Pianoteq 9 sounds harsher than 8?

I noticed that Pianoteq 9 sounds like it has some harsher frequencies or something like subtle distortion. Here is a comparison alternating between the two (NY Steinway D Classical preset).

https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/9upr21le...h&dl=0

I wish I could describe it better but Pianoteq 8 sounds cleaner to me. I'm curious what could be causing this sort of artifact/distortion on a default preset and if there is a way to remove it to be more like Pianoteq 8. Pianoteq 9 is also slightly quieter than 8 but that's easily manageable (although strange that this would be changed between versions unless it's related to how mics work now).

Thanks for any help!