Yes, they are all S shapped. You can go through the process of getting them modified with a straight arm, although i dont know anyone personally who has done this.

Unless you are ham fisted, if you get a decent set of carts, scratching on techs will be no problem. Also, S shaped arms = less record burn which is definately a benefit with using SSL control records.

Using relative mode in SSL will mean you dont even have to worry about needles jumping.

i scratch w/ my S-shapers. it works. hehe