The rear mounted drag is more convenient to change when you are playing a fish, but the discs are larger and can be smoother when they are in the front of the reel. The new issue of Outdoor Life just named their pick for the best spinning reel as the Shimano Exsence, but that $540. price tag offends my Scottish sensibilities. Shimano does make a heck of a spinning reel though and their lower end models share a lot of the same design features as that upper end one. Their drag is the best I've used and if you are catching big fish, you need a drag that works well. Outdoor Life picked the Quantum PT Vapor at $140. their Great Buy model.
