Bill, all I can say is "welcome to the club". I know that some (or many?) on this forum will disagree, but I found that everything matters and makes a significant audible difference.
Treat yourself with good speaker cables and power cords and you'll find a new world (sonically that is).
Chris Ven Haus has a recipe for speaker cables based on CAT 5E wire.
Or you may choose to buy AudioQuest "by the foot". No frills or terminals, but bare wire works very well. It all depends on what impedance your speakers have and how much you're willing to spend.
For HT, if your speakers are 8Ohm and are satellites, AQ type 2 will give you a wonderful upgrade. I enjoy this wire thoroughly in my HT system.
For my dedicated stereo I have AQ type 8, for the speakers are 4 Ohms and the current draw calls for a different gauge.