Mechanical disc brakes I take it? Upgrading to hydraulic will help a lot. I'd recomend shimano of at least the deore level which go for around $60 each. They don't have a knob to adjust lever reach on the fly like SLX but you can still adjust it with an hex wrench.

Shimano Deore M615 Disc Brakes & RT66 Rotors | Merlin Cycles