Catted X vs Stock H pipe review

So in trying to fix my exhaust leak with the BBK headers. I swapped out the maganaflow catted X and put the stock H back on. Swapping the pipes didn't fix the issue and it seems to be a bad weld in the headers. Now onto the review/comparison.

1. Volume

There is not that big of a difference volume wise. They are about the same with the H just being a little more quite but not by much.

2. Tone

The H has a deeper more old school sound. You can especially hear the difference on deceleration and WOT. The X has a more exotic sound with a higher note to it. As far a drone I think there may be a little less with the H pipe but its not that big of a difference. After switching back to the H I much prefer the sound of the H over the X.

3. Performance

From what I can tell it seems to hold true that an H gives you more tq down low. She seems to pull harder off the line. Also seems to have more mid end tq also. I was playing around cruising in 3rd at 3,000 rpm and then just stab the throttle and she would jump forward. I use to do the same with the X pipe and the H seems to just push you back in the seat more. As far as WOT goes I can't seem to notice a difference. An X is supposed to give you a little more HP up top but again I couldn't tell.

Verdict

First I will say I love the sound of the H over the x. Second the H seems to give you more tq down low. Third I wouldn't waste money on an aftermarket catted H or X pipe. Ford did a good job with the stock H on the S197s. So in the end I'm selling the X pipe. The nice thing is I bought it used with only 3000 miles on it so I should be able to get back the same I paid for it. Next year I'm going with Kooks LTs and there catted H pipe.