[help] - 6850 and EP45-DS3L no graphics on install / boot

[supersilverpig]

UPDATE: Looks like the ZCFC revision of the XFX 6850 just won't work at all. Can someone please recommend a 6850 card that works out of the box? I bought this one specifically because the 6850 was supposed to work and got really unlucky with a specific card revision. I will return/sell this one and will get a new one, but want to make sure I get something that someone else has had success with.

 

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I am having some major issues getting graphics to work on my rig / install and could use some help. I currently have a somewhat working Snow Leopard install and am trying to change my video card and install Lion.

 

Hardware:

EP45-DS3L

Q6600

XFX Radeon HD 6850 (replacing a GTX 9800+)

OCZ Summit SSD (old snow leopard install)

OCZ Vertex 2 SSD (new blank SSD for lion)

 

Here's the issue: I can't get any graphics output at all, whether it is with the 9800 GTX or the new 6850, and whether it is with the existing Snow Leopard install or a new Lion install attempt. The 9800 problem stems from the fact that I'm using DVI->HDMI and that is a known issue, but the 6850 is not working at all either. I can log in via screen sharing from a macbook pro and view a working desktop, but nothing comes out via DVI or HDMI to my monitor.

 

Here are the things I have tried that have failed:

 

1. 9800 GTX in the working snow leopard install via DVI->HDMI (broken, and a known issue... this is why I am upgrading)

 

2. 9800 GTX with a lion boot USB drive (kakewalk or some other guide using an app store Lion purchase, made on the hackintosh or made on the macbook pro I have)

 

3. 6850 with a lion boot USB drive (kakewalk etc... same as above)

 

4. 6850 with the working snow leopard install (I have switched the drivers over)

 

 

What do I mean by "failed"?

 

Well, I get the standard VESA output to the monitor (40" LCD tv) via HDMI or DVI->HDMI, and can see the chameleon boot screen, but as soon as the desktop or the install screen is supposed to pop up, no more display. There are several cases when this happens:

 

Booting Lion install USB

With the 6850, if I boot with -v, the output hangs around the "DSMOS has arrived" line. I see the "Device in slot: SLOT--1" line, but not much after that. If I use aty_init, it says it is started, the card is detected, and then the card is removed. If I use "GraphicsEnabler=No", then it gets past that but I get a corrupt graphics screen - white squares all over the place. I've tried PCIRootUID=0 and 1, leaving GraphicsEnabler on, turning it off... I either hang with some text, or get a corrupt screen. Because I boot from the Lion USB, I can't log in remotely. With the 9800, it just hangs when switching from VESA in a similar manner - this is somewhat expected.

 

Booting Snow Leopard

If I boot snow leopard and don't use -v, I get stuck at the apple logo with the spinning indicator. It stays there forever. I can log in remotely and view a desktop and operate remotely 100% fine. If I have the 6850 installed, I can see it is detected in the system information. I can view the displays and it only registers the remote login window and not the attached TV. If I use the 9800, I get the same.

 

I know the 6850 works because I tried a linux mint live USB and got to a desktop just fine.

 

I also know the TV and cable work because I can hook up the macbook pro via a miniDP->DVI adapter and it works great.

 

I know the snow leopard install works fine (aside from graphics) because I can remote login and do whatever I want.

 

I have made the boot Lion USB key multiple times. I have used kakewalk and one other method from this site (using the bash scripts), and have made the Lion USB on both the macbook pro and on the hackintosh in snow leopard via remote login. I have made it from an installESD.dmg file I had from my previous attempts at installing Lion, as well as a freshly re-downloaded version of the Lion install files I got last night.

 

I have also tried a number of boot flags: "GraphicsEnabler=yes/no", "PCIRootUID=0/1", -v, -f, -x in various combinations.

 

I have tried installing drivers for the 6850 in Snow Leopard.

 

I have verified the card works in linux mint.

 

I have reset my BIOS to defaults and then made the required changes (S3 STR, 64 bit HPET, AHCI, etc), and verified that they have taken hold.

 

I have taken the cards out and re-seated them multiple times. I even bought a new power supply to ensure the cards are getting enough juice.

 

I have tried letting the installer create a dsdt for me (selected my mobo in kakewalk), and have tried using my existing dsdt.aml which used to work perfectly.

 

But I still get either a hang or corrupted graphics screen.

 

What should I try next? Is there a particular install method I should use? Is there a good install USB method I should try next? I used to have the 9800 working with DVI-HDMI and a full snow-leopard installation back in oh, 10.6.6 or so, and have installed OSX via hackintosh methods numerous times, but this one has me pretty frustrated.

