Rather than operating in asynchronous mode during turn-on ramps, a switching power regulator system may be configured to synthesize a digital waveform, which may protect against a pre-bias condition and maintain the desired ramp-up time and rate. The desired turn-on ramp may be generated digitally by counter logic, beginning with an initial value and incrementing at a programmed rate until a digital value equivalent to the desired output voltage is reached. When a pre-bias condition is not present, the output of the digital ramp generator may control a digital-to-analog converter (DAC), which may be configured to generate the reference voltage for the power regulator. To correct for a pre-bias condition, the pre-bias output of the power regulator may be measured prior to turn-on, using an analog-to-digital converter. The digital pre-bias value may be used to control the DAC until the value of the digital waveform generated by the ramp generator reaches the pre-bias value.