Yes, sync cables do work, and work well for one light setups to get the flash off the camera, and it's what I used for years with film and flash bulbs. We have come a very long way in photography and lighting since then. I'm on my third generation of radio flash triggers now, and will never go back, to even the last generation. This photographer's job is just so much better and simpler now. You can even use sync cables with Godox speedlites and transmitters, if you desire to link other brands of lights to the Godox equipment, but you will need to manually adjust these other lights by going to each of the other lights. All Godox lights can be triggered via infra red light too, so even the small pop-up flash on the cameras can trigger them, if nothing blocks the camera light. For me, I'll stick with my Godox X System. It's the most reliable and cable free way that I've ever used.
Speedlites frequently come with plastic diffusers that slip over the face of them, or you can buy them separately for many, and I have used these when a soft box is just too big for the occasion. These do a pretty good job of spreading and softening the light when you are in tight places. I also have two 15" square soft boxes, plus two 6 X 6" mini soft boxes that just slip over the speedlites for use when "smaller" is needed. As with cameras, your best choice is what you have with you, and you make do with what you have. Do your best to pick what will work for your budget and situation.
I chose Godox for my transmitters, speedlites, and studio lighting because it's reasonably priced, very reliable, and they offer both speedlites and studio lights that all work on the same communications system, so I can even mix using them if I should want to. Yongnuo has great transmitters and speedlites at reasonable prices too, but I haven't seen them offering any studio lights, yet (well, I've stopped looking for alternatives now.) Even at Godox prices, I have about $3,000 in lighting (speedlites, battery packs, monolights, and communication) invested in Godox and Flashpoint (rebranded Godox) so far. I recently added a Fujifilm camera to my herd, so now have a third Godox X Pro transmitter plus the X2Tc transmitter that I used when transitioning from my old lights to Godox/Flashpoint. It's now in my field kit with the 5 speedlites and other portable equipment and the X Pro transmitters are on each of my cameras.
Charley