[everdone]

It is unlikely the problem is with the install method. The problem is the video card does not 'know' to use the DVI or HDMI output. From my experience with various ATI 4000, 5000 and 6000 cards, most will only function through the VGA port without a particular bootflag or modifying a kext. The 5770 and 6870 normally work out of the box - that is - GE=Yes and using one of the newer versions of Chameleon.

 

First try the connection using the VGA port (either an adapter or a monitor with VGA input). To get the HDMI and DVI ports working on your card you will likely need an appropriate AtiConfig=(somename) as a bootflag in the boot.plist file. As an example, I was trying a 4600 series card on a ML install this weekend. I was using Chameleon r1924 as bootloader but only the VGA port would provide a desktop. Either VGA or DVI would work up to the point of switching to the Mac desktop. At that point, using DVI, the screen would go black and go into standby mode. After some trial an error I added AtiConfig=Vervet as a bootflag in the boot.plist and the DVI port now works.

 

Do a search on AtiConfig and/or Framebuffer and you should find some configuration names to use for your card.

[supersilverpig]

It is unlikely the problem is with the install method. The problem is the video card does not 'know' to use the DVI or HDMI output. From my experience with various ATI 4000, 5000 and 6000 cards, most will only function through the VGA port without a particular bootflag or modifying a kext. The 5770 and 6870 normally work out of the box - that is - GE=Yes and using one of the newer versions of Chameleon.

 

First try the connection using the VGA port (either an adapter or a monitor with VGA input). To get the HDMI and DVI ports working on your card you will likely need an appropriate AtiConfig=(somename) as a bootflag in the boot.plist file. As an example, I was trying a 4600 series card on a ML install this weekend. I was using Chameleon r1924 as bootloader but only the VGA port would provide a desktop. Either VGA or DVI would work up to the point of switching to the Mac desktop. At that point, using DVI, the screen would go black and go into standby mode. After some trial an error I added AtiConfig=Vervet as a bootflag in the boot.plist and the DVI port now works.

 

Do a search on AtiConfig and/or Framebuffer and you should find some configuration names to use for your card.

 

Thanks a lot. The card has 2x miniDP, 1x HDMI, and 2xDVI. One of the DVI ports says (VGA) under it, and I do have an adapter handy somewhere, so I will give that a shot.

 

I'll try the AtiConfig and framebuffer stuff tonight and will report back.

[supersilverpig]

UPDATE: You gotta be freaking kidding me...

 

Apparently this particular model of the XFX 6850 ZCFC does not work at all. Geez. I went out and specifically bought a 6850 because they were supposed to be well supported. mother effer.

 

Can anyone recommend a 6850 that works out of the box?

[everdone]

Did some investigating for the 6850. Useable framebuffer which provides for HDMI output is Lotus. Duckweed will also work but it does not give HDMI output. Those using this framebuffer were using Sapphire cards.

 

In your boot.plist add AtiConfig=Lotus as a string in the Kernel Flag key. Or you can set AtiConfig as a Key with Lotus as its string. GraphicsEnabler should be set to Yes.

 

If you decide to change cards try a 6870 in lieu of a 6850 as the 6870 is used in Macs, so it should work easier. I use 5770's in a number of different hacks and they work OOB.

[supersilverpig]

Did some investigating for the 6850. Useable framebuffer which provides for HDMI output is Lotus. Duckweed will also work but it does not give HDMI output. Those using this framebuffer were using Sapphire cards. In your boot.plist add AtiConfig=Lotus as a string in the Kernel Flag key. Or you can set AtiConfig as a Key with Lotus as its string. GraphicsEnabler should be set to Yes. If you decide to change cards try a 6870 in lieu of a 6850 as the 6870 is used in Macs, so it should work easier. I use 5770's in a number of different hacks and they work OOB.

 

Tried that. Apparently it just doesn't work

 

http://tonymacx86.com/viewtopic.php?f=15&t=51863&start=10

[supersilverpig]

UPDATE 2:

 

I swapped out the card for an XFX 6870 ZHFC and it boots up the installer just fine.

[supersilverpig]

And here's the last update.

 

That was stupidly easy. I used Kakewalk 4.1.1 with a fresh download of OSX Lion (10.7.4), booted from the USB stick, installed just as if it were a real mac, and didn't have to do anything when I booted into my new installation. Sound works. Graphics work. My IOGear USB dongle works out of the box. I even had my ZFS array come over after I installed the ZFS drivers. I didn't have to change any boot options or flags either.

 

XFX 6870 ZHCI

EP45-DS3L

 

Working perfectly.