diff --git a/drb-c2-core/app/internal/storage.py b/drb-c2-core/app/internal/storage.py
index db64040..18af633 100644
--- a/drb-c2-core/app/internal/storage.py
+++ b/drb-c2-core/app/internal/storage.py
@@ -44,11 +44,33 @@ def _safe_audio_filename(filename: str, call_id: str) -> str:
     The original extension is preserved only if it's a known audio type.
     """
     ext = os.path.splitext(filename)[-1].lower() if filename else ""
-    if ext not in (".mp3", ".wav", ".ogg", ".m4a", ".aac", ".flac"):
+    if ext not in AUDIO_CONTENT_TYPES:
         ext = ".mp3"
     return f"{call_id}{ext}"
 
 
+# Extension → Content-Type. The node used to send nothing but 16 kbps MP3, so
+# "audio/mpeg" was hardcoded at every point audio is written or served; it now
+# sends FLAC (lossless, for Whisper's benefit — see call_recorder.py's AUDIO_*
+# constants) and a stored object mislabelled audio/mpeg will not play in a
+# browser. Old .mp3 objects keep working: the map is keyed off the real
+# extension, not off what the current node happens to produce.
+AUDIO_CONTENT_TYPES = {
+    ".flac": "audio/flac",
+    ".mp3":  "audio/mpeg",
+    ".wav":  "audio/wav",
+    ".ogg":  "audio/ogg",
+    ".m4a":  "audio/mp4",
+    ".aac":  "audio/aac",
+}
+
+
+def content_type_for(name: str) -> str:
+    """Content-Type for a stored audio object, by extension. Defaults to MP3."""
+    ext = os.path.splitext(name or "")[-1].lower()
+    return AUDIO_CONTENT_TYPES.get(ext, "audio/mpeg")
+
+
 async def upload_audio(data: bytes, filename: str, call_id: str = "") -> Optional[str]:
     """Upload audio bytes to GCS and return the canonical gs:// URI, or None if disabled."""
     if not settings.gcs_bucket:
@@ -65,7 +87,7 @@ async def upload_audio(data: bytes, filename: str, call_id: str = "") -> Optiona
         else:
             client = storage.Client()
         blob = client.bucket(settings.gcs_bucket).blob(blob_path)
-        blob.upload_from_string(data, content_type="audio/mpeg")
+        blob.upload_from_string(data, content_type=content_type_for(safe_name))
 
     try:
         await asyncio.to_thread(_upload)
diff --git a/drb-c2-core/app/routers/media.py b/drb-c2-core/app/routers/media.py
index 09de51a..67a35ad 100644
--- a/drb-c2-core/app/routers/media.py
+++ b/drb-c2-core/app/routers/media.py
@@ -13,7 +13,7 @@ service-account private key on the VM — is involved anywhere in this path.
 """
 from fastapi import APIRouter, HTTPException, Query, Response
 from app.internal import firestore as fstore
-from app.internal.storage import verify_audio_link, gcs_uri_for_call, download_audio
+from app.internal.storage import verify_audio_link, gcs_uri_for_call, download_audio, content_type_for
 
 router = APIRouter(prefix="/media", tags=["media"])
 
@@ -42,12 +42,18 @@ async def get_call_audio(
 
     return Response(
         content=data,
-        media_type="audio/mpeg",
+        # Was hardcoded audio/mpeg. The node now uploads FLAC, and a browser
+        # will not play a FLAC body labelled audio/mpeg. Derived from the stored
+        # object's extension so old .mp3 recordings keep working unchanged.
+        media_type=content_type_for(gcs_uri),
         headers={
             "Content-Length": str(len(data)),
-            # Recordings are small (16 kbps mono — a 30s call is ~60 KB), so the
-            # whole body is sent at once and the browser seeks within its own
-            # buffer. Range support would only matter for long files.
+            # Whole body at once, no Range support. This was comfortable at
+            # 16 kbps mono (~60 KB for a 30 s call); FLAC is ~1.3 MB/min, so a
+            # long call is now tens of MB and the browser must download all of
+            # it before playback starts. Acceptable for typical few-second
+            # transmissions, but this is the change that makes Range support
+            # actually matter — see DEFERRED.md.
             "Accept-Ranges": "none",
             # Immutable content, but the URL expires — cache privately only.
             "Cache-Control": "private, max-age=3600",