Phoronix Test Suite is a comprehensive testing and benchmarking platform available that provides an extensible framework for which new tests can be easily added. The software is designed to effectively carry out both qualitative and quantitative benchmarks in a clean, reproducible, and easy-to-use manner.
And PTS is even available on an Ubuntu based Live-CD PTS Desktop Live 2010.1
Refs
http://lifehacker.com/5409658/pst-desktop-live-makes-performance-benchmarking-simple
http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/benchmark-your-system-with-pts-desktop-live-linux/