I like a sxs more for two reasons.
1. Every O/U I've ever handled felt heavy in my hands and carried heavier than a sxs of equal weight. Don't know why, but it just did.
2. The view down the barrels of a sxs pleases me and, more importantly, provides me a "table" upon which to place the target. If I let my thumb and ring/pinky fingers wrap around the barrels a bit, I even cup the target. (I'm going back and forth about which fore-end grip to use, but that's another story.) In other words, I like the picture I see sighting an sxs far more than the one I see sighting a O/U. Liking the sxs picture more, I feel I shoot better and, since I'm in a pleased and confident sense of mind I'm thereby more confident and therefore shoot better because I'm more confident.
And those are all the reasons anyone needs to justify any preference, I suppose.
As to the feel of history when picking up a sxs, I agree. it exists, and it's worth indulging. I have a slightly different feel with my Simson, b/c I have fired every round that went down that gun's barrels since it left the factory. With it, I hunted ducks with lead shot back when that was still legal. I've hunted all sorts of northeastern small game with it (never any quail in my neighborhood), with more or less success (mostly less). It's been a loyal friend and companion in hot, dusty cornfields, dew-covered grassy hummocks full of rabbits, and snowy grouse woods, brier tangles and fencerows, and the close alder, birch and pine mess of hunting snowshoe hare. Everyone who's seen it has admired it (even when they make a little fun of the basketweave Euro sling) and I get a little reflected glory for having made a good choice.
