Hi kariomart,
No, it should not be needed at all. It should work. Please have a look below.
I have filled out a report and hope it will improve.
I had to stop last night at midnight, as we had our first meeting at 7 am (L.A. time). Now, I try to catch up after a busy, long day.
I explored your file a little bit more. So, here is my suggestion: it might render longer, but it needs a higher Sample radius for this file.
Try "eight" as the start value and measure in the Picture Viewer (CMD+Right mouse down) with the Alpha in the view.
Screen Shot 2023-12-12 at 7.16.06 PM.png
That should work; if not, "ten" seems stable. I have not tested the whole file; I have only a laptop here as the fastest machine.
Sorry for all the waiting time.
My best wishes for your project