I agree with the above comments, but would add that as with most things, there are no absolutes. The correct amount of mass within the context of the other design characteristics of the turntable, and ultimately the entire analog playback system is most important. In my experience, and based on my tastes and priorities, the turntables that let me get closer to the music, as they say, have been of the high mass platter type. But that is because to me, the weightier, denser, and more harmonically natural sound that heavier mass tables, as a class, seem to have is more important than the little extra bit of liveliness that the lighter mass platter turntables seem to have, as a class; sometimes at the apparent sacrifice of a little tonal richness. There really is something to the "the Linn gets your toe tapping" stuff. To my ears, there are times when recorded music needs to move very very quickly to really get close to achieving the "aliveness" of the real thing; and some tables, particularly the Linn types, allow that better than others. Some say that it is the resonances or ringing(distortion) that a table like the Linn has that gives that illusion, maybe, but I do know that many big mass tables that I have heard can sound a little like the music is a bit too under control; not expressive enough. I often miss the excitement that I hear in a table like the Linn. In fact, a Linn is probably my next major audio purchase. The idea of owning and keeping two turtables in the year 2002 makes me chuckle. I have experience with AR, Technics, Ariston, Rega, Linn, Well Tempered, Forsell, and VPI (which I own), and have heard Goldmund, Basis, Kuzma, Roksan, Meitner and others; I suspect that there are tables that I have not heard that strike a balance between these two major considerations.
By the way, I heard the Meitner at the first Stereophile show in NY, and unfortunately was not impressed. I still remember that it was one of my least favorite demos. With Acoustats and Meitner electronics there was very obvious wow; I remember being very surprised that the hosts would find that acceptable. The absence of a platter for the record to push against and thus flatten itself out, at least in part, made the playback of anything but perfectly flat records unacceptable IMO; the pitch fluctuations in the music were ridiculous. Imagine negating the benefits of clamping; it just did not work IMO.
Still nothing like vinyl.
Best
By the way, I heard the Meitner at the first Stereophile show in NY, and unfortunately was not impressed. I still remember that it was one of my least favorite demos. With Acoustats and Meitner electronics there was very obvious wow; I remember being very surprised that the hosts would find that acceptable. The absence of a platter for the record to push against and thus flatten itself out, at least in part, made the playback of anything but perfectly flat records unacceptable IMO; the pitch fluctuations in the music were ridiculous. Imagine negating the benefits of clamping; it just did not work IMO.
Still nothing like vinyl.
Best