Disclaimer
Hello everyone! I want to start by saying that Rose Technics sent me the Roseselsa Distant Mountain to check out and review. I’m not being paid for this, and they didn’t ask me to write anything in particular, didn’t review my thoughts before posting, and didn’t tell me when or how to publish it.
Everything you’ll read here is just my own personal experience with the Distant Mountain. I always try to keep things fair and objective, but in the end, it’s still just my take, and we all enjoy sound in different ways, which is part of what makes this hobby so great!
A big thank you to Rose Technics for giving me the chance to try these out, and of course, a huge thanks to you for reading and supporting what I do. It really means a lot!
Introduction
Today I’ve got something really interesting – the Roseselsa Distant Mountain headphones. Now, if you’ve followed me for a while, you probably know I’m a huge fan of Rose Technics (or Roseselsa), and I’ve reviewed quite a few of their products before (my favorite ones are the QT9-MK3 and the QT-X). I truly love what they’re doing, especially their unique approach to design, as their IEMs are the most comfortable for me, and of course, the sound tuning.
So when I saw they released these great looking, retro style on ear headphones, it definitely caught my attention, especially for its price point, which is 65$. Honestly, I love this vintage vibe they gave these headphones, as they look fantastic. But of course, good looks only get you so far, right? I’m excited to dive deeper and find out if the sound and comfort match up with their stylish appearance. Let’s get into it!
Unboxing & First Impressions
The Distant Mountain comes in a clean white box with a magnetic front flap, very good and premium looking for something that sits in the sub-$70 bracket. Popping that flap open, the headphones are front-and-center, with a thin sheet on top of them so nothing rubs in transit.
On the flap itself, there are three smaller boxes. The first one hides the braided MMCX cable; it’s a soft fabric weave with an inline control and mic. To be honest, it feels very cheap and flimsy. The second box has a spare set of donut-style foam pads, and the third box contains a mini acrylic anime girl stand. It’s not much, but it feels good and looks very nice, and in my opinion a sweet experience at this price.
Build & Aesthetics
Once in hand, the Distant Mountain feels sturdy, very sturdy. The cups are machined from metal, and the yokes and sliders are steel, but they feel a bit flimsy, and I don’t really like the feel when changing the size, and I don’t like the fact that the cups don’t rotate… The top band is wrapped in real lambskin leather, so no pleather. The whole thing gives a 70s portable vibe, but with enough polish to look modern.
In short: nice looking, protective packaging and a solid all-metal build capped off with a leather headband. For the money, Rose Technics did a pretty good job here with the unboxing experience.
Technical Specifications
Specs
- Driver – single 40 mm dynamic driver (Roseselsa calls it a “topological diaphragm”)
- Impedance – 32 Ω ± 15%
- Sensitivity – roughly 115 dB @ 1 kHz ± 3 dB
- Frequency response – 20 Hz – 20 kHz
- THD – ≤ 2 % @ 1 kHz
- Cable – 1.2 m braided cable, MMCX at the cups, 3.5 mm plug on the other end
- Extras – Roseselsa bundles an extra set of foams and it can be bought with a short Type‑C dongle‑DAC (ALC5686) with 32‑bit/384 kHz support
Design & Build
The first thing I noticed is the full metal chassis: CNC milled ear cups, a stainless steel headband, and a cool looking openback desgin that leaves the driver almost completely open to the air. A real lambskin strap over the steel band, so nothing hard digs into my head. Overall, it feels very solid for a sub $70 on‑ears.
Comfort & Fit
The set is light, and the on ear pads are kinda breathable. The headband slides in numbered clicks, which makes it easy to get each side even, and the sponge pads don’t trap heat the way pleather does. The biggest problem for me is that the cups don’t rotate, so if your ears sit at an odd angle, it can be very uncomfortable to wear, and the seal won’t be good. To be honest, that’s a pretty big con for me.
