Crown Audio CM-700 Cardioid Condenser Microphone has a very smooth, wide-range frequency response which gives it a natural sound. It preserves the delicate timbre of acoustic instruments, yet it can reproduce all the power of a pipe organ. The off-axis response is also smooth, so any leakage picked up has little coloration.

Because of its cardioid pickup pattern, the CM-700 reduces background noise, room reverb and feedback. The cardioid pattern is uniform with frequency. Self-noise is very low, permitting clean, noise-free recordings. The mic can handle extremely loud sounds without distortion. It is protected against static and RFI. The output is balanced, low impedance, which allows long cable runs without hum pickup or high-frequency loss. Powering is by 12- 48V phantom power.

Several audiophile touches enhance the mic's pristine sound quality: an ultralight diaphragm, humbucking transformer, polycarbonate capacitors and a gold-plated 3- pin connector. The CM-700 has a bass-tilt switch with three positions: flat, low-cut and roll-off. An included 2-stage foam pop filter softens breath pops, and a foam windscreen reduces wind noise outdoors.