Quote:No. No, it should not. MCE carries with it several issues, but all are eliminated when MCE is disabled by default. Primary issues include operating out of spec, which isn’t true to the processor’s expected power consumption or cooling requirements, and potentially operating at a level that triggers BSODs or instability. This can happen when automatic voltage adjustments or auto LLC are operating below the requirements of a constant max-Turbo CPU.

We respect that motherboard vendors want and need to offer something over their competitors. Motherboards are critically important to performance (see: memory timings), but we believe that MCE is entering territory of basic CPU functionality, and that should be left to Intel and AMD – or disabled by default, at least.

AMD’s Core Performance Boost is different, as that interacts with XFR and Precision Boost, which are expected features of Ryzen CPUs. Core Performance Boost should be enabled by default, we think, while MCE should be disabled by default on all boards.

It’s up to us – media and consumers – to keep a closer eye on when manufacturers enable MCE by default, as one will cascade to a waterfall of other manufacturers following suit to compete.