diff --git a/commons/src/jvmAndroid/kotlin/com/vitorpamplona/amethyst/commons/model/cache/EventCache.kt b/commons/src/jvmAndroid/kotlin/com/vitorpamplona/amethyst/commons/model/cache/EventCache.kt
index 4edd119a23..59c2a4a764 100644
--- a/commons/src/jvmAndroid/kotlin/com/vitorpamplona/amethyst/commons/model/cache/EventCache.kt
+++ b/commons/src/jvmAndroid/kotlin/com/vitorpamplona/amethyst/commons/model/cache/EventCache.kt
@@ -422,7 +422,6 @@ import kotlinx.coroutines.flow.buffer
 import kotlinx.coroutines.flow.callbackFlow
 import kotlinx.coroutines.flow.map
 import kotlinx.coroutines.launch
-import java.util.SortedSet
 
 /**
  * The in-memory event store: every `Note`, `User` and `Channel` the app has consumed, plus the
@@ -590,7 +589,7 @@ open class EventCache :
         }
     }
 
-    fun filter(filter: Filter): SortedSet<Note> = filter(filter) { true }
+    fun filter(filter: Filter): List<Note> = filter(filter) { true }
 
     /**
      * Every note matching [filter]'s NIP-01 fields that also satisfies [predicate].
@@ -603,7 +602,7 @@ open class EventCache :
     fun filter(
         filter: Filter,
         predicate: (Note) -> Boolean,
-    ): SortedSet<Note> {
+    ): List<Note> {
         val byKinds = filter.kinds?.filter { it.isAddressable() || it.isReplaceable() }
 
         val addressableMatches =
@@ -642,14 +641,20 @@ open class EventCache :
                 }
             }
 
-        val all = (addressableMatches + noteMatches).toSortedSet(CreatedAtIdHexComparator)
+        // toSet() before sorting: a filter that repeats a kind scans that kind twice, and the
+        // SortedSet this used to return collapsed the repeats. Note declares no equals(), so a
+        // plain Set is the same reference-identity de-duplication that comparator gave.
+        //
+        // The order is the comparator's, newest first, and it is load-bearing: the napplet
+        // gateway answers REQs out of this, and NIP-01 has relays return events newest first.
+        val all = (addressableMatches + noteMatches).toSet().sortedWith(CreatedAtIdHexComparator)
         val limit = filter.limit ?: return all
 
         // Sorted first, then cut. Both halves arrive in hash-walk order, so taking before sorting
         // dropped whichever matches the walk happened to reach last — the newest ones as often as
         // not — and a query with 200 addressable matches never showed a single regular note.
         if (all.size <= limit) return all
-        return all.asSequence().take(limit).toCollection(sortedSetOf(CreatedAtIdHexComparator))
+        return all.take(limit)
     }
 
     fun observeNotes(filter: Filter): Flow<List<Note>> =
diff --git a/commons/src/jvmAndroid/kotlin/com/vitorpamplona/amethyst/commons/model/observables/EventListMatchingFilter.kt b/commons/src/jvmAndroid/kotlin/com/vitorpamplona/amethyst/commons/model/observables/EventListMatchingFilter.kt
index c6373a1267..c46ba85e8f 100644
--- a/commons/src/jvmAndroid/kotlin/com/vitorpamplona/amethyst/commons/model/observables/EventListMatchingFilter.kt
+++ b/commons/src/jvmAndroid/kotlin/com/vitorpamplona/amethyst/commons/model/observables/EventListMatchingFilter.kt
@@ -26,7 +26,6 @@ import com.vitorpamplona.quartz.nip01Core.core.AddressableEvent
 import com.vitorpamplona.quartz.nip01Core.core.Event
 import com.vitorpamplona.quartz.nip01Core.core.HexKey
 import com.vitorpamplona.quartz.nip01Core.relay.filters.Filter
-import java.util.SortedSet
 import java.util.concurrent.ConcurrentHashMap
 import java.util.concurrent.ConcurrentSkipListSet
 
