9.0.x sound quality.

[muddiver]

Hi folks,

i am wondering why a Linux-Kernel or a new version could affect the Sound-quality..
As far as i know, the DAC-Hats, both amplifiers and analog out, get the audiostream via the I²S-Interface on the Raspberry Pi GPIO header.
The sound is still in digital condition while being transfered to the hat. We can affect things like using equalizers by manupilating the stream, but the magic happens in the DAC.

Please correct me when i'm wrong, but the only hearable difference with the new Version 9 is,
that when i connect my Player to a Bluetoothdevice, and the source aka the playing app changes, i hear a cracking noise.
I had that in Moode 8 too, but far less often.
I read an article about pipewire, and the summary was, that pulseaudio had a time after the streamstart where the cracking sound was "swallowed" by latency.
Pipewire seems to be quicker, what results in cracking noises when changing the source..

At last, i wanted to state, that i don't want to start an audiophile fight or blame someone, i just want to understand the system a bit more..

Thanks in advance!, Tomas