Custom 10-monitor.conf file does not seem to work properly under Ubuntu 11.10

Sat Sep 8 10:25:36 PDT 2012

Trying to understand a funny issue with 'X' on Ubuntu 11.10.

I have a custom HTPC that drives an older CRT video projector via VGA. The HTPC originally ran Ubuntu 9.04 but was recently upgraded to 11.10. The MB is a Gigabyte GA-880GM-D2H with an AMD FX4100 processor and AMD 880G (Radeon) graphics chipset. I am running the standard Ubuntu driver, not the ATI custom driver.

The CRT projector does not support EDID so I created a custom xorg.conf file with modelines and resolutions specific to the projector and a small LCD monitor I connect to the HTPC when I'm doing local changes where I don't want to fire up the big projector.

The xorg.conf file originally had three modeline definitions: 1024 X 768 to support the LCD monitor and 1280 X 960 and 1440 X 1080 to support the CRT projector. I created the basic file from the 'xorg -configure' command and edited it from there. When originally running this way under 9.04 everything was fine.

When I installed Ubuntu 11.10 I did the same equivalent 'x -configure' command and created the equivalent '10-monitor.conf' file with my custom modelines and dropped the file into /usr/share/X11/xorg.conf.d.

However, under 11.10 I now see the following weirdness.

If I connect the LCD monitor to the HTPC and boot the system up (so it sees the monitor's EDID response during boot) I can then disconnect the LCD monitor from the VGA port, connect the CRT projector and select the alternate modelines for the CRT projector and everything looks as it did under 9.04.

But if I boot up the HTPC with the CRT projector connected (so no EDID from the projector during boot), the image on the CRT is reduced in size when I select the same modelines as before. It's as if the overall 'x' dot clock is faster and the scan time to the CRT projector is faster. What's more, the projector can display the incoming horizontal and vertical scan frequencies it is receiving and they do not match the frequencies seen when I boot up with the LCD monitor first and then connect the CRT machine afterwards.

It's as if 'X' uses my custom file correctly when it "sees" the LCD EDID response, but actually alters it if I start up with the CRT machine and no EDID.

What should I be looking for to correct this? (It's getting to be a real pain to have to connect the LCD first and then switch to the CRT whenever I want to use the big display!)

Ron Howes

(10-monitor.conf file attached - sorry, not sure why it came out double spaced in this e-mail!)

#Custom /usr/share/X11/xorg.conf.d/10-monitor.conf file for Ubuntu 11.10 HTPC

# with V50LCD monitor and Electrohome Marquee 8500 projector

# September 3, 2012

Section "Monitor"

Identifier "Monitor0"

VendorName "Electrohome"

ModelName "Marquee 8500"

HorizSync 24.0 - 68.0

VertRefresh 55.0 - 75.0

# Option "DPMS"

Gamma 1.55

# 1024 X 768 75.0HZ hsync 75.0khz  for LCD ONLY

Modeline "1024x768" 78.75 1024 1040 1136 1312 768 769 772 800

# 1280 X 960 61.5HZ hsync 60.0khz fill ratio 80%  for projector

Modeline "1280x960" 96.0 1280 1320 1464 1600 960 962 965 976

# 1440 X 1080 60.0HZ hsync 67.7khz fill ratio 80%  for projector

Modeline "1440x1080" 121.82 1440 1472 1736 1800 1080 1088 1104 1128

EndSection

#Section "Device"

# Identifier "Device0"

# Driver "vesa" #Choose the driver used for this monitor

#EndSection

Section "Device"

### Available Driver options are:-

### Values: <i>: integer, <f>: float, <bool>: "True"/"False",

### <string>: "String", <freq>: "<f> Hz/kHz/MHz",

### <percent>: "<f>%"

### [arg]: arg optional

#Option "NoAccel" # [<bool>]

#Option "SWcursor" # [<bool>]

#Option "Dac6Bit" # [<bool>]

#Option "Dac8Bit" # [<bool>]

#Option "BusType" # [<str>]

