Computer Only Recognizing 2nd Display Via HDMI Cable Intermittently

I have an HP Pavilion Elite HPE machine, Windows 7, Radeon HD 5700 Series graphics card, connected to an Acer monitor and HDTV. Here's details on my setup:

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My problem is that even though my HDMI cable's plugged into my Radeon graphics card, sometimes the PC only recognizes the Acer monitor and not the receiver (that's connected to the HDMI cable and my HDTV). So I end up having to plug and unplug the HDMI cable several times (sometimes 10+) before it recognizes the HDTV/receiver connection. Is there any setting that would favor the card/PC recognizing the HDMI cable more frequently? I've heard it's a handshake issue, and that maybe using a different type of cable would work. But wondering if there's a setting I could use before switching out cables.