Outer Platter Rings

 Outer rings are nice when you have a record that is a little warped. I am sure this is probably very table dependent. But on my Clear Audio Innovation Wood, I prefer the sound without the outer ring. To my hear the ring deadens the sound a tiny bit.

Ok, so there are positives like flattening the record and more controlled bass, but also contradictory results like increased soundstage and deadened sound. 

lostbears: Which model ring do you use?

I had a ClearAudio Ring. But after a while, I used the ring so little that I just got rid of it. It gets to be a pain if you use it often. The ring is large and heavy. You have to remove it and set it somewhere every time you change or turn over a record.

Ok here's what I found with my TTW outer ring.....
If you use ANY compressible platter mat on your turntable....it simply kills the dynamics. The 'air', transparency and 'life' of the recorded performance is simply suffocated.
It does however flatten warped records 😎
If conversely you use no platter mat but place the record directly on the platter (or use a solid metal platter mat)....the outer ring tends not to then rob you of those vital ephemeral nuances.
As I have but two or three discs warped badly enough to warrant 'flattening.....the ring is rarely utilised.

If conversely you use no platter mat but place the record directly on the platter (or use a solid metal platter mat)....the outer ring tends not to then rob you of those vital ephemeral nuances.

But is there a sonic benefit in this situation, apart from flattening records?

So if there is a benefit from a ring, it's very dependent on the material underneath the LP, i.e., the platter or platter mat. Miner42 above gets a benefit with VPI Aries 3, which I think has an aluminum platter presumably without a mat.