A system stores data on a plurality of parallel magnetic tape tracks. Error protection is based on a frame-wise product code that has first code words defined in a single track and second code words defined in a recurrent cycle around all tracks. In a read mode the system drives the tape in a first closed servo loop while synchronizing by the data handling, and in a write mode in a second closed loop under control of motor feedback. The tape driver has a bidirectional buffer for framewise buffering data between the tape and an application, whilst interchangeably presenting either an amble frame or a data frame to the tape. The system allows an application to handle data framewise bidirectionally viz à viz the tape driver. Extra error protection is gained by a Reed-Solomon code operating on a uniform symbol series across a plurality of successive frames without reference to amble frames, and assigns all redundant symbols produced thereby on exclusive-redundancy frames.