Shmendridge C7MT4 Channel Breaks EA Settings Guide – Complete Inputs Explanation
Introduction to Shmendridge C7MT4 Channel Breaks EA
Shmendridge C7MT4 Channel Breaks EA is an automated Forex Expert Advisor (EA) for MetaTrader 4 that combines channel breakout and trendline-based trading strategies. The system is designed to identify potential market entry opportunities through price-channel boundaries, trendline breaks, and market movement conditions.
The EA offers flexible configuration options for trading symbols, multiple timeframes, lot sizing, stop loss, take profit, trailing stop, and order management. It also incorporates trading-day and hourly restrictions, spread and slippage controls, big round number analysis, and customizable channel parameters.
With its configurable D-Channel and trendline signal methods, Shmendridge C7MT4 Channel Breaks EA allows traders to adjust trading behavior according to different market conditions, broker specifications, and backtesting requirements.
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Order Information and Trading Management
🔹 Magic: 61031 – Assigns the unique identification number 61031 to orders generated by the EA, allowing it to distinguish and manage its own trades.
🔹 Lots: 5.0 – Defines the fixed trading volume used when opening positions. The current configuration specifies 5.0 lots, which represents a relatively large trading volume and should be adjusted according to account capital.
🔹 AlwaysMinLot: false – Determines whether the EA always uses the broker’s minimum permitted lot size instead of the configured lot size. The current false setting disables this option.
🔹 CheckMargin: true – Enables margin checking before trade execution, helping prevent the EA from opening positions when the available account margin is insufficient.
🔹 usecurrentbar: false – Determines whether the EA uses the currently forming candle for its calculations. The false setting disables current-bar processing for this option.
🔹 maxorderage: 1 – Defines the maximum permitted age of an order according to the EA’s internal order-management rules, helping control how long older orders remain eligible for management.
🔹 makeposageexp: true – Enables the order-age expiration functionality, allowing the EA to apply its configured expiration rules to positions or orders.
🔹 maxposage: 6 – Sets the maximum position-age parameter to 6, controlling the EA’s order or position-age management according to its internal calculation.
Trading Days, Hours and Limits
🔹 slippage: 3 – Sets the permitted execution slippage to 3 points, helping control the difference between the requested order price and the actual execution price.
🔹 maxspread: 999 – Defines the maximum permitted spread at 999 points. This parameter acts as a spread filter to restrict trading when market transaction costs exceed the configured threshold.
🔹 exitfriday: true – Enables the Friday exit function, allowing the EA to apply its Friday trading-exit rules.
🔹 exitfridaytime: 22 – Sets the Friday exit time to 22:00 according to the broker’s server time.
🔹 opentradepeakonly: false – Disables the option that restricts new entries to peak-related trading conditions, allowing the EA to evaluate its normal entry logic.
🔹 exitafterpeak: false – Disables the additional exit-after-peak condition, leaving this particular exit restriction inactive.
🔹 cyclehours: 24 – Sets the EA’s trading-hour cycle to 24 hours, providing a full-day scheduling framework for its hourly restrictions.
Hourly Trading Restrictions
🔹 whr0: false – Disables trading during the hourly period represented by hour 0 (00:00–00:59).
🔹 whr1: false – Disables the trading restriction for hour 1 (01:00–01:59).
🔹 whr2: false – Disables the trading restriction for hour 2 (02:00–02:59).
🔹 whr3: false – Disables the trading restriction for hour 3 (03:00–03:59).
🔹 whr4: false – Disables the trading restriction for hour 4 (04:00–04:59).
🔹 whr5: false – Disables the trading restriction for hour 5 (05:00–05:59).
🔹 whr6: false – Disables the trading restriction for hour 6 (06:00–06:59).
🔹 whr7: false – Disables the trading restriction for hour 7 (07:00–07:59).
🔹 whr8: false – Disables the trading restriction for hour 8 (08:00–08:59).
