diff --git a/configure b/configure
index 4d6d4fc4e6..6fda30b767 100755
--- a/configure
+++ b/configure
@@ -4238,6 +4238,8 @@ elif enabled mips; then
             disable msa
         ;;
         *)
+            # Unknown CPU. Disable everything.
+            echo "Warning: unknown CPU. Disabling all MIPS optimizations."
             disable mipsfpu
             disable mips32r2
             disable mips32r6