Quick question on 50btc features like "Stratum"...

Does the pool automatically adjust what it sends the client, say, if they are using ASIC hardware?
Or do you need to set up and/or launch your miner different or with different settings?

I am mining on 50btc with a hashrate of about 5.7 GH/s with cgminer v3.3
I see on the webstite where you can adjust difficulty, that is independent of stratum, correct?