🔹 whr9: true – Activates the hourly restriction for hour 9 (09:00–09:59), preventing trading during this selected period according to the EA’s hour-filter logic.
🔹 whr10: true – Activates the hourly restriction for hour 10 (10:00–10:59).
🔹 whr11: true – Activates the hourly restriction for hour 11 (11:00–11:59).
🔹 whr12: true – Activates the hourly restriction for hour 12 (12:00–12:59).
🔹 whr13: true – Activates the hourly restriction for hour 13 (13:00–13:59).
🔹 whr14: true – Activates the hourly restriction for hour 14 (14:00–14:59).
🔹 whr15: true – Activates the hourly restriction for hour 15 (15:00–15:59).
🔹 whr16: true – Activates the hourly restriction for hour 16 (16:00–16:59).
🔹 whr17: false – Disables the hourly restriction for hour 17 (17:00–17:59).
🔹 whr18: false – Disables the hourly restriction for hour 18 (18:00–18:59).
🔹 whr19: false – Disables the hourly restriction for hour 19 (19:00–19:59).
🔹 whr20: false – Disables the hourly restriction for hour 20 (20:00–20:59).
🔹 whr21: false – Disables the hourly restriction for hour 21 (21:00–21:59).
🔹 whr22: false – Disables the hourly restriction for hour 22 (22:00–22:59).
🔹 whr23: false – Disables the hourly restriction for hour 23 (23:00–23:59).
Trading Day Filters
🔹 Monday: true – Enables trading on Monday.
🔹 Tuesday: true – Enables trading on Tuesday.
🔹 Wednesday: true – Enables trading on Wednesday.
🔹 Thursday: true – Enables trading on Thursday.
🔹 Friday: true – Enables trading on Friday, subject to the configured Friday exit conditions.
Padding, Take Profit and Stop Loss Variables
The EA provides configurable stop-loss, take-profit, padding, and trailing-stop parameters. The screenshot also specifies that these distances can be expressed as factors of either Bollinger Bands (BB) or Average True Range (ATR), depending on the selected calculation type.
🔹 trailtype: 0 – Selects the trailing calculation mode. The available configuration description references different combinations of ATR and Bollinger Band calculations, including ATR-based and BB-based factors.
🔹 stoploss: 2.0 – Sets the stop-loss distance or calculation factor to 2.0 according to the selected padding and volatility-measurement mode.
🔹 takeprofit: 2.0 – Defines the take-profit distance or calculation factor at 2.0, allowing the EA to calculate the target using its selected distance methodology.
🔹 pad: 0.0 – Sets the additional padding value to 0.0, meaning no additional padding is applied through this parameter.
🔹 trailstop: 0.5 – Defines the trailing-stop calculation factor at 0.5, controlling the distance used by the EA when adjusting protective stop levels.
🔹 trailpadding: 1.75 – Sets the trailing-stop padding factor to 1.75, providing an additional configurable distance for trailing-stop calculations.
Big Round Number Variables
🔹 BRNTradj: 2.0 – Controls the big round number frequency adjustment used for trailing stop-loss calculations, expressed in special ATR factors. A larger value means less frequent adjustment. The EA description notes that this is a complex algorithm involving long-term ATR and that 50 does not necessarily mean 50 pips.
Symbol Settings
The symbol configuration determines which trading instruments the EA monitors. The screenshot specifies that symbol names must exactly match the broker’s instrument naming conventions.
🔹 Symbols: 1 – Sets the number of symbols the EA is configured to trade simultaneously. The current configuration uses one symbol.
🔹 symbol0: USDJPY – Specifies USDJPY as the primary trading instrument.
🔹 symbol1: Empty – No additional trading symbol is configured in this slot.
🔹 symbol2: Empty – No additional trading symbol is configured in this slot.
🔹 symbol3: Empty – No additional trading symbol is configured in this slot.
🔹 symbol4: Empty – No additional trading symbol is configured in this slot.
🔹 symbol5: Empty – No additional trading symbol is configured in this slot.
