Benchmark Results: Multimedia
RawTherapee
Converting RAW images to either 8-bit JPEG or 16-bit PNG formats using RawTherapee results in essentially identical times in all three variations of Ubuntu.
Blender
The Blender render benchmark gives off another round of scores, which are, for all intents and purposes, the same.
POV-Ray
Surprise, surprise. the POV-Ray scores are also identical, with no release or GUI having a meaningful lead over the other.
LAME
Encoding .wav files to .mp3 files with LAME again results in a three-way tie between the trio of Ubuntu variations.
HandBrake
HandBrake also gives identical scores to each of the three competitors.
Apparently, it really doesn't matter whether you stick with Ubuntu 10.04 LTS Lucid Lynx or upgrade to 11.04 if multimedia is your main concern.