Greetings,
I have been using Ubuntu and Linux Mint exclusively for the last few years. However, I'm thinking of switching to a different distro base, becasue I don't think Ubuntu is entirely stable (I've experienced regular crashing with the last few releases of Ubuntu). Although Mint has never crashed on me, it still sits on the rather shaky Ubuntu base, and I'm a little leary and weary...
Regardless, I'd like to try something else other than Ubuntu and Ubuntu-based distro's, however, they have to be a "everything just works right out of the box" distro (similar to Mint and Ubuntu) and currently have my eye on Manjaro Linux (Arch based), Korora (Fedora based), Chakra (formerly Arch based-now independent), I've also heard that Debian is now much easier to install too, and if true, would makes it more Novice and casual user-friendly.
What would I gain by moving over to each of these distros and what would I lose?

Thanks

Generally, there is a compromise between stability and having up to date software versions. If you went for the stable version of Debian, you'd find it rock solid and working 99% of the time, but you'll notice alot of packages are not upto their latest versions when compared to a recent release of Ubuntu (for example). It all depends what you are using the computer for, your hardware, etc.

You could always try using the LTS (long term stable) releases of Ubuntu, while packages are updated less often similar to Debian's stable branch, it should perform better in terms of stability. By the way, Linux Mint now uses the Ubuntu LTS as its base. So i would imagine Mint should be quite stable with 17+ onwards.

That depends on which angle you look from. If switching to something more stable but equally "user friendly"; the gain is a more reliable system, but the lose is lacking the need to learn a little. So if your viewpoint is strictly from ease of use, one of Debian's non-Ubuntu derivatives or one of Slackware's derivatives, would be all gain. If, however, your viewpoint is from the perspective of wanting to learn at least a little, it would be a little gain and lots of lose. If your viewpoint is from the perspective of a reliable, stable system that will also facilitate learning a little about the system, OSes like Debian and Slackware would be all gain and no lose. I hope that is not confusing.

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i think it boils down to this:
do you want to get involved with the workings of your operating system or would you rather spend your computer time on other things?
they talk about "steep learning curves" - i am much more comfortable with setting a system up myself, something that would have freaked me out a year ago. but is that really what you want?
however, that is how linux started.
these days many, many distros try to be suitable for non-geeks - but most of the non-geeks start to dabble anyway, maybe because someone told them that "it is so easy to customize everything, unlike with windows". until something breaks.

when you search distrowatch.com, there's a category "for beginners" but no category "stable" - strange. maybe a server distro tends to be more stable.
debian has a stable branch, but still many newbies choose testing because they can't bear the thought of not having the newest version of apllication xyz. testing is not stable.
ubuntu (and many others) have started catering to these conflicting needs.

so really you have to ask yourself.

to literally answer your question: "What would I lose by leaving Ubuntu for some other distro?" - "your newbie status!"

When I moved from Ubuntu to like AntiX. All I lost was processes running which made my laptop run faster.

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If you're used to a Debian-based distro you might like to stay with one. You could just use Debian Stable, if you like Gnome. Otherwise there's AntiX MX with Xfce, Point with Mate, or WattOS with LXDE.

If you'd like a change, PCLinuxOS is nice. It's rolling release — install once and update monthly — but it tries to keep stable and it's very much aimed at the ordinary home user. Both the default KDE and the Mate versions run well.

Then there's Salix: Slackware with lots of extra programs and configuration tools.

See my reviews on this site, or the ones listed at Distrowatch.

PS The LTS versions of Ubuntu and Mint are just that — long term support. They do not have any more testing or any fewer bugs, although they do have more time to remove the bugs after the release.

You would lose bloat and you would win stability. Give other distros a try for sure.

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The best way to try other distros is to boot them live and use them for a while to determine if they have the available softwares to suit your needs. Note also that if you boot off of a rewritable media that you can install software into your live distro and it will be there, etc for each boot.

As you may be able to see from my info description, I use both Ubuntu and MINT and have very good stability on both of them. What "regular" crashes are you experiencing and with which versions? As coralfang states, it is a good idea to stick with the LTS of a distro. I will agree back at say Ubuntu 8 or 9 there were issues and myself being new with it also did not always grab the LTS, but once I realized this detail and the distribution matured I find it to be very stable from versions 10 and up. However you could be trying to do stuff with your system which few people do and therefore these are your crashes. Have you tried to look up the causes/solutions for these crashes?

Things which would be helpful to know would be:

1. The exact distribution releases you've been working wtih
2. The specs of your computer
3. The list of common things you use your computer for, general list of programs you're running and the amount of data it's processing on average
4. Any information about these crashes; are they lockups, complete shutdowns, kernel faults?

If the only thing you don't like about Linux Mint is the Ubuntu base, I would suggest Linux Mint Debian Edition. This version of Linux Mint gets rid of the Ubuntu base, basing the system on Debian Testing. The Mint team makes it sound like you have to know a little more about how Linux works to use the distro, but it seems pretty straightforward to me so far (with the exception of an installer that makes the partitioning seem overly complicated). The Debian Edition looks just like the "regular" Linux Mint and you still get your choice of desktop environments.

I've been happiest with Debian's-testing (i.e: Jessie) over the years, they are free to try.

I am currently using Manjaro and am thoroughly impressed, however, I would agree with rtmistler that the old suck it and see in a live or vm environment is the best way forward. once happy
you can install it for real and away you go

I will add that with Arch based derivatives there may be some setting up of certain things that you will need to do, however, the Arch wiki is fantastic IMO and very clearly laid out.

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Since I am using Debian myself it is obviously the best distro.

Seriously, I despise Ubuntu for various reasons, but I actually like Linux Mint Debian Edition (LMDE) very much. It is an install-and-play distro, it is based on Debian Testing so pretty up-to-date. And it has the package management I know from Debian and you know from Ubuntu. And the Mate desktop is fast yet appealing.

For the past year I install LMDE when I need to have a machine up and running in 30 minutes.

jlinkels

My Debian installations take about the same amount of time.

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Fastest install I've encountered was Salix, around 15 minutes.

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Why not try Slackware?