I guess whether the cheese is softer or harder, depends on your preferences. With mine, the less I stir the curd the softer the resulting cheese is. Interesting to see that the pH also plays a part in this. My recipe only gives a pH for the brine, so I am going to have to take some readings and see what I get.
But I prefer a softer cheese as it cuts nicely when adding to salads, and also mashes well when added to other cooking. As I have said before I also prefer the lower brine % of 12%, and have kept cheese easily for at least six months without any spoilage.