Missing Boot Options with 2 Video Cards

[matthewtoney]

I'm curious if anyone else has seen this:

I'm now running two video cards (and three monitors) on my Mac Pro:

1. 24" monitor on Geforce GT120 - in slot #2
2. 30" monitor on flashed XFX 4870 - dual link - in slot #1
3. 24" monitor on flashed XFX 4870 - single link - in slot #1

if the only monitor hooked up is the 30" (my primary) on the 4870 card, the machine boots up and I can hold down "option" to get my boot options (Mac, Windows via Bootcamp, CD, etc.) but if I have a monitor hooked up to the GT120 card, then *it* is the monitor that first comes up (well with the gray screen anyway) only holding down "option" seems to keep the machine from booting up, but I can not see the boot menu anywhere. When I do this, the monitor on the GT120 is all gray and the other two hooked up to the 4870 are in power-saving mode and don't even have a signal. (although if I leave the keyboard alone is does all boot up fine and then all three monitors have a signal)

Any ideas anyone?

 

[UltraNEO*]

Off topic...

I'm curious if anyone else has seen this:

I'm now running two video cards (and three monitors) on my Mac Pro:

1. 24" monitor on Geforce GT120 - in slot #2
2. 30" monitor on flashed XFX 4870 - dual link - in slot #1
3. 24" monitor on flashed XFX 4870 - single link - in slot #1

if the only monitor hooked up is the 30" (my primary) on the 4870 card, the machine boots up and I can hold down "option" to get my boot options (Mac, Windows via Bootcamp, CD, etc.) but if I have a monitor hooked up to the GT120 card, then *it* is the monitor that first comes up (well with the gray screen anyway) only holding down "option" seems to keep the machine from booting up, but I can not see the boot menu anywhere. When I do this, the monitor on the GT120 is all gray and the other two hooked up to the 4870 are in power-saving mode and don't even have a signal. (although if I leave the keyboard alone is does all boot up fine and then all three monitors have a signal)

Any ideas anyone?

I was thinking of getting a XFX for flashing, may I ask which card you're using? Manufacture code would be nice
Also, wanna ask, does dual-link on both DVI ports work? I wanna run dual 30" on it.

As for your boot options, it's a little odd.

Thanks dude, hope someone here can help you out with the boot option mystery

 

[matthewtoney]

I'm curious if anyone else has seen this:

I'm now running two video cards (and three monitors) on my Mac Pro:

1. 24" monitor on Geforce GT120 - in slot #2
2. 30" monitor on flashed XFX 4870 - dual link - in slot #1
3. 24" monitor on flashed XFX 4870 - single link - in slot #1

if the only monitor hooked up is the 30" (my primary) on the 4870 card, the machine boots up and I can hold down "option" to get my boot options (Mac, Windows via Bootcamp, CD, etc.) but if I have a monitor hooked up to the GT120 card, then *it* is the monitor that first comes up (well with the gray screen anyway) only holding down "option" seems to keep the machine from booting up, but I can not see the boot menu anywhere. When I do this, the monitor on the GT120 is all gray and the other two hooked up to the 4870 are in power-saving mode and don't even have a signal. (although if I leave the keyboard alone is does all boot up fine and then all three monitors have a signal)

Any ideas anyone?

Ok, I was just being dumb (or maybe just impatient) Looks like it was all fine actually - the problem was I wasn't waiting long enough - for some reason a drive I had hooked up via USB was making the boot process take a loooong time and hence my confusion. I timed it, and when that drive was hooked up, if I just held down "option" for 38 full seconds, it *did* eventually pop up the menu on the gray booting screen and then acted like it should. Ditching that drive fixed the whole issue for me.

On the XFX card question, I have the ZHFC card that is currently on Newegg.