But large SSDs still seem to be really high priced.

Like I have 300TB on HDDs. The largest reasonably priced SSD seems to be the Samsung 870 QVO at like $300.

But I really don’t want to have to connect and manage 38 disks…

And at $300 per, that’s over $11,000

Meanwhile I could get 17 18TB HDDs for $3000.

Over $8000 cheaper which is a lot IMO, and 17 disks isn’t so hard to manage compared to 38 IMO.

Collecting things as a hobby has been a thing since forever.

Collecting stamps, collecting coins etc.

How exactly do you "enjoy" a stamp or coin or a whatever collection?