jroutma: Adaptec are the kings of standard host adapters, but they're lagging a bit behind in the RAID controller segment. Here are the results of a round-up i saw lately (in a french mag):
* LSI Logic / MegaRAID Elite 1650 : best all-around, admin software not working with Linux (but the controller is working OK). Lots of very good options, great performance, etc. The only bad point is it scans the disk array after each configuration change.
* ICP Vortex / GDT 6523 RS : no RAID 3, good software, admin software working perfectly with Linux. Bad point = registry hacking is mandatory to get it to work (covered by user manual).
Mylex and Adaptec controllers finished last...
RAID is a different beast
And i've seen many other reviews that lead to the same results -> it seems LSI Logic is the way to go. ICP Vortex use an Intel chip and seems quite good as well.
Besides, Adaptec boards are known to be very touchy about PCI clock settings.
The source article is here (put it in babelfish if you cannot read French...):
http://www.01net.com/rdn?oid=191763&rub=3345