@@ -69,7 +68,7 @@ import java.util.concurrent.ConcurrentSkipListSet
  */
 class EventListMatchingFilter<T : Event>(
     private val filter: Filter,
-    private val atOnce: (filter: Filter) -> SortedSet<Note>,
+    private val atOnce: (filter: Filter) -> List<Note>,
     private val update: (List<T>) -> Unit,
 ) : Observable {
     /** A note plus the sort key captured at insertion time, so ordering never depends on mutable state. */
diff --git a/commons/src/jvmAndroid/kotlin/com/vitorpamplona/amethyst/commons/model/observables/NoteListMatchingFilter.kt b/commons/src/jvmAndroid/kotlin/com/vitorpamplona/amethyst/commons/model/observables/NoteListMatchingFilter.kt
index d2962053fd..35d395f626 100644
--- a/commons/src/jvmAndroid/kotlin/com/vitorpamplona/amethyst/commons/model/observables/NoteListMatchingFilter.kt
+++ b/commons/src/jvmAndroid/kotlin/com/vitorpamplona/amethyst/commons/model/observables/NoteListMatchingFilter.kt
@@ -26,7 +26,6 @@ import com.vitorpamplona.quartz.nip01Core.core.AddressableEvent
 import com.vitorpamplona.quartz.nip01Core.core.Event
 import com.vitorpamplona.quartz.nip01Core.core.HexKey
 import com.vitorpamplona.quartz.nip01Core.relay.filters.Filter
-import java.util.SortedSet
 import java.util.concurrent.ConcurrentHashMap
 import java.util.concurrent.ConcurrentSkipListSet
 
@@ -68,7 +67,7 @@ import java.util.concurrent.ConcurrentSkipListSet
  */
 class NoteListMatchingFilter(
     private val filter: Filter,
-    private val atOnce: (filter: Filter) -> SortedSet<Note>,
+    private val atOnce: (filter: Filter) -> List<Note>,
     private val update: (List<Note>) -> Unit,
 ) : Observable {
     /** A note plus the sort key captured at insertion time, so ordering never depends on mutable state. */
diff --git a/commons/src/jvmTest/kotlin/com/vitorpamplona/amethyst/commons/model/observables/EventListMatchingFilterTest.kt b/commons/src/jvmTest/kotlin/com/vitorpamplona/amethyst/commons/model/observables/EventListMatchingFilterTest.kt
index b28699e362..6e46771881 100644
--- a/commons/src/jvmTest/kotlin/com/vitorpamplona/amethyst/commons/model/observables/EventListMatchingFilterTest.kt
+++ b/commons/src/jvmTest/kotlin/com/vitorpamplona/amethyst/commons/model/observables/EventListMatchingFilterTest.kt
@@ -27,7 +27,6 @@ import com.vitorpamplona.quartz.nip01Core.core.Event
 import com.vitorpamplona.quartz.nip01Core.relay.filters.Filter
 import com.vitorpamplona.quartz.nip89AppHandlers.definition.AppDefinitionEvent
 import com.vitorpamplona.quartz.utils.EventFactory
-import java.util.TreeSet
 import java.util.concurrent.CountDownLatch
 import java.util.concurrent.atomic.AtomicReference
 import kotlin.concurrent.thread
@@ -65,7 +64,7 @@ class EventListMatchingFilterTest {
         sink: (List<Event>) -> Unit,
     ) = EventListMatchingFilter<Event>(
         filter = withFilter,
-        atOnce = { TreeSet(CreatedAtIdHexComparator) },
+        atOnce = { emptyList() },
         update = sink,
     )
 
diff --git a/commons/src/jvmTest/kotlin/com/vitorpamplona/amethyst/commons/model/observables/NoteListMatchingFilterTest.kt b/commons/src/jvmTest/kotlin/com/vitorpamplona/amethyst/commons/model/observables/NoteListMatchingFilterTest.kt
index a77efc8318..ba366ecb62 100644
--- a/commons/src/jvmTest/kotlin/com/vitorpamplona/amethyst/commons/model/observables/NoteListMatchingFilterTest.kt
+++ b/commons/src/jvmTest/kotlin/com/vitorpamplona/amethyst/commons/model/observables/NoteListMatchingFilterTest.kt
@@ -27,7 +27,6 @@ import com.vitorpamplona.quartz.nip01Core.core.Event
 import com.vitorpamplona.quartz.nip01Core.relay.filters.Filter
 import com.vitorpamplona.quartz.nip89AppHandlers.definition.AppDefinitionEvent
 import com.vitorpamplona.quartz.utils.EventFactory
-import java.util.TreeSet
 import java.util.concurrent.CountDownLatch
 import java.util.concurrent.atomic.AtomicReference
 import kotlin.concurrent.thread
@@ -67,7 +66,7 @@ class NoteListMatchingFilterTest {
         sink: (List<Note>) -> Unit,
     ) = NoteListMatchingFilter(
         filter = withFilter,
-        atOnce = { TreeSet(CreatedAtIdHexComparator) },
+        atOnce = { emptyList() },
         update = sink,
     )