Like BadHorsie says, look for a used amp, maybe one of the Fender Dynatouch series. Some of those sound pretty good. The Danelectro Nifty 50 got good reviews in Guitar Player and sells on-line for about $110 US - see if you can find one of these to try. I have a friend that swears by his VC508. This is an all-tube 5W amp that is supposed sound really good when cranked up. The VC508 sells for about$190 US on-line, but my friend bought his used for $125.
A multi-effector will not solve your ills, but they are a lot of fun and can give you a wide variety of sounds. I've only tried the Zoom 505 (about $100 US) and I liked the sounds. I used it mostly with a headset for practice. It was too noisy through my old Fender amp. It sounded OK through newer amps, though.
Sometime you have to put up with a less-than-ideal piece in your signal chain until you have the money to upgrade. Just have patience and watch for used equipment. There is always someone who is willing to trade.