[kontrabass]

I know some here are going to laugh at me, but I've been with Rackspace for 2 years. I have two servers with them. Quoted prices are outrageous but you can talk them down. Treat it like a car purchase and get ready to 'walk away'. Support is really very incredible. There's nothing like a dedicated mysql pro on call, ready to dig through the logs and find problems. Especially if you're trying to run the whole business yourself with no IT dept. Prior to this I'd been bouncing around with budget hosts around the whole country, and pulling my hair out every time an issue came up.

If there exists a colo facility with Rackspace-level managed support, I might consider colo. I've not found one - if servers are managed, the facility usually wants to use 'their machines' for consistency, right?. But until then it's either contract an IT guy, or just pay a bit more for Rackspace.