Cubase 13.0.30 Pro - Windows 10 (latest) - Audio glitch/interrupted when opening mixer (F3)

Never had this before, system was/is rock solid.
Small project, no CPU load but audio gets interrupted for a short MS when I open the mixer (for the first time) in the project while playback. Annoying and concerning! Anyone noticed?
Important: project must not have mixer already opened in the background. Just the project window and then hit F3 during playback.
I have a Fireface UC, 44.1 kHz / 256 samples. Wasn’t there before 13.0.30.