diff --git a/components/bootloader/subproject/main/bootloader_start.c b/components/bootloader/subproject/main/bootloader_start.c
index 65e55fac9e..012348ddf2 100644
--- a/components/bootloader/subproject/main/bootloader_start.c
+++ b/components/bootloader/subproject/main/bootloader_start.c
@@ -753,7 +753,6 @@ static void clock_configure(void)
         cpu_freq = RTC_CPU_FREQ_240M;
     }
 
-    uart_tx_wait_idle(0);
     rtc_clk_config_t clk_cfg = RTC_CLK_CONFIG_DEFAULT();
     clk_cfg.xtal_freq = CONFIG_ESP32_XTAL_FREQ;
     clk_cfg.cpu_freq = cpu_freq;
diff --git a/components/soc/esp32/rtc_clk.c b/components/soc/esp32/rtc_clk.c
index aee0a39ff1..39ea41f40d 100644
--- a/components/soc/esp32/rtc_clk.c
+++ b/components/soc/esp32/rtc_clk.c
@@ -541,7 +541,8 @@ void rtc_clk_init(rtc_clk_config_t cfg)
     SET_PERI_REG_BITS(ANA_CONFIG_REG, ANA_CONFIG_M, ANA_CONFIG_M, ANA_CONFIG_S);
     CLEAR_PERI_REG_MASK(ANA_CONFIG_REG, I2C_APLL_M | I2C_BBPLL_M);
 
-    /* Estimate XTAL frequency if requested */
+    /* Estimate XTAL frequency */
+    rtc_xtal_freq_t est_xtal_freq = rtc_clk_xtal_freq_estimate();
     rtc_xtal_freq_t xtal_freq = cfg.xtal_freq;
     if (xtal_freq == RTC_XTAL_FREQ_AUTO) {
         if (clk_val_is_valid(READ_PERI_REG(RTC_XTAL_FREQ_REG))) {
@@ -549,13 +550,21 @@ void rtc_clk_init(rtc_clk_config_t cfg)
             xtal_freq = rtc_clk_xtal_freq_get();
         } else {
             /* Not set yet, estimate XTAL frequency based on RTC_FAST_CLK */
-            xtal_freq = rtc_clk_xtal_freq_estimate();
+            xtal_freq = est_xtal_freq;
             if (xtal_freq == RTC_XTAL_FREQ_AUTO) {
                 SOC_LOGW(TAG, "Can't estimate XTAL frequency, assuming 26MHz");
                 xtal_freq = RTC_XTAL_FREQ_26M;
             }
         }
+    } else if (!clk_val_is_valid(READ_PERI_REG(RTC_XTAL_FREQ_REG))) {
+        /* Exact frequency was set in sdkconfig, but still warn if autodetected
+         * frequency is different. If autodetection failed, worst case we get a
+         * bit of garbage output.
+         */
+        SOC_LOGW(TAG, "Possibly invalid CONFIG_ESP32_XTAL_FREQ setting (%dMHz). Detected %d MHz.",
+                xtal_freq, est_xtal_freq);
     }
+    uart_tx_wait_idle(0);
     rtc_clk_xtal_freq_update(xtal_freq);
     rtc_clk_apb_freq_update(xtal_freq * MHZ);
     /* Set CPU frequency */
diff --git a/docs/get-started/index.rst b/docs/get-started/index.rst
index 3a65d6cd7a..16c8598dfe 100644
--- a/docs/get-started/index.rst
+++ b/docs/get-started/index.rst
@@ -205,6 +205,9 @@ Here are couple of tips on navigation and use of ``menuconfig``:
 
     If you are **Arch Linux** user, navigate to ``SDK tool configuration`` and change the name of ``Python 2 interpreter`` from ``python`` to ``python2``.
 
+.. note::
+
+    Most ESP32 development boards have a 40MHz crystal installed. However, some boards use a 26MHz crystal. If your board uses a 26MHz crystal, or you get garbage output from serial port after code upload, adjust the :ref:`CONFIG_ESP32_XTAL_FREQ` option in menuconfig.
 
 .. _get-started-build-flash: