2. As to the ragged frequency response so obvious in the bass, I had two friends accompany me pre-power cable change and the Golden Ear remastering engineer friend blurted out that it sounds terrible. He is high functioning slight autistic so he just let loose. We heard as well but didn’t know why with such great gear.
You didn't know? Every system, and I repeat, every system out there will have uneven bass response regardless of price once placed in a room. Below transition frequencies of a few hundred hertz, the room dominates the frequency response of the speakers. You can pour millions of dollars into electronics and speakers and it will not be fixed.
The cheapest and one of the most effect solution is equalization which sadly many subjectivists audiophiles don't deploy. With it, you can pull the peaks down and not only make the response more even, but also reduce the distortion from the speakers.
You can attempt to use acoustic products as well but the wavelengths are so large and energy so huge that you can barely make a dent in it < 100 Hz. By the time you put enough of them in there you room can wind up too dead which is unpleasant especially for acoustic/orchestral/big band music.
A power cord will do absolutely nothing for this as this effect (modal response). Yes, you can imagine that the bass has gotten "tighter" post such a change but it is a false impression which disappears after the psychological effect of the change is gone.
If you disagree, post a before and after frequency response measurement of your room with or without your favorite power cable.
If this knowledge is new to you, I highly suggest reading Dr. Floyd Toole's book: Sound Reproduction: The Acoustics and Psychoacoustics of Loudspeakers and Rooms
The book costs much less than the money that was wasted on said power cords.