It happens exactly the same.
I have an Honor Magic5 Pro with Android 13. The smartphone is very fast (I come from a Xiaomi Mi8 with which Poweramp worked wonderfully), I access the music folder quickly with file explorer.
Turning off AutoScan has improved it somewhat, but when I need to go into any folder (which is the way I play), it takes a few seconds for the app to respond. And also, while inside the folder, play the song.
It doesn't happen to me with other Players. But I would like to continue with Poweramp, since I have been with it for 10 years...