-  document.removeEventListener('click',       tapResumeRetry);
-  tapResumeInstalled = false; tapResumeRetry = null;
-}
-function installTapResume(){
-  if (tapResumeInstalled) return;
-  tapResumeInstalled = true;
-  tapResumeRetry = () => {
-    if (!pendingAutoplay.size){ uninstallTapResume(); return; }
-    /* The prior load was aborted by the browser when it denied
-     * autoplay; the <audio> element is in error state. Re-load it
-     * inside the gesture handler so play() has a fresh request to
-     * attach to — bare a.play() on a stuck element silently no-ops. */
-    for (const a of [...pendingAutoplay]){
-      try { a.load(); } catch(_){}
-      const p = a.play();
-      if (p && p.then){
-        p.then(() => {
-          pendingAutoplay.delete(a);
-          logLine('', 'stream resumed after tap');
-          if (!pendingAutoplay.size) uninstallTapResume();
-        }).catch(e => {
-          logLine('err', 'stream tap-retry failed: '+(e && e.message || e));
-        });
-      } else {
-        pendingAutoplay.delete(a);
-        if (!pendingAutoplay.size) uninstallTapResume();
-      }
-    }
-  };
-  /* Listen on click in addition to pointer/touch — Firefox Android
-   * sometimes denies gesture-activation on pointerdown alone and
-   * only grants it on the click event after release. */
-  document.addEventListener('pointerdown', tapResumeRetry, { passive: true });
-  document.addEventListener('touchstart',  tapResumeRetry, { passive: true });
-  document.addEventListener('click',       tapResumeRetry, { passive: true });
-}
+/* Audio activation now happens in the entry-button click handler via
+ * primeAudioOnGesture() — see below the leave/entry section. By the
+ * time auto-enrolment fires we already have the page's audio
+ * permission granted, so dynamic <audio> elements can play() without
+ * further user interaction. The prior tap-anywhere-to-resume queue
+ * is gone: it was a regression because (a) it didn't actually fix
+ * playback in many cases and (b) it added user-visible noise where
+ * none should exist. */
 async function startStream(uuid, pubHex){
   /* DON'T mute the WebRTC audio yet — if the fresh <audio>'s autoplay
    * is blocked (common on mobile after the entry gesture's grace has
@@ -4155,19 +4114,7 @@ async function startStream(uuid, pubHex){
     const p = a.play();
     if (p && p.then){
       p.then(() => logLine('', 'stream on for '+pubHex.slice(0,12)+' — DJ mode (~2s delay, glitch-free)'))
-       .catch(e => {
-         /* mobile Firefox / Safari block autoplay when the gesture
-          * activation window has expired between entry-click and
-          * auto-enrolment. Don't permanently fall back to WebRTC —
-          * queue this element for tap-to-resume so the next tap
-          * anywhere on the page retries play(). */
-         pendingAutoplay.add(a);
-         installTapResume();
-         logLine('', 'stream for '+pubHex.slice(0,12)+' — tap anywhere to start ('+e.message+')');
-         /* Keep WebRTC audible as the fallback while waiting for a tap. */
-         const w = remoteAudio.get(uuid);
-         if (w) try { w.muted = false; } catch(_){}
-       });
+       .catch(e => unmuteWebRtcOnFail('autoplay blocked: '+e.message));
     } else {
       logLine('', 'stream on for '+pubHex.slice(0,12)+' — DJ mode (~2s delay, glitch-free)');
     }
@@ -4737,8 +4684,41 @@ document.addEventListener('visibilitychange', () => {
 /* ==================================================================
  * leave / entry buttons
  * ================================================================== */
-$('btn-enter').addEventListener('click', joinSpace);
-$('rdv-code').addEventListener('keydown', e=>{ if(e.key==='Enter'){ e.preventDefault(); joinSpace(); } });
+/* Audio activation: mobile Firefox / Safari require a user gesture to
+ * allow <audio> playback. The auto-enrolment into DJ-stream happens
+ * many async hops after the entry click, well past the gesture
+ * window — so audio.play() rejects with autoplay-block.
+ *
+ * Fix: during the entry click handler, play a 1-frame silent buffer
+ * through a hidden <audio>. That counts as gesture-driven audio
+ * playback and on most mobile browsers also resumes any suspended
+ * AudioContext, granting the page audio permission for the session.
+ * Subsequent dynamic <audio> elements (the actual DJ streams) can
+ * then play() without further user interaction.
+ *
+ * Tiny WAV header + 1 sample of silence — the smallest valid PCM
+ * audio resource a browser will accept. Base64 ~80 bytes. */
+const SILENCE_WAV = 'data:audio/wav;base64,UklGRiYAAABXQVZFZm10IBAAAAABAAEARKwAAIhYAQACABAAZGF0YQIAAAAAAA==';
+let audioPrimed = false;
+function primeAudioOnGesture(){
+  if (audioPrimed) return;
+  const a = document.createElement('audio');
+  a.src = SILENCE_WAV; a.muted = false; a.volume = 0;
+  a.style.display = 'none';
+  document.body.appendChild(a);
+  const p = a.play();
+  if (p && p.then) p.then(() => { audioPrimed = true; })
+                    .catch(()=>{ /* still try the rest of join */ });
+  /* Also try resuming any existing AudioContext (meter / chime).
+   * resume() on an already-running context is a no-op, and on a
+   * suspended one it transitions to running — granting Web Audio
+   * playback permission alongside <audio>. */
+  try { if (audioCtx && audioCtx.state === 'suspended') audioCtx.resume(); } catch(_){}
+}
+$('btn-enter').addEventListener('click', () => { primeAudioOnGesture(); joinSpace(); });
+$('rdv-code').addEventListener('keydown', e=>{
+  if(e.key==='Enter'){ e.preventDefault(); primeAudioOnGesture(); joinSpace(); }
+});
 
 /* ?code=… autofills the rendezvous code (used by the share URL). The code
  * stays in the URL so a refresh keeps you in the same space; if you want
@@ -4841,8 +4821,8 @@ logLine('', 'ready — pick a handle, type a rendezvous code, enter the space');
 
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