If a guy is going to a studio that does not have ADAT compatability then I doubt that he is going to a real studio.Go to Yahoo yellow pages and look up recording studios in your area.Enter the ones that have websites(Quality studios almost always have a webpage,although some don't).Go to the gear list for that studio as they usually have gear list so that potential customers will know what equipment they have.I am willing to bet a small amount of change that 8 out of ten studios that you will find will have some type or brand of ADAT machine thus they will have the ADAT lightpipe connection.If the studio claims to be a digital studio than it is almost a sure thing that they will have ADAT lightpipe connections on their mixer(s).The glory of using the ADAT lightpipe connection is that you do not have to go through converters when tracking which can diminish the quality of your sound.Also no matter how you route or how many pieces of equipment you go through with a digital signal your signal will always be the same as its origin(As long as you stay in digital).Analog signals lose quality the longer the chain of equipment that it has to go through. Just a bit of info hope it helps in your choice.