Yep. Good Al is better than cheap carbon anyday.

A Tiagra equipped CAAD9 opened up a can of whoop a$$
on a full carbon Ultergra 6700 equipped Planet X bike.
AND it was about 1/2 the price (Cyclist Review...U.K. Magazine).

Notice how the Bonty stem and the cheap Ebay stem that I posted are nearly identical?
Can we honestly believe that they are identical in build/quality?

The benefits to good carbon for me are ride dampening qualities in strategic places.
For some, carbon doesn't make a difference. Then there are others who swear by it.

There are some places where saving a few grams is not as important as having
a solid quality part. A cockpit is definitely (for me) one of those places.