#Option "CPPIOMode" # [<bool>]

#Option "CPusecTimeout" # <i>

#Option "AGPMode" # <i>

#Option "AGPFastWrite" # [<bool>]

#Option "AGPSize" # <i>

#Option "GARTSize" # <i>

#Option "RingSize" # <i>

#Option "BufferSize" # <i>

#Option "EnableDepthMoves" # [<bool>]

#Option "EnablePageFlip" # [<bool>]

#Option "NoBackBuffer" # [<bool>]

#Option "DMAForXv" # [<bool>]

#Option "FBTexPercent" # <i>

#Option "DepthBits" # <i>

#Option "PCIAPERSize" # <i>

#Option "AccelDFS" # [<bool>]

#Option "IgnoreEDID" # [<bool>]

#Option "CustomEDID" # [<str>]

#Option "DisplayPriority" # [<str>]

#Option "PanelSize" # [<str>]

#Option "ForceMinDotClock" # <freq>

#Option "ColorTiling" # [<bool>]

#Option "VideoKey" # <i>

#Option "RageTheatreCrystal" # <i>

#Option "RageTheatreTunerPort" # <i>

#Option "RageTheatreCompositePort" # <i>

#Option "RageTheatreSVideoPort" # <i>

#Option "TunerType" # <i>

#Option "RageTheatreMicrocPath" # <str>

#Option "RageTheatreMicrocType" # <str>

#Option "ScalerWidth" # <i>

#Option "RenderAccel" # [<bool>]

#Option "SubPixelOrder" # [<str>]

#Option "ClockGating" # [<bool>]

#Option "VGAAccess" # [<bool>]

#Option "ReverseDDC" # [<bool>]

#Option "LVDSProbePLL" # [<bool>]

#Option "AccelMethod" # <str>

#Option "DRI" # [<bool>]

#Option "ConnectorTable" # <str>

#Option "DefaultConnectorTable" # [<bool>]

#Option "DefaultTMDSPLL" # [<bool>]

#Option "TVDACLoadDetect" # [<bool>]

#Option "ForceTVOut" # [<bool>]

#Option "TVStandard" # <str>

#Option "IgnoreLidStatus" # [<bool>]

#Option "DefaultTVDACAdj" # [<bool>]

#Option "Int10" # [<bool>]

#Option "EXAVSync" # [<bool>]

#Option "ATOMTVOut" # [<bool>]

#Option "R4xxATOM" # [<bool>]

#Option "ForceLowPowerMode" # [<bool>]

#Option "DynamicPM" # [<bool>]

#Option "NewPLL" # [<bool>]

#Option "ZaphodHeads" # <str>

Identifier "Card0"

Driver "radeon"

BusID "PCI:1:5:0"

EndSection

#Section "Screen"

# Identifier "Screen0" #Collapse Monitor and Device section to Screen #section

# Device "Device0"

# Monitor "Monitor0"

# DefaultDepth 16 #Choose the depth (16||24)

# SubSection "Display"

# Depth 16

# Modes "1024x768_75.00" #Choose the resolution

# EndSubSection

#EndSection

Section "Screen"

Identifier "Screen0"

Device "Card0"

Monitor "Monitor0"

SubSection "Display"

Viewport 0 0

Depth 1

Modes "1024x768" "1280x960" "1440x1080"

EndSubSection

SubSection "Display"

Viewport 0 0

Depth 4

Modes "1024x768" "1280x960" "1440x1080"

EndSubSection

SubSection "Display"

Viewport 0 0

Depth 8

Modes "1024x768" "1280x960" "1440x1080"

EndSubSection

SubSection "Display"

Viewport 0 0

Depth 15

Modes "1024x768" "1280x960" "1440x1080"

EndSubSection

SubSection "Display"

Viewport 0 0

Depth 16

Modes "1024x768" "1280x960" "1440x1080"

EndSubSection

SubSection "Display"

Viewport 0 0

Depth 24

Modes "1024x768" "1280x960" "1440x1080"

EndSubSection

EndSection

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