Yes, activate PBO and DOCP for optimal performance.
Yes, activate PBO and DOCP for optimal performance.
Yes, definitely. The RAM can operate at 2133MHz even without it. It's like having XMP enabled on an Intel PBO 3700X—it didn’t matter, I still got better performance without it.
PBO works best when you still have some temperature and power margins. It brings my all-core frequency up to match my single core level, though I'm unsure how it performs on Zen2 and Zen3. It might be useful depending on the situation, but it doesn't guarantee the promised speed. DOCP is essential for achieving the expected RAM performance.
I experimented with various configurations, but the best result came by turning off PBO and letting it auto-run with a minor negative voltage adjustment. This also improved overall core performance, achieving speeds above 4.1 versus below 4.0 on PBO. I used a 280 AIO, which kept temperatures stable.
With my 5600X it performs as follows: Advertised speed is 4.6GHz on single core. Without PBO, single core boost reaches 4.65GHz and multi-core stays around 4.1GHz to 4.2GHz. Temperatures hover near 60°C during Cinebench R23 load. With PBO, single core boost remains at 4.65GHz and multi-core also hits 4.65GHz. Temperatures drop to about 70°C under the same load. Using a custom water cooling setup. Details are in my signature. Even without PBO, my CPU still outperforms the advertised numbers. I’m curious if Zen2 (like the 3700X) behaves differently. I previously owned a 3700X but never used PBO.
The advertised performance increase on Zen2 was essentially the highest you'd typically encounter with solid cooling. With Zen3, the expected improvement is more consistent overall. I own a 5800X and have seen the advertised boost reach 4.8 and higher without any problems.