Happened to me with Cursed Cap just recently. I clearly had the HQ animation but didn't get a -1.
Didn't mind it too much though.
Ok, now that's a big deal ... given that they recently made major changes to the synth system, it's quite reasonable that a bug was introduced.
I don't know if it's possible to get HQ animation while where NQ ring ... any chance that could have happened here?
Most of these errors are usually user-based (I know I have my share!) but it's possible something real is going on too. Only test I can really come up with is a 50% tier recipe and see if all the animations follow the results. I think you should follow up with a GM to file a bug report.