Squeezelite JustBoom Digi HAT

Volumio Information

Hi All,
I am having problems configuring my Justboom Digi pHAT to work with squeezelite. Default volumio sound settings mean that MPD does not send a continuous signal to the just boom and hence gives stuttering at the start of playback (due to the nature of my DAC). Is there any way in which I can keep the soundcard open? Do I need to select a different output instead of an i2s output in the regular volumio settings?
Thanks,
Olly

Volumio Version: 2.861
Hardware: JustBoom Digi Zero pHAT
DAC: SMSL Sanskrit 6th Edition