If sense let me go 5x5 home screen I'd be all over it. Unfortunately, the launchers spoiled me in this regard and now I can't stand the look of 4x4. It's like going from 1280x728 to 800x600 on a desktop for me lol. I'll stick with adw for now, I do however miss the fluidity of sense on this phone.
I feel that Sense is special in this regard. For being the "heaviest" of the skins, it feels the smoothest and packs the most features.
I don't like the space between icons on 4x4 either, but I doubt a fix is in the works until Sense 4.0 or ICS. For the meantime, I can live with it.