The difference in dent smoothness will depend upon the degree of conditioning that had been applied to the cut wire shot. With a low level of conditioning then there will be a noticeable difference in peened surface appearance. "Special conditioned" cut wire would give a difference that would be difficult to detect.
A second concern would be the chemical composition of the components themselves. Stainless steel components, for example, would generally benefit from using stainless steel shot rather than carbon steel shot. Carbon steel components, on the other hand, could suffer greater corrosion if stainless steel fragments had become embedded on peening.
