RAID for iMac

Having given up on waiting for a new Mac Pro, I'm getting a new iMac. That means I'll need a RAID for editing. I wish the Pegasus drives spun down -- I can't stomach a drive spinning in perpetuity, melting ice caps. Anyone have experience with the Drobo 5D? Other suggestions?

Thanks , all.

Mitchell Rose
[www.mitchellrose.com]

> I wish the Pegasus drives spun down -- I can't stomach a drive spinning in perpetuity, melting ice caps.

?????
They have on/off switches, don't they?


www.derekmok.com

I'd much rather have control over when the drives spin down than have it be an automatic setting.

My software:
Pro Maintenance Tools - Tools to keep Final Cut Studio, Final Cut Pro X, Avid Media Composer and Adobe Premiere Pro running smoothly and fix problems when they arise
Pro Media Tools - Edit QuickTime chapters and metadata, detect gamma shifts, edit markers, watch renders and more
More tools...

Yep, I could use a switch. But you know how your workflow goes -- you want to just start and have your hardware come with you. Inspired to edit... just launch FCP and begin, without switching on the drive, waiting for it to mount, then running your app. Then I need to go out for a few hours but would like to come back and pick up where I left off, without having to quit the app, unmount the drive, turn it off... rinse, repeat. I know -- it's a small thing.

In the reading I've done, comparing Pegasus to Drobo 5D, I'm leaning toward Drobo. Their bays are completely flexible -- you can just put in a few drives and later add more. The drives don't have to be the same size. It's great that it can expand with me.

Drobo has USB3 which might be useful.

Drobo sleeps or turns off. Pegasus turns off. (Does turning off break the Thunderbolt daisy chain?)

Pegasus is considerably faster. Attractive. Drobo's speed should be perfectly adequate for my needs.

I'm reading a lot of anecdotal evidence from user reviews of Pegasus drive failures and subsequent bad tech support.

I'd love to hear people's experiences.

Thanks, all.

Mitchell Rose
[www.mitchellrose.com]

I've heard of guys experiencing sudden drobo failure, and I won't be too surprised with that because it is more complex than a RAID. I don't have statistics, but personally I won't want to be one.



www.strypesinpost.com

Larry Jordan just published a thoughtful review of the Drobo.

Mitchell Rose
[www.mitchellrose.com]

It seems I'm in the same boat that you were Mitchell, (8months ago that is) Just curious, what did you go with and how's it working.

Hi. I went with the Drobo 5N, and I like it very much. I put three 3 TB Seagate drives in there which I got for something like 140 bucks each. I turn it on and off a few times a day just because when I'm not editing I like my office to be perfectly silent — but it's no big deal. When I've had questions, Drobo has been very responsive. All in all, I'm a happy camper.

Cheers…

Mitchell Rose
[www.mitchellrose.com]

Good to know, I've heard a lot of horror stories about Drobo, but people are saying the 5D is a different machine.
Also considering the Pegasus R4 or J6, just wish I could use the drives I have instead of buying it with them. Pegasus seem to be the fastest plug and play array out there.
Anyone use the Areca ARC 8050 ? Looks like a reasonable option but can't find a lot of real world users that can vouch.