Cloud storage for 8TB of music files on an external HD

We are exactly in the center of a bunch of changing technologies. First would  I would not spend $48/month for backup. 

I was in IT most of my career. So, at home I have a main computer with 14TB, but have moved to an all Apple architecture, so I have an 8TB solid state drive attached to my MAC... two 48TB network attached storage. A cloud account with Microsoft which I keep my working data files, a couple tb. 

Anyway, for long term  storage solid state drives are not stable. So for archiving use real disc drives. I would back your stuff up to a couple attachable drives. You can get 8tb drives for a song and a dance. Then put them on the shelf.

Get a subscription to Qobuz for $12 / month and you will have access virtually every album you own and a million more. There just isn’t a reason to own files any more. Streaming sounds just as good as stored files. I have 2,000 stored albums and 2,000 vinyl albums which I don’t use any more because streaming sounds as  good or often better as they are higher resolution. 

Time to move on from owning music files. It’s a lot of hassle and not worth the time or effort. Mostly I keep all the storage for duplicate backups of my 130,000 high resolution photos. Redundancy is the key to keeping data. But cloud storage of data is the way to go for your own stuff... I have 100gb One Note database with everything from hundreds of papers on Astronomy, Geology... etc to my car titles and manuals for everything I bought and wrote about in the last twenty years. But that is just working data. I keep backups of them... well, I just don't trust anyone. I have run big data centers and accidents happen. 

Sir, 

You clearly know a lot about this issue so thanks for you for responding.  I have my music on an 8 TB HDD, not a solid state device as something is spinning around inside, all of which in my experience are prone to failure.  You mention that SSD's are not suitable for long term storage which is curious to me as inherently they ought to be more stable than "regular" spinny HD's.  

I take your point about streaming music service and have been a long time Tidal Hifi users, but I have 5.5 TB of SACD jazz files which cost a fortune which I want to keep access to and back up securely.  I can get a well reviewed 8TB SSD for about the same cost as Backblaze cost of their annual cloud storage cost so that seems the proper route to take.  

@whitestix - thanks for starting this thread 

@ghdprentice - thanks for your input.  I’m transitioning from CDs to streaming, and was wondering if I should burn my CD collection or just skip as I plan to subscribe to Qobuz and maybe Tidal.  Also, I was confused on best method to backup files.  Your IT background speaks volumes - thanks for sharing your expertise.

I’m a PC user, is there some advantage moving to Apple?

For myself, don't store ANYTHING personal and important to me on a cloud service. They can be hacked just like everything else on the net, so I don't trust them. All my music is backed up on both both disc and SS external drives along with my Sony HAPZ1ES and a 2TB drive in my Eversolo DMPA8. Here's the rub; as ghdprentice mentioned, now a days, I do the majority of my listening on Qobuz, Amazon Music, and the Sirius XM app on my streamers. I haven't used my actual music server for several months now, and I've lately started to wonder if I even need it anymore. Besides those considerations, I'm 74. Although my health is excellent,  my need for any of the things I own and treasure is predicated on how much longer I'll be around. None of my heirs will have any use for any of it.