Originally Posted by Kellen Guthrie

Assuming the holes are the same size yes the 4 hole would have less damping and be "softer". The smaller the hole the faster the shock will "pack up" because if the piston is moving fast and the hole is small the fluid will not be able to get through the hole at a sufficient rate.

The area of all the holes combined will give you how much fluid will be able to pass through the holes in the piston (negating the speed the piston is traveling). So lets say you have one piston that has 6 holes and another piston that has three holes. The area of all the holes combined is the same. They will both have the same damping when the piston moves slow. But when the piston is moving fast the 6 hole will give you more damping than the 3 hole since the holes are smaller.