Been looking around for the last few weeks at the various wireless options which are priced significantly below the RodeLink, there are a surprisingly large number of them!! :-o

Unfortunately many of these ones are no good, but on the upside it appears wireless has taken great strides forward (all 5 of these wireless sets mentioned are only roughly a year old or less on the market), and I've narrowed it down to four which are cheaper than the RodeLink yet look appealing from what I can gather (here they are listed from cheapest to priciest):

Boya BY-WM6 vs Azden PRO-XD vs Saramonic UwMic10 vs Audio-Technica ATW-1701L

Boya BY-WM6

Is the cheapest of the four by far at only US$140 with free shipping. It uses the 584 MHz-608 MHz frequency range. Includes an XLR output cable. Runs on two AA batteries with a claimed run time of 8hrs. Comes with a portable case for the set. RX has a headphone jack.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/For-Boya-BY-WM6-Lavalier-Wireless-Microphone-System-For-ENG-EFP-Canon-Sony-DSLR-/282001404702

Azden PRO-XD

Second cheapest of the three at US$199 with free shipping. Uses 2.4GHz wireless. Uses an internal battery (can't swap it out.... hmmm... a downside! But on the upside, it is the slimmest of the four, which is a bonus for a wireless system). Battery life is meant to be an impressive 16hrs (with a 3hr recharge time). Has a headphone jack on the RX. Internal batteries are rechargeable over USB (can see this being useful for bag use, to keep all the RX units charged up from a USB power pack. However careful battery management during the shoot will be needed with the TX units)

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Azden-PRO-XD-2-4-GHz-Digital-Wireless-Lavalier-System-/171940834701 http://www.4kshooters.net/2015/11/11/azden-pro-xd-new-budget-digital-wireless-microphone-system/ http://cheesycam.com/azden-pro-xd-2-4-ghz-wireless-lavalier-microphone-system-just-199/ http://www.learnlightandsound.com/blog/2015/10/26/good-budget-wireless-lavalier-azden-pro-xd

Saramonic UwMic10

If you squint they look almost the same as the Sony UWP-D11 sets! (it even has an XLR TX option like Sony does with the Sony UWP-D16. Which I am really looking forward to using on the boom pole, to get rid of the cable)

But the Saramonic UwMic10 costs half the amount of a Sony UWP-D11. As it is US$270 plus taxes/shipping to NZ (which does then significantly increase its cost, unfortunately). http://www.saramonicusa.com/products/saramonic-uwmic10-digital-uhf-wireless-lavalier-microphone-system-with-bodypack-tx-and-portable-rx http://www.dslrfilmnoob.com/2016/02/28/saramonic-uwmic10-dual-body-pack-2-channel-receiver-now-out/ http://www.dslrfilmnoob.com/2016/02/15/saramonic-uwmic10-dual-channel-uhf-wireless-system-review/ https://lensvid.com/gear/saramonic-uwmic10-uhf-wireless-lav-review/

The Saramonic is I think the system I'd like to go for, but once the final cost is worked out it ends up pushing up uncomfortable close to the RodeLink to really truly be a "cheaper option than a RodeLink" by a significant margin. Plus it is such a new item to the market that none of Adorama/B&H/Amazon.com are selling it, maybe I should revisit this item in a couple of months time and see if this has changed.

Audio-Technica ATW-1701L

Cheapest price now is $330.79: http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1060929-REG/audio_technica_atw_1701_l_system_10_digtal_wireless.html

But it was merely US$220 at Adorama only a month ago: http://dealnews.com/Audio-Technica-Camera-Mount-Microphone-System-for-220-free-shipping/1618268.html

I think that the current prices for the ATW-1701L are just a little too high right now, as it puts it too close in price to a RodeLink, so not much savings there. But if ever see it at that sale price then I'll buy one (two even!) in a heartbeat! http://soundandpicture.com/2014/12/audio-technica-system-10-camera-mount-wireless-review/

Well, I think this now is complete survey of the "good options" which are cheaper than a RodeLink. I've surely left out a few other possibly interesting options, and feel free to point out anything important I've left out, but what I'm left wondering now... is which of these four should I pull the trigger on and buy? Open to any thoughts on my options!