Sound Performance
Bass
Right away, the Distant Mountain’s low end made it clear these aren’t closed-backs. Because the earcups sit flat and don’t swivel, I also never get that “seal”, so sub-bass pressure just leaks. On tracks built around a big, weighty rumble, for example, “Consumed” by The Haxan Cloak, I can hear it, but I can’t feel it because of the lack of sub-bass. On tracks like “Hollow”, by Zamilska, once the bass line climbs into the mid-bass (around 100-200Hz), it snaps back with good speed and texture, fast and punchy, but unfortunately, never boomy. Maybe changing to aftermarket pads can do some good to the sound, but the stock pads definitely make it sub-bass light.
Mids
The mids are the main attraction and the main offender. There’s a big, obvious hump right around 3 kHz. On tracks that show energy around this region, it can sound too sharp: Ashley Barrett’s voice, in “In the Blood”, stands out of the mix with very upfront clarity and sparkle. But on the flip side, it sometimes becomes too sharp and forward, so I have to listen to it at a lower volume. I end up riding the volume or lowering this region with EQ, just to keep things in check. That said, when the mix isn’t overcooked or with active EQ, the vocals have a nice front stage, and all of a sudden I can listen without getting piercing moments.
Highs
Treble follows the same bright-leaning curve: cymbals and string harmonics jump out in a way that feels airy at first but can cross into splashy. The higher-pitched vocals in “Ezio’s Family” by Jesper Kyd ride that thin line between crisp and hiss. Though sometimes I actually do welcome that extra bite for added detail and better extension. Pairing the Distant Mountain with some EQ will smooth the peaks without killing the air, so that’s what I would suggest for the best results.
Technicalities
Here’s where these retro cans surprised me. Because of the more forward mids and treble, there are more details to find. Listening to “Rust” by Hans Zimmer and David Fleming, the instruments feel very alive, airy, and full of details. Depth isn’t cavernous, but it’s enough that back-row strings in an orchestral piece don’t smear into the front and remain dynamic. Imaging is pretty nice: the instruments in “Retreat and Reveille” by Hans Zimmer are located in different places on the stage, and I can really feel where each instrument is located. The trade-off is layering under stress: throw on a dense mix, and once that 3 kHz spike pushes in, inner lines blend sooner than what I would like to. Still, for a $65 on-ear, the separation and overall resolution are pretty good.
Conclusion
After spending some time with the Roseselsa Distant Mountain, I’ve ended up with mixed but mostly positive feelings. On the outside, they absolutely nail that retro-portable vibe, with real leather up top, solid metal cups, and a very nice look. The build could be perfect only if the earcups could swivel and the adjustment steps were smoother, but for what these cost, the overall presentation is quite nice.
Sound-wise, the Distant Mountain is on the bright side. The forward 3 kHz bump gives vocals a front-row seat and pulls out all sorts of micro-detail, yet it can get shouty pretty fast. A tiny EQ dip fixes that, and once it’s tamed, mids sound cleaner and more “right”. Treble carries the same crisp and airy energy, occasionally splashy, so again, a bit of tweaking can make it so much better but at the same time keep the details and the nice extension. Bass is the obvious weak link: with no swivel and thin stock pads, the seal is never great, so sub-bass never really rumbles. What’s there is quick and textured, just not very deep bass. Pad swaps or thicker foams might help, but straight out of the box, bass heads will want more.
Where these cans genuinely surprised me is in their details and imaging. For a $65 on-ear, the instrument placement is, frankly, impressive. Layering collapses a bit once a dense mix meets that mid spike, but mostly I’m still grinning at how detailed they sound for the price.
If I’d had a Koss Porta Pro or KPH40 on hand, I’d love to run them head-to-head; those are the obvious benchmarks in this class, but sadly I don’t own either right now. My gut says the Distant Mountain would trade a bit of low-end warmth for a more airy presentation and sharper detail, but that comparison will have to wait for another day.
Bottom line: If you’re after an eye-catching, beautiful and well-made set of on-ears that is bright-sounding and detail-first, the Roseselsa Distant Mountain can be a fun ride; just be ready to EQ that 3 kHz spike and accept that the deepest bass notes aren’t really there. For casual listening, podcasts, and anything vocal-centric, they are a solid value.
Pros
- Beautiful retro look.
- Well made, with solid metal cups and a real leather headband.
- Mids and highs are very detailed.
Cons
- That big 3 kHz spike can get shouty fast.
- Cups don’t swivel, and the sliders feel flimsy.
- Sub-bass light.
