Aeropress: were you using the brew method suggested in the Aeropress manual? If so, yeah, that one sucks - no wonder you didn't get on with it!
If you fancy giving it another go and haven't tried it already, the general approach used by most champion baristas who use Aeropress is much hotter water (around usual brew temperatures, 90 - 96C) and the "inverted" method - see http://stumptowncoffee.com/brew-guides/aeropress/
Inverted brewing is by far the best, but if you want to stick with the standard method, buying a metal filter helps a lot. Able brewing sells a very good laser-cut stainless steel one.
If you fancy giving it another go and haven't tried it already, the general approach used by most champion baristas who use Aeropress is much hotter water (around usual brew temperatures, 90 - 96C) and the "inverted" method - see http://stumptowncoffee.com/brew-guides/aeropress/