Here speakers displaced were €5.5K/pr Qualio so hybrid open baffles mated to ported 9½" Satori box bass. The AD36 further decommissioned 250-watt Kinki monos, a dual 15" cardioid aka Ripol sound|kaos sub with Goldmund/Job 225 bass amp and icOn Gradient Box smart xover. Cheerio. What remained was the usual sidewall kit ending in Cen.Grand's DSDAC 1.0 Deluxe with analog volume controlled by remote. 6m power cords and 6m XLR made the connections. The sound reconnected with the previous showings. What had changed was the caliber of my prior reference. Here that caused a wider pre/post gap. The chill factor of energetic placidness now could ill disguise an underlying reticence of air, bite, urgency and tension. Once again tonal balance was somewhat bassy. Train's pride in his hidden small 'sub' woofer held even in our larger room. By contrast to what they replaced, the overall result simply felt a bit dull or Swiss neutral on excitement vis-à-vis our far quicker, more energetic and decisively airier Polski speakers with 25Hz bass. With no alternate presets, I couldn't adapt Train's tuning to my room and taste. Given the active DSP concept, now that felt like an even bigger miss. Don't shoot the missenger.

Further on miss, stained then lacquered Ply simply seems not commensurate with +€10K standards. A makeover without much redesign might look at self-adhesive laminates which span the gamut from brushed aluminium to faux stone or wood yet present a hard scratch-resistant surface? It's the old boutique x Big Corp schtick. We can't seriously demand that small artisans out-bling the sonus Faber, KEF and B&W of the world. Punters who refuse to make realistic allowances should know that my Kenaz loaners demanded them. By making necessary adjustments, Train should be able to meet them at least halfway.

Conclusion confusion. Adding up my impressions, I end up with a mixed bag. On its sunny side were absentee self noise, compact dimensions, practically full bandwidth for most scenarios, plug'n'play simplicity; and friendly sonics. On the shadow side paraded a very high price for an unknown offshore brand still selling Taiwan direct; a basic finish; bizarre attention deficit to end up with obviously mismatched 'port' cloths; and MIA EQ options to strip the DSP active concept of its 'smart' badge and inexplicably bin it. Sonically my ear bias heard the AD36 more in the figurative shadows than summer sun. Depending on listener priorities, this non-confrontational easy tuning could be the cat's meow because it'll never offend or exhaust. For adrenaline junkies it could be a cat's hiss and claw for lacking its own spunk and vigor. A reviewer's personal preferences step back to open the floor to divergent reactions. And even applying the very same ears and brain, the AD36's showing, whilst consistent, still dovetailed differently in my three settings. My favorite match was the upstairs.

If this had been an episode of The Hotel Inspector, Alex Polizzi would have strongly impressed upon Train to spruce up his décor, lower his rates and add personalization features. Being a 6moons review, I shall tread more lightly on a small boutique's first export hope. Train has firmly locked in his ideal sonics. This assures that we hear what he heard to a far higher degree of repeatability than we would with passive speakers. If our ideals overlay with his, this set 'n' forget proposition comes fully into its own as a sure thing. There's categorically nothing bright, sharp, forward or intense about the AD36 even where musical choices cross these lines. It's always genteel, civilized, gravitationally anchored and temperamentally unhurried. That's the opposite of a prima donna or diva. Call it the gal, guy or it next door? Given prevailing winds, 'it' really might be best. And there you have it, my honest assessment of the first Kenaz specimens outside Taiwan. Time to invoke the temporary importation carnet and send them back home…