The interface is on the wide edge, so even if the 2.3" length could fit in a 2.1"-wide 1.8" drive bay, I wouldn't be able to connect it.
Degraded RAID on emptyspaces
Sending line level audio signals over CAT5 cable only works for extremely short distances. There comes a point where the noise becomes irritating and the signal becomes quiet (certainly a problem with about 20m of cabling).
