M4 11” iPad Pro significant reduction in audio/speaker quality

I’ve upgraded from a 2018 11” iPad Pro to the new M4 11” iPad Pro and I am actually shocked by how awful the audio quality sounds on the M4. Voices especially lack any clarity, sound muffled and I’m not any kind of audiophile, but it’s nearly insufferable to listen to. Maybe I’m just spoiled by the excellent speakers on the 2018 model, but certainly a now 6 year old device should not have better speakers than the 2024 new hotness. Strongly considering returning it and living with my geezer iPad for another year. 😭

Anyone else experiencing this? Any audiophiles that could say exactly what is going on and what are the chances that a software update could fix it? Thanks!