Step sequencer uneven at "loop point" (host sync only)

curious if anyone has a solution for this:

i’m trying to use the step sequencer as a metronome locked to global BPM. so i’ve got the sequencer set with some basic hihat drum sounds, connected to the MIDI out port, and driving an external harware MIDI synth.

the problem is that there’s a slight “hitch” at the sequencer “loop point”. specifically, beats 2-8 occur at the correct time, but beat 1 is consistenly a little late. i.e., there’s too much time between beat 8 and beat 1, and then too little time between beat 1 and beat 2.

this problem does not occur when the sequencer sync mode is “free running”, only when it’s using host sync.