The dumps help, depending on your exhaust side. A 3" mandrel bent exhaust system will benefit basically nothing compared to a compression bent 2.25" system.
IMO, the best way to set it up is to attach a 18" long section of 3" pipe to the back of your header collectors. Then install the cutouts there. Immediately after the cutouts, neck it down and patch it in to the rest of your exhaust system. I hear the 1.5' long header extensions help bottom-mid range power and there's no reason to make your cutouts smaller than your collector diameter.