diff --git a/doc/AMD-ASUS-XFCE-LIVE-USB-FINDINGS.md b/doc/AMD-ASUS-XFCE-LIVE-USB-FINDINGS.md
index cf2efe0c..ff5d6260 100644
--- a/doc/AMD-ASUS-XFCE-LIVE-USB-FINDINGS.md
+++ b/doc/AMD-ASUS-XFCE-LIVE-USB-FINDINGS.md
@@ -926,6 +926,34 @@ xrandr --query
xfconf-query -c xfce4-panel -p /panels/panel-1 -lv
```
+## Follow-up live XFCE command evidence — 2026-06-01
+
+After the report archive was collected, the operator ran direct `xfconf-query`
+checks in the live XFCE session before rebooting.
+
+Confirmed good state:
+
+- `xsettings` had `Greybird`, `Papirus`, `DMZ-White`, `Noto Sans 11`, and
+ `Hack 11`; global GTK/icon/cursor/font configuration is loading.
+- `xfce4-desktop` had `image-show=true`, `image-style=5`, and
+ `last-image=/usr/local/share/clawdie-iso/wallpapers/clawdie-operator-bg.png`;
+ the wallpaper config and image file exist.
+- `xfce4-panel` had the intended panel size, opacity, plugin order, and launcher
+ entries; the panel seed is loading.
+
+Confirmed problem state:
+
+- The shipped live image only had `clawdie-start` under
+ `/usr/local/share/clawdie-iso/icons/`; `find /usr/local/share/icons -name
+'clawdie-start*'` returned nothing until the operator manually copied the icon
+ into `hicolor` and rebuilt the cache.
+- The Whisker button still did not visibly change during that live-session test,
+ so the next build should stage the icon in the theme at build time and verify
+ real first-login behavior rather than relying on hot panel reloads.
+- `xfce4-mixer` auto-selected `ATIR6xxHDMI`/`Vol` even though FreeBSD selected
+ the internal Realtek speaker as the default device. The default panel should
+ not ship a mixer plugin that controls HDMI on AMD laptops.
+
## Fix-planning backlog derived from this report
This is a backlog only; solutions should be discussed separately.
diff --git a/doc/XFCE-PANEL-BUGS-HANDOFF.md b/doc/XFCE-PANEL-BUGS-HANDOFF.md
index 44785b40..58176c30 100644
--- a/doc/XFCE-PANEL-BUGS-HANDOFF.md
+++ b/doc/XFCE-PANEL-BUGS-HANDOFF.md
@@ -66,14 +66,29 @@ FreeBSD/operator side. Pass 2 only improves _proportion and uniformity_.
- [ ] `square-icons` took effect on the systray (network/mixer icons square and
uniform) — confirm the installed `systray` plugin honors the property.
+## Pre-build changes applied (2026-06-01) — Pass 3
+
+Follow-up from the AMD live report and direct `xfconf-query` checks:
+
+- **Start icon:** the live image had only `/usr/local/share/clawdie-iso/icons/*`;
+ no `clawdie-start` entries existed under `/usr/local/share/icons`. The build
+ now stages `clawdie-start.png` into `hicolor/48x48/apps` and
+ `hicolor/64x64/apps`, stages the SVG into `hicolor/scalable/apps`, updates the
+ `hicolor` cache at build time, and uses the themed icon name
+ `button-icon="clawdie-start"`.
+- **Mixer:** `xfce4-mixer` auto-selected `ATIR6xxHDMI`/`Vol` on AMD hardware even
+ when FreeBSD's default sound unit was the internal Realtek speaker. The default
+ panel now omits the mixer plugin instead of shipping a visible control pinned
+ to HDMI. Re-add only after a reliable backend/default-device strategy exists.
+
## Deletion Criteria
- [ ] Whiskermenu Start button icon is visible (not missing/broken).
- [ ] Clock plugin renders date+time in the panel.
- [ ] Clipman re-added and loads without "could not be loaded" dialog (dropped
from this build pending D-Bus root-cause).
-- [ ] Systray icons (NetworkMgr, mixer) and xkb flag icon are visually
- uniform in size — no oversized or undersized outliers.
+- [ ] Systray icons (NetworkMgr) and xkb flag/text display are visually uniform
+ in size — no oversized or undersized outliers.
- [ ] All fixes confirmed on real hardware boot (not just image inspection).
## Operator-Reported Issues
diff --git a/live/operator-session/clawdie-xfce-visuals-guard.sh b/live/operator-session/clawdie-xfce-visuals-guard.sh
index c8d01686..97a38e26 100755
--- a/live/operator-session/clawdie-xfce-visuals-guard.sh
+++ b/live/operator-session/clawdie-xfce-visuals-guard.sh
@@ -41,10 +41,6 @@ apply_panel() {
set_xfconf xfce4-panel /panels/panel-1/size uint 40
set_xfconf xfce4-panel /panels/panel-1/icon-size uint 2
set_xfconf xfce4-panel /plugins/plugin-8/square-icons bool true
- # Do not let the mixer pin itself to HDMI on laptops where rc.d selected
- # the internal speaker as hw.snd.default_unit.
- set_xfconf xfce4-panel /plugins/plugin-11/sound-card string ""
- set_xfconf xfce4-panel /plugins/plugin-11/track string ""
}
apply_wallpaper() {
diff --git a/live/operator-session/panel-skel/.config/xfce4/xfconf/xfce-perchannel-xml/xfce4-panel.xml b/live/operator-session/panel-skel/.config/xfce4/xfconf/xfce-perchannel-xml/xfce4-panel.xml
index 8acfbbc2..f72b2894 100644
--- a/live/operator-session/panel-skel/.config/xfce4/xfconf/xfce-perchannel-xml/xfce4-panel.xml
+++ b/live/operator-session/panel-skel/.config/xfce4/xfconf/xfce-perchannel-xml/xfce4-panel.xml
@@ -23,8 +23,10 @@
-
+
@@ -35,7 +37,6 @@
-
@@ -91,10 +92,6 @@
-
-
-
-