Which hard drive for digital music server?

Hopefully something cheaper will be available by the time I'm maxed out... ;)

I'm also not sure, but I may be able to get a fiber channel upgrade and a relatively "dumb" expansion case to string more drives together.

Then again, spending $3.5K on a high reliability NAS doesn't seem that offensive when you consider other high end audio gear. FBOW, it is less than I've spent on many other major components for my stereo. Even with a conservative $10 per CD, its also a lot cheaper than the 1200 or so CDs that are ripped to it. Its all about how much you value the time that it took you to rip all the CDs... I never wanna do that again.

I would observe, however, that I'm not the looniest in the asylum here. I seem to recall one member having purchased a maxed out xServe RAID, configured with seven 400 GB drives per side--6 for RAID 5 with one hot standby (about 4 TB of total storage, taking into account both sides).

I can see from the comments above why this hobby is sometimes considered a disease (audiophilia). Working as a data network engineer for 11 years now, I see no need to have a RAID 5 system in a home audio setup. Why would you want such a rapid recovery of data in a home environment where there are no customer service issues to deal with? Why would you want to keep your PC on 24/7 if you are not running a music/TV studio?

Just buy one extra external HD for backup. If you are paranoid, buy a third HD and keep it at your Mom's house (or better yet, at the Federal Reserve Bank!). Remember your CDs also count as a backup set.

Er, I've had four drives go bad on me. I definitely think RAID 5 is worth it, esp. now that you can get RAID 5 NAS boxes for under a grand. And, while my CDs are a "backup", the pain of ripping 2000 CDs is something I will gladly spend a grand not to do again... Mine tend to stay on 24/7, because they serve up tunes, and not being able to get to them fast defeats the point in my mind. Others may have a different internal calculus.