Skyrim multiple graphics cards issue

[BslBryan]

When Perception is not open, Skyrim queries my hardware, sees my Nvidia card, and returns a recommendation of "Ultra High" quality.
If I then open Perception, and continue to the game, it crashes instantly after the Bethesda logo.

When Perception is open during the query, Skyrim queries my hardware, does NOT see my Nvidia card, and returns a recommendation of "Low" quality.
If I then continue to the game, I can Rift and enjoy Skyrim, but in low quality only. It kind of looks like an N64 game.

I've tried everything I can think of, so here I am for help. Does anyone have any idea why this might be happening? It seems to be directly related to Perception, but I'm at a loss for what to try next.

[DrBeef]

DO you have your rift plugged into one GPU and the monitor into another? You could try switch the primary/secondary, or running both the monitor and the rift off a single card?

[BslBryan]

DO you have your rift plugged into one GPU and the monitor into another? You could try switch the primary/secondary, or running both the monitor and the rift off a single card?

No, the Rift and the monitor are both handled by the same GPU.
Also, the problem persists whether the Rift is the primary monitor or the secondary monitor.