im looking to for a build to be totally based around storage. i need at least 6tb to hold me over. i current have 2tb of information i would like to keep. my question is, is it better to have say, 3x 2tb drives, or 6x 1tb drives? is there a specific raid configuration i could use to help keep my data protected from a hdd crash? i planned on using a microatx board, with 6 sata connections, so is there a particular brand that is more reliable than the others right now? i have had a hgst 2tb in an external enclosure for 2yrs now, no probs, any other hard disk manufactures live up to this? i appreciate any response at all, thanks for your time guys!

Familiarize yourself with Bit Error Rate - especially as it pertains to consumer class RAID and other storage solutions. The likelihood of a bad write increases rapidly as capacity expands.

I would not RAID drives larger than 500GB.

Cost wise, 3x 2TB - but you should mirror that.
Data loss exposure is reduced with 6x 1TB.

You have posed a query that lacks a single correct response. Regarding reliability of boards - what boards that support your port requirements were manufactured more than 5 years ago and are still available retail?