diff --git a/src/lib/components/GlobalPlayer.svelte b/src/lib/components/GlobalPlayer.svelte
index 51783a7..1293062 100644
--- a/src/lib/components/GlobalPlayer.svelte
+++ b/src/lib/components/GlobalPlayer.svelte
@@ -60,12 +60,6 @@
 
 	let audioEl: HTMLAudioElement | null = null;
 
-	// Best-effort preload of the upcoming track's URL
-	let nextPreloadHref = $state<string | null>(null);
-
-	// Dedicated preloader element to warm the connection / decode pipeline a bit
-	let preloadEl = $state<HTMLAudioElement | null>(null);
-
 	let isPlaying = $state(false);
 	let currentTime = $state(0);
 	let duration = $state(0);
@@ -110,6 +104,66 @@
 		prevIsMobile = nextIsMobile;
 	}
 
+	async function waitForEvent(el: HTMLMediaElement, eventName: string) {
+		await new Promise<void>((resolve) => {
+			const onEvent = () => {
+				el.removeEventListener(eventName, onEvent);
+				resolve();
+			};
+			el.addEventListener(eventName, onEvent, { once: true });
+		});
+	}
+
+	async function syncAndAutoplay() {
+		const el = audioEl;
+		if (!el) return;
+
+		// Centralized logic to sync and play the current track.
+		const track = snap.currentTrack;
+		if (!track) {
+			if (el.src) {
+				el.removeAttribute("src");
+				el.load();
+			}
+			return;
+		}
+
+		const desiredSrc = track.src;
+		const desiredAbs = new URL(desiredSrc, window.location.href).href;
+		const srcChanged = el.src !== desiredAbs;
+
+		if (srcChanged) {
+			el.src = desiredSrc;
+			el.load();
+		}
+
+		el.volume = snap.volume;
+
+		// If src changed, we MUST wait until the browser says it's ready.
+		if (srcChanged || el.readyState < 3) {
+			try {
+				await Promise.race([
+					waitForEvent(el, "canplay"),
+					// Add a timeout to prevent getting stuck forever
+					new Promise((_, reject) =>
+						setTimeout(() => reject(new Error("canplay timeout")), 8000),
+					),
+				]);
+			} catch (e) {
+				console.error("Audio load failed or timed out", e);
+				return; // Don't try to play if loading failed
+			}
+		}
+
+		// Now, try to play.
+		try {
+			await el.play();
+		} catch (e) {
+			console.warn("Autoplay was prevented.", e);
+			// isPlaying state will be updated by onAudioPause handler.
+		}
+	}
+
 	// Media Session bindings
 	const media = createMediaSessionBindings({
 		play: () => void audioEl?.play(),
@@ -135,83 +189,6 @@
 	// Scrubber is now driven by `bind:currentTime` on the <audio> element and
 	// `bind:value={currentTime}` on the sliders, so we don't need explicit handlers.
 
-	let isSrcChanging = $state(false);
-
-	function computeNextTrackToPreload(): Track | null {
-		// Prefer to preload the "linear next" item. For shuffle mode, we can still
-		// best-effort preload the first item in the upcoming order.
-		if (snap.queue.length === 0) return null;
-
-		if (snap.shuffleEnabled) {
-			const nextIdx = snap.order[0];
-			if (typeof nextIdx === "number") return snap.queue[nextIdx] ?? null;
-			return null;
-		}
-
-		if (snap.currentIndex == null) return snap.queue[0] ?? null;
-		const nextIdx = snap.currentIndex + 1;
-		return nextIdx >= 0 && nextIdx < snap.queue.length
-			? snap.queue[nextIdx]
-			: null;
-	}
-
-	function updatePreloadTargets() {
-		const nextTrack = computeNextTrackToPreload();
-		nextPreloadHref = nextTrack?.src ?? null;
-
-		// Also warm via an offscreen <audio> element. This may or may not help depending
-		// on browser caching policies, but it's safe and often reduces first-buffer delay.
-		if (!preloadEl) return;
-
-		if (nextTrack?.src) {
-			preloadEl.src = nextTrack.src;
-			preloadEl.load();
-		} else {
-			preloadEl.removeAttribute("src");
-			preloadEl.load();
-		}
-	}
-
-	async function waitForEvent(el: HTMLMediaElement, eventName: string) {
-		await new Promise<void>((resolve) => {
-			const onEvent = () => {
-				el.removeEventListener(eventName, onEvent);
-				resolve();
-			};
-			el.addEventListener(eventName, onEvent, { once: true });
-		});
-	}
-
-	async function syncAndAutoplay() {
-		const el = audioEl;
-		if (!el) return;
-
-		// If src is changing (set by $effect) or readyState is too low, wait until ready.
-		// This is the key fix: it respects that the $effect is asynchronously loading media.
-		if (isSrcChanging || el.readyState < 3) {
-			await waitForEvent(el, "canplay");
-		}
-
-		try {
-			await el.play();
-		} catch {
-			// Autoplay may be blocked; bail out quietly.
-			return;
-		}
-
-		if (el.paused) {
-			if (el.readyState < 3) {
-				await waitForEvent(el, "canplay");
-			}
-			await Promise.race([waitForEvent(el, "playing"), Promise.resolve()]);
-			try {
-				await el.play();
-			} catch {
-				// ignore
-			}
-		}
-	}
-
 	function onAudioPlay() {
 		isPlaying = true;
 		media.setPlaybackState("playing");
@@ -232,7 +209,6 @@
 		});
 	}
 	function onAudioLoadedMetadata() {
-		isSrcChanging = false;
 		// `duration` is synced via `bind:duration` on <audio>.
 		if (!audioEl) return;
 
@@ -520,31 +496,15 @@
 		media.setTrack(snap.currentTrack);
 		schedulePersistNow();
 
-		// Keep preload targets updated as the queue/traversal state changes
-		updatePreloadTargets();
-
-		if (!audioEl) return;
-
-		audioEl.volume = snap.volume;
-
-		const track = snap.currentTrack;
-		if (!track) {
-			if (audioEl.src) {
-				audioEl.removeAttribute("src");
-				audioEl.load();
-			}
-			return;
+		// When track changes for any reason, ensure volume is correct.
+		if (audioEl) {
+			audioEl.volume = snap.volume;
 		}
 
-		const desired = track.src;
-		const desiredAbs = new URL(desired, window.location.href).href;
-
-		// Use .src for a synchronous check. The .src property returns the resolved absolute URL.
-		if (audioEl.src !== desiredAbs) {
-			isSrcChanging = true;
-			audioEl.src = desired;
+		// If there's no track, ensure audio element is reset
+		if (!snap.currentTrack && audioEl && audioEl.src) {
+			audioEl.removeAttribute("src");
 			audioEl.load();
-			audioEl.currentTime = 0;
 		}
 	});
 
@@ -554,13 +514,6 @@
 			window.addEventListener("resize", updateIsMobile);
 		}
 
-		// Create the offscreen preloader audio element in the browser
-		if (browser) {
-			preloadEl = new Audio();
-			preloadEl.preload = "auto";
-			preloadEl.muted = true;
-		}
-
 		// Subscribe to player changes instead of polling
 		unsubscribe = subscribe((s) => {
 			snap = s;
@@ -596,10 +549,6 @@
 </script>
 
 <svelte:head>
-	<!-- Preload the next track (best-effort). We set this href reactively below. -->
-	{#if nextPreloadHref}
-		<link rel="preload" as="audio" href={nextPreloadHref} />
-	{/if}
 </svelte:head>
 
 <!-- Mobile UI is portaled to document.body so the GlobalPlayer can be mounted