🔹 symbol6: Empty – No additional trading symbol is configured in this slot.
🔹 symbol7: Empty – No additional trading symbol is configured in this slot.
🔹 symbol8: Empty – No additional trading symbol is configured in this slot.
🔹 symbol9: Empty – No additional trading symbol is configured in this slot.
🔹 symbol10: Empty – No additional trading symbol is configured in this slot.
🔹 symbol11: Empty – No additional trading symbol is configured in this slot.
🔹 symbol12: Empty – No additional trading symbol is configured in this slot.
🔹 symbol13: Empty – No additional trading symbol is configured in this slot.
🔹 symbol14: Empty – No additional trading symbol is configured in this slot.
🔹 symbol15: Empty – No additional trading symbol is configured in this slot.
🔹 symbol16: Empty – No additional trading symbol is configured in this slot.
🔹 symbol17: Empty – No additional trading symbol is configured in this slot.
🔹 symbol18: Empty – No additional trading symbol is configured in this slot.
🔹 symbol19: Empty – No additional trading symbol is configured in this slot.
🔹 symbol20: Empty – No additional trading symbol is configured in this slot.
🔹 symbol21: Empty – No additional trading symbol is configured in this slot.
🔹 symbol22: Empty – No additional trading symbol is configured in this slot.
🔹 symbol23: Empty – No additional trading symbol is configured in this slot.
🔹 symbol24: Empty – No additional trading symbol is configured in this slot.
🔹 symbol25: Empty – No additional trading symbol is configured in this slot.
🔹 symbol26: Empty – No additional trading symbol is configured in this slot.
🔹 symbol27: Empty – No additional trading symbol is configured in this slot.
🔹 symbol28: Empty – No additional trading symbol is configured in this slot.
🔹 symbol29: Empty – No additional trading symbol is configured in this slot.
🔹 symbol30: Empty – No additional trading symbol is configured in this slot.
🔹 scndry5Adj: 1.0 – Defines the secondary-symbol adjustment factor for the EA’s symbol-related calculations, with the current value set to 1.0.
Timeframe Settings
🔹 timeframes: 1 – Defines the number of active timeframe configurations used by the EA. The current setting specifies one active timeframe configuration.
🔹 timeframe0: 30 Minutes – Sets the first configured timeframe to M30.
🔹 timeframe1: 30 Minutes – Sets the second timeframe slot to M30.
🔹 timeframe2: 30 Minutes – Sets the third timeframe slot to M30.
🔹 timeframe3: 30 Minutes – Sets the fourth timeframe slot to M30.
🔹 timeframe4: 30 Minutes – Sets the fifth timeframe slot to M30.
🔹 timeframe5: 30 Minutes – Sets the sixth timeframe slot to M30.
🔹 scndryTFadj: 0.75 – Defines the secondary-timeframe adjustment factor at 0.75, allowing the EA to modify relevant calculations involving secondary timeframe configurations.
Trading Method
🔹 method: dchan – Selects the D-Channel trading method. According to the EA’s description, the alternative method named tln uses trendline-based signals, while dchan uses channel-based trading signals.
Timing and Tester Efficiency
🔹 FREQUENCY: 1 – Sets the EA’s internal frequency parameter to 1, controlling the frequency setting used by its trading and calculation routines.
🔹 BarFraction: 0.75 – Defines the bar-fraction parameter at 0.75, influencing the EA’s timing or price-position calculations within a candle.
🔹 PreCheckFraction: false – Disables the preliminary fraction-based checking option used in the EA’s calculation process.
Channel Signal Variables – D-Channel Method
These parameters are specifically associated with the dchan method. The EA description explains that channel length is measured in bars, while channel width, core, and padding are expressed as factors of Bollinger Bands or ATR.
🔹 Channlength: 150 – Defines the channel calculation length using 150 bars, determining the historical price data considered when identifying channel boundaries.
🔹 Chanwidth: 7 – Sets the channel-width factor to 7, controlling the overall width of the D-Channel according to its selected volatility-based calculation.
