Reliable and affordable wireless lavalier system

I need to pick up a wireless lavalier mic system for work. We will use it for group presentations at hotels. I thought some of you might have experience with them in church settings. I don't want to save money and end up with a dog.

Anyone found systems that are reliable and not super expensive?

Anyone tried a cheap one and regret the purchase?

Thanks for any insights.

Maybe you could mention a budget? Most of this stuff, you get what you pay for, and you can look on line at Musicians Friend or Sweetwater, etc. and get an idea. I have found Sweetwater to have the best on phone folks, very helpful.

Oh, and yeah, at my church we first got the least expensive thing out there, and upgraded several times before we got stuff that actually worked as advertised.

I've had AKG WMS40 and WMS40 Pro units for about 8 years and never had a problem in a wide variety of venues. Inside, outdoors, in Church etc.

the last wireless that we bought was a sennheiser, one of the lower lines. Don't have any complaints with it. We use a Countryman element with it, seems to be a pretty good combo

I work in broadcast television, so I know a little something about wireless lavalieres. Pretty much, you are getting what you pay for. If you want reliability and good sound it is going to cost you, and in the long run it may well be worth the extra initial cost to get a system that works well and works all the time.

Lectrosonic systems are pretty much the gold standard when it comes to wireless mic systems in broadcasting. Sennheiser and Sony also make very good systems. I have a pair of Audio Technica lavalieres that are pretty good, but from time to time they do take a hit or put out white noise until the channel is changed or the transmitter is adjusted.

By the way, the FCC has sold a number of frequency blocks so be very wary of buying anything from eBay or Craigslist as it may not be useable once the channels disappear for good. Unless of course you want to listen in on cell phone conversations.

+1 on Audio Technica.