diff --git a/daily_sunrise_video.sh b/daily_sunrise_video.sh
index 167b0aa..febe5d7 100755
--- a/daily_sunrise_video.sh
+++ b/daily_sunrise_video.sh
@@ -253,12 +253,12 @@ $TEST_MODE && echo "Speed-adjusted: ${sped_dur}s"
 #                 Top-left:      x=18                   y=18
 #                 Top-right:     x=w-tw-18              y=18
 #                 Bottom-left:   x=18                   y=h-th-18-h*0.05
-#                 Bottom-right:  x=w-tw-18              y=h-th-18-h*0.05   (current)
+#                 Bottom-right:  x=w-tw-18              y=h-th-18-h*0.15   (current)
 #                 Centered:      x=(w-tw)/2             y=(h-th)/2
 #                 Centered top:  x=(w-tw)/2             y=24
 #               To nudge the current spot, change the "18" margins or the
-#               "h*0.05" lift (5% above the bottom edge — raise to 0.08 to
-#               clear a status bar, lower to 0.0 to sit flush at the bottom).
+#               "h*0.15" lift (15% above the bottom edge — lower to 0.05 to
+#               sit closer to the bottom, raise to 0.20 for more clearance).
 #
 #   shadowcolor / shadowx / shadowy
 #               A 1-pixel black drop-shadow @55% opacity for legibility against
@@ -299,9 +299,9 @@ if [ "${SUNRISE_OVERLAY_ENABLED:-true}" = "true" ]; then
     DT="${DT}:fontsize=h/22:line_spacing=4"
 
     # Position — bottom-right corner.  See the corner recipes in the comment
-    # block above.  The "18" values are pixel margins; "h*0.05" lifts the box
-    # 5% of the height off the bottom so it doesn't kiss the frame edge.
-    DT="${DT}:x=w-tw-18:y=h-th-18-h*0.05"
+    # block above.  The "18" values are pixel margins; "h*0.15" lifts the box
+    # 15% of the height off the bottom to clear the lower edge.
+    DT="${DT}:x=w-tw-18:y=h-th-18-h*0.15"
 
     # Drop-shadow for legibility.  Set shadowx=shadowy=0 to disable, or swap
     # for :borderw=2:bordercolor=black@0.7 for a thicker outline.
@@ -362,6 +362,28 @@ else
                 fi
             fi
         fi
+        # Live RTSP as last resort — captures current ambient sound when no
+        # pre-recorded file is available from today, yesterday, or the library.
+        if [ -z "$audio_src" ]; then
+            _rtsp_var="CAM_RTSP_${CAM_NAME}"
+            _rtsp_url="${!_rtsp_var:-}"
+            if [ -n "$_rtsp_url" ]; then
+                temp_live_audio=$(mktemp --suffix=.m4a)
+                echo "Audio: no saved file found — capturing ${SUNRISE_TARGET_SECS}s live from RTSP..."
+                if ffmpeg -loglevel warning \
+                    -rtsp_transport tcp \
+                    -i "$_rtsp_url" \
+                    -t "$SUNRISE_TARGET_SECS" \
+                    -vn -c:a aac -b:a "${CAPTURE_AUDIO_BITRATE:-96k}" \
+                    -y "$temp_live_audio"; then
+                    audio_src="$temp_live_audio"
+                    echo "Audio: live RTSP captured OK"
+                else
+                    rm -f "$temp_live_audio"; temp_live_audio=""
+                    echo "Audio: live RTSP capture failed — continuing silent"
+                fi
+            fi
+        fi
     fi
 fi
 
@@ -403,11 +425,48 @@ if [ -n "$audio_src" ]; then
         echo "Audio: mixed OK"
     else
         rm -f "$temp_audio"; temp_audio=""
-        echo "Audio mix failed — step 3b will be overlay-only"
+        # Retry once with a fresh live RTSP capture before giving up on audio
+        _mix_ok=false
         if ! $TEST_MODE; then
-            "$SCRIPT_DIR/notify.sh" "WARNING: sunrise audio mix failed $current_date" \
-                "Audio could not be mixed — continuing with overlay only" || true
-            [ "$audio_src" = "${cam_audio:-}" ] && rm -f "${cam_audio:-}"
+            _rtsp_var="CAM_RTSP_${CAM_NAME}"
+            _rtsp_url="${!_rtsp_var:-}"
+            if [ -n "$_rtsp_url" ]; then
+                _live_retry=$(mktemp --suffix=.m4a)
+                echo "Audio mix failed — retrying with live RTSP capture..."
+                if ffmpeg -loglevel warning \
+                    -rtsp_transport tcp -i "$_rtsp_url" \
+                    -t "$SUNRISE_TARGET_SECS" -vn \
+                    -c:a aac -b:a "${CAPTURE_AUDIO_BITRATE:-96k}" \
+                    -y "$_live_retry"; then
+                    temp_audio=$(mktemp --suffix=.mp4)
+                    if ffmpeg -loglevel warning \
+                        -i "$sped_video" \
+                        -ss "$audio_offset" -t "$SUNRISE_TARGET_SECS" -i "$_live_retry" \
+                        -filter_complex "[1:a]afade=t=in:st=0:d=${fade_dur},afade=t=out:st=${fade_out}:d=${fade_dur}[aout]" \
+                        -map "0:v" -map "[aout]" \
+                        -c:v copy -c:a aac -b:a 128k \
+                        -y "$temp_audio"; then
+                        work_video="$temp_audio"
+                        has_audio=true
+                        echo "Audio: live RTSP retry mix OK"
+                        _mix_ok=true
+                    else
+                        rm -f "$temp_audio"; temp_audio=""
+                    fi
+                fi
+                rm -f "$_live_retry"
+            fi
+        fi
+        if ! $_mix_ok; then
+            echo "Audio mix failed — step 3b will be overlay-only"
+            if ! $TEST_MODE; then
+                _jlog=$(journalctl --user -u sky-cam-audio-capture.service -n 30 --no-pager 2>/dev/null \
+                    || journalctl -u sky-cam-audio-capture.service -n 30 --no-pager 2>/dev/null \
+                    || echo "(journal unavailable)")
+                "$SCRIPT_DIR/notify.sh" "WARNING: sunrise audio mix failed $current_date" \
+                    "$(printf 'Audio could not be mixed — continuing with overlay only\n\naudio-capture log:\n%s' "$_jlog")" || true
+                [ "$audio_src" = "${cam_audio:-}" ] && rm -f "${cam_audio:-}"
+            fi
         fi
     fi
 fi