diff --git a/KitchenSyncTouch/KitchenSyncTouch.ino b/KitchenSyncTouch/KitchenSyncTouch.ino
index 7df9bee..d04a171 100644
--- a/KitchenSyncTouch/KitchenSyncTouch.ino
+++ b/KitchenSyncTouch/KitchenSyncTouch.ino
@@ -32,8 +32,15 @@ bool      g_ap_mode = false;              // true when serving the setup SoftAP
 static void start_ap(void) {
     g_ap_mode = true;
     WiFi.mode(WIFI_AP);
-    WiFi.softAP("KSTouch-Config");
+    // ESP-044: the setup SSID was invisible a few feet from a Super Mini even though
+    // softAP() returned true. Two causes, both fixed here: AP-mode modem sleep can gate
+    // the beacon, and the Super Mini's PCB antenna is weak, so the radio must run at full
+    // power. Harmless on the Touch product board (better beacon there too).
+    WiFi.setSleep(false);
+    bool ok = WiFi.softAP("KSTouch-Config");
+    WiFi.setTxPower(WIFI_POWER_19_5dBm);   // max
     strlcpy(g_ks_host, "192.168.4.1", sizeof(g_ks_host));   // display shows this
+    if (!ok) Serial.println("[KSTouch] SoftAP start FAILED");
     Serial.println("[KSTouch] SoftAP 'KSTouch-Config' @ 192.168.4.1 for setup");
 }
 
diff --git a/tasks/ESP-044.md b/tasks/ESP-044.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..ccbe17c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tasks/ESP-044.md
@@ -0,0 +1,69 @@
+---
+id: ESP-044
+title: "Headless Super Mini: setup SoftAP invisible — force full TX power + no modem sleep"
+status: done
+assignee: null
+priority: high
+tags:
+  - kitchensynctouch
+  - wifi
+  - onboarding
+  - hardware
+depends_on:
+  - ESP-042
+created_at: 2026-07-16
+updated_at: 2026-07-16
+---
+
+## Why (the setup path was dead on the Super Mini)
+
+First-run provisioning depends on the device raising its `KSTouch-Config` SoftAP so the phone
+can join it and the app can POST WiFi creds (T-026). On a headless S3 **Super Mini**, the AP was
+**invisible to the phone even from a foot away** — the network never appeared in the WiFi list,
+so onboarding could not start at all.
+
+The trap: **`WiFi.softAP()` returned `true`.** Boot logged the AP up at `192.168.4.1`, the board
+was stable (no crash loop), and a diagnostic confirmed `start=1 ip=192.168.4.1 ch=1`. Everything
+the firmware could see said "AP is up" — yet nothing radiated usably.
+
+Two compounding causes, neither visible from the API return value:
+
+1. **AP-mode modem sleep.** The STA path already sets `WiFi.setSleep(false)` (ESP notes: modem
+   sleep drops buffered multicast so Link never receives). The AP path did **not**, and modem
+   sleep can gate the beacon.
+2. **The Super Mini's PCB antenna is weak.** These clones are known for a detuned/marginal
+   onboard antenna. At the default TX power the beacon didn't carry to a phone in the same room.
+
+Marginal USB power made it look worse (a thin cable browned the radio out on key-up and also
+knocked the USB-CDC serial link down mid-session — `esptool` reported "serial TX path seems to
+be down"). A solid data cable direct to the host removed that confound, but the AP was still
+invisible until the two fixes below.
+
+## The fix
+
+In `start_ap()` (`KitchenSyncTouch.ino`):
+
+- `WiFi.setSleep(false)` before `softAP()` — no AP-mode modem sleep gating the beacon.
+- `WiFi.setTxPower(WIFI_POWER_19_5dBm)` — run the radio at max; the weak clone antenna needs it.
+- Keep a `softAP() == false` failure log (the old code logged success unconditionally, which is
+  exactly what hid this — the return value lies about *radiated* reachability, but a hard `false`
+  is still worth surfacing).
+
+`start_ap()` is shared with the **Touch product board**; both changes are harmless there (a
+stronger, always-awake beacon), so the fix is unconditional rather than board-gated.
+
+## Verification
+
+- Reflashed the bench Super Mini (MAC `3c:0f:02:e2:b0:d4`), NVS erased + compile-time WiFi seed
+  blanked so it falls to `start_ap()`. Serial: `start=1 ... ch=1`, board stable.
+- **`KSTouch-Config` now appears on the phone** after a WiFi rescan; onboarding proceeds. This
+  was confirmed on hardware — the previous behaviour (invisible) is gone.
+
+## Notes / follow-ups
+
+- This is a bring-up-only path (no saved WiFi). Shipped units still configure through the same
+  SoftAP + web/app form, so the fix is on the exact path a new buyer hits first.
+- The invisible-AP-with-`start=1` symptom is worth remembering: `softAP()` truthiness ≠ the SSID
+  being reachable. TX power and modem sleep sit underneath it.
+- Weak-antenna variance across Super Mini clones is real; if a unit is invisible even at full
+  power, treat the board's antenna as defective and swap it (bench stock exists).