If room in the bow is not an issue get the triangle sac that sits on top of the seats. I run that with the stock belly bag and 750's in the rear, I upgraded the prop and it does pretty well I run my plate with the gauge almost all the way to the back of the dial...I'm assuming almost all the way down?
My ez cruise must be broke because I don't think it's that bad at all, Sure it slows on turns but I have been on a lot of boats with PP that hold speed worse than my boat. Biggest issue is it's rpm based so I just tell ppl what rpm to set it at. And if you forget to turn it off between riders you get a dead throttle and just have to turn it off then back on.
I would suggest setting the plate where you like it and don't mess with it again, The more you move it around the more you will be chasing a good clean wake!
I love my budget boat....LOL
Moomba ....No worries