Tapes & Archiving Hardware
3 products from Symply. Prices from $192.95 to $18,331.95, including GST.
Tapes & Archiving Hardware covers LTO tape drives and data cartridges for long-term storage of camera originals, projects and backups. We stock Symply LTO-9 Ultrium cartridges, including pre-optimised tapes, and the Symply PRO XTF half-height LTO-9 archiving drive. It suits post-production houses, photographers and studios that need an offline copy kept separate from their working drives.
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SymplySymply LTO-9 Pre-Optimised Ultrium Data Cartridge Tape (18TB)
$192.95 incl. GST On backorder, dispatch date to be confirmedAdd to cart -
SymplySymply LTO-9 Ultrium Data Cartridge Tape (18TB)
$298.95 incl. GST Ships in 1-2 weeksAdd to cart -
SymplySymply PRO XTF Half Height Archiving Drive (LTO-9)
$18,331.95 incl. GST Ships in 1-2 weeksAdd to cart
Tapes & Archiving Hardware brands
About the Tapes & Archiving Hardware range
LTO-9 cartridges hold 18TB of native, uncompressed data, which is the figure to plan around for video since camera files rarely compress further. An LTO-9 drive reads and writes its own generation and LTO-8 media. New LTO-9 cartridges need a one-time optimisation the first time they are loaded, which takes a while; pre-optimised tapes have already had this done, so they are ready to write. Check how the drive connects to your computer, such as Thunderbolt or SAS, and which archive software you will run with it.
Tape is for archive, not editing: files are written in sequence, so restoring a single clip means the drive winds to its place on the tape. Use LTFS or archive software that catalogues what is on each cartridge, and label tapes clearly. Plan for two copies on separate tapes, ideally stored in different locations. Store cartridges upright in their cases, away from heat, magnets and dust, and let tapes adjust to room temperature before loading them if they have been stored somewhere colder or warmer.
Tapes & Archiving Hardware questions
How much does an LTO-9 tape hold?
An LTO-9 cartridge holds 18TB of native data. Makers also quote a higher compressed figure, but video and photo files are already compressed, so plan your archive around the native capacity and allow for file system overhead when counting tapes per project.
What does pre-optimised mean on LTO-9 tape?
LTO-9 cartridges go through a one-time media optimisation the first time they load in a drive, which characterises the tape for accurate writing. A pre-optimised cartridge has already been through this process, so it is ready to write without the wait.
Can an LTO-9 drive read older tapes?
An LTO-9 drive reads and writes LTO-8 cartridges, but it cannot read LTO-7 or earlier. If your archive includes older generations, keep a compatible drive available or migrate those tapes to newer media while you can still read them.