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I heard both forms of [plain form of verb]～そう and [root of verb]～そう in an
anime I watched, reproduced below, so I'm wondering how are they different and
how to choose to use one over the other?

> 行けるそう  
>  行けそう

What are these conjugations called? And how do their negative forms look like?
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question
conjugations
What is the difference between [plain form of verb]～そう and [root of verb]～そう?
plain form + sou = hearsay, as you have heard it from someone マークはアメリカにいくそうだ。
"i heard mark is going to america"

verb stem + sou = what somethign appears to be. good example of this is "She
seems she can do it” できそう

Note, that plain form soudesu and らしい are different but very simliar. The
difference being that you heard it directly from that person as opposed to
from a 3rd party (rashii)
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answer
そう after the plain form of a verb indicates you are reporting secondhand
information, rather than your own direct observations. 行けるそう means "it is said
that it can go." The negative form is -ないそう: 降らないそうです "They say it won't
rain."

-そう after the stem (-ます form) of a verb means "looking/sounding as if ___." 行けそう means "it looks as if it can go." It is similar to constructions like 行けるみたい or 行けるよう, but -そう emphasizes evidence of the senses rather than general "seeming." The negative form is -なさそう: できなさそう "It looks as if s/he can't do it."

(Explanation paraphrased from _Japanese: The Spoken Language_ )
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answer