3" pipes or 2 1/2' with cutouts?

I was running open TTI headers with extensions for several years. A few years ago I installed a 3" TTI X-pipe connected to 3" Dynomax Ultraflo's ending at the rear end housing. After a little carb tuning and removing the 60 lbs that the system added from elsewhere in the car to get the car back to its previous weight, it was at least several hundredths faster than before!
It worked for my combo. As the fine print usually says: "Your results may vary."

I've gotten several compliments from the open header guys and I can just hear my Holley blue pump at idle. Why bother with cut-outs?