diff --git a/CHANGELOG.md b/CHANGELOG.md
index 35761a6..c6ac32e 100644
--- a/CHANGELOG.md
+++ b/CHANGELOG.md
@@ -9,6 +9,13 @@ Follows [Keep a Changelog](https://keepachangelog.com/en/1.0.0/) · versioned wi
 
 ---
 
+## [1.9.8] — 2026-06-27
+
+### Changed
+- **Seed Finder default sentence**: updated to a longer mixed DE/EN test phrase covering numbers with dots (3.567), compound nouns, umlauts, special characters, English technical vocabulary, time formats, and motivational prose — gives a more complete picture of a voice's character per seed.
+
+---
+
 ## [1.9.7] — 2026-06-27
 
 ### Fixed
diff --git a/VERSION b/VERSION
index fee0a27..66beabb 100644
--- a/VERSION
+++ b/VERSION
@@ -1 +1 @@
-1.9.7
+1.9.8
diff --git a/static/index.html b/static/index.html
index 1b043a8..4335a7f 100644
--- a/static/index.html
+++ b/static/index.html
@@ -26,7 +26,7 @@
 
   <!-- ── Core styles (local — no CDN dependency for first paint) ────────── -->
   <link rel="stylesheet" href="/static/vendor/mdi/materialdesignicons.min.css">
-  <link rel="stylesheet" href="/static/style.css?v=1.9.7">
+  <link rel="stylesheet" href="/static/style.css?v=1.9.8">
 
 
   <!-- ── Flag icons — non-blocking (loaded async, icons appear after JS) ── -->
@@ -308,7 +308,7 @@
 <script src="/static/vendor/wavesurfer-regions.min.js"></script>
 
 <!-- loader.js: fetches sections → loads JS modules → removes skeleton -->
-<script src="/static/loader.js?v=1.9.7"></script>
+<script src="/static/loader.js?v=1.9.8"></script>
 
 </body>
 </html>
diff --git a/static/js/seed-finder.js b/static/js/seed-finder.js
index f7355dc..ea7732c 100644
--- a/static/js/seed-finder.js
+++ b/static/js/seed-finder.js
@@ -7,7 +7,7 @@
 
 // Test sentence: umlauts (ä ö ü ß), dates/numbers, and English words — reveals a
 // voice's character per seed. Used for every voice (incl. the batch run).
-const SEED_FINDER_TEXT_DE = 'Notiere dir an Midsummer 21.06. um 14 Uhr - Es ist reine Zeitverschwendung, etwas Mittelmäßiges zu tun! Schöne Grüße! — Madonna - Träume beginnt mit einem positiven Mindset.';
+const SEED_FINDER_TEXT_DE = 'Die 3.567 neuen High-End Geräte für das Server-Update benötigen eine außergewöhnlich starke Kühlung und regelmäßige Maßnahmen, um die Performance bei großer Last zu gewährleisten. - The system administrator successfully configured the customized Docker stacks and benchmarked the inference engines at exactly 8:45 AM. - Notiere dir an Midsummer 21.06. um 14 Uhr - Es ist reine Zeitverschwendung, etwas Mittelmäßiges zu tun! Schöne Grüße! — Madonna - Träume beginnt mit einem positiven Mindset.';
 const SEED_FINDER_TEXT_EN = SEED_FINDER_TEXT_DE;
 const SEED_FINDER_TEXT_MIXED = SEED_FINDER_TEXT_DE;