Suspended vs. non suspended turntable

I'm sure if you take away any part that was designed in there will be a change. That's true of any table. Because a particular table of either design doesn't work in one situation does not invalidate the design philosophy in any way. Even within the same camp, be it suspended or not, there are some tables that will deal with a particular setup issue better than others. Same with every other component in a system. That's why there are few easy answers in this hobby.

If one has a suspended wood floor that could cause footfall problems, then a light suspended table would not be ideal. I've seen situations where the footfall causes such tables to go into prolonged oscillation and for the tendency for skipping to be worsened by the suspension.

My own personal preference is for heavy suspended tables. Such tables may seem "dark" and lacking in dynamics to some, but, to me, the good dampening of such tables results in quiet backgrounds, honest, accurate reproduction -- the extra juice in lightly suspended tables and some non-suspended tables becomes more akin to "noise" after extended listening. For the same reason, I like good record clamps and vacuum hold-down even more.

"I'm sure if you take away any part that was designed in there will be a change"....Could not agree more!
One of my good friends,who is a very experienced hobbyist,alweays claims(humorously)that even if one was to "put a banana" on the top of a speaker,it's presence would be heard!-:).....I love that statement-:)
The only "easy answer" to this hobby is...."it's fun"!
Best.

Some high mass unsuspended tables (like mine) work great on some springy wood floors (like mine). Other high mass tables on other floors might, or might not.

A suspended table also might, or might not, work well on a springy floor. It depends on the resonance frequency of the table and the frequency of vibrations coming from the floor. There is certainly a risk of interaction though.

Like Larryi, our preference is for the black backgrounds, solid bass and full dynamics of a high mass, unsuspended table. Getting "pace" or "prat" or "liveliness" by moving the table around beneath the cartridge is adding something to the music that's not in the grooves. After all, the cutting lathe was not mounted on some springy device.

True isolation in the playback environment is complex, individual and thus difficult to achieve with any non-tuneable, off the shelf solution. There's no pat answer to this one.

For what it's worth, Pierre at Mapleshade goes so far as to recommend replacing the springs on suspended tables with his brass cones - evidently another vote for non-suspended tables.