🔹 dcwstep1: 1.0 – Defines the first channel-width optimization step at 1.0.
🔹 dcwstep2: 1.5 – Sets the second channel-width adjustment step to 1.5.
🔹 dcwstep3: 2.1 – Sets the third channel-width adjustment step to 2.1.
🔹 dcwstep4: 2.8 – Defines the fourth channel-width adjustment step at 2.8.
🔹 dcwstep5: 3.6 – Sets the fifth channel-width adjustment step to 3.6.
🔹 dcwstep6: 4.5 – Defines the sixth channel-width adjustment step at 4.5.
🔹 dcwstep7: 5.5 – Sets the seventh channel-width adjustment step to 5.5.
🔹 dcwstep8: 6.7 – Defines the eighth channel-width adjustment step at 6.7.
🔹 dcwstep9: 8.0 – Sets the ninth channel-width adjustment step to 8.0.
🔹 dcwstep10: 9.5 – Defines the tenth channel-width adjustment step at 9.5.
🔹 dcwstep11: 11.5 – Sets the eleventh channel-width adjustment step to 11.5.
🔹 chancore: 66.0 – Defines the channel-core parameter at 66.0, controlling the central component of the D-Channel calculation.
Trendline Signal Variables
These parameters are specifically associated with the tln method. The EA description indicates that this method places orders at detected trendlines to trade potential breakouts or price bounces.
🔹 mintouche: 12 – Sets the minimum touch-related parameter to 12, helping define the trendline validation conditions.
🔹 mintouchpt: 4 – Defines the minimum touch-point requirement at 4 for evaluating the validity of detected trendlines.
🔹 Shortest: 150 – Sets the shortest trendline-related calculation length or threshold to 150, controlling the historical range used by the trendline system.
🔹 ttol: 1.6 – Defines the trendline tolerance parameter at 1.6, influencing how the EA evaluates price interaction with detected trendlines.
🔹 bounce: 3.0 – Sets the bounce-related threshold to 3.0, controlling the EA’s treatment of potential price rebounds from trendline areas.
🔹 anglefilter: true – Enables the trendline angle filter, allowing the EA to apply angle-related conditions when evaluating potential trendline signals.
🔹 maxage: 250 – Sets the maximum trendline age parameter to 250, controlling how old a detected trendline can be while remaining eligible for evaluation.
🔹 patd: 18.0 – Defines the trendline-related padding or distance parameter at 18.0, according to the EA’s internal trendline calculation.
🔹 spaceB: 750 – Sets the space parameter to 750, controlling an additional distance or spacing condition within the trendline signal configuration.
Shared Settings – ATR and Bollinger Band Configuration
🔹 F1type: 1 – Selects the first calculation type. The accompanying description identifies the available calculation references as ATR and Bollinger Bands, with the displayed configuration corresponding to atrF=0, bbF=1.
🔹 F2type: 1 – Selects the second calculation type, also corresponding to the displayed atrF=0, bbF=1 configuration.
🔹 Fbars1: 30 – Sets the first calculation period to 30 bars, defining the historical reference used by the corresponding indicator-based calculation.
🔹 Fbars2: 30 – Sets the second calculation period to 30 bars, providing the historical reference for the second shared calculation component.
🔹 bbd1: 2.0 – Defines the first Bollinger Band deviation factor at 2.0, controlling the distance of the corresponding band from its moving-average center.
🔹 bbd2: 2.0 – Sets the second Bollinger Band deviation factor to 2.0 for the additional band-based calculation.
🔹 FnumTP: 2 – Specifies the take-profit calculation mode or number of TP components as 2, according to the EA’s internal TP configuration.
🔹 UseMAdFil: false – Disables the moving-average difference filter, meaning this additional MA-based entry confirmation is not currently applied.
🔹 MAdF: 1200 – Sets the moving-average difference filter distance parameter to 1200, used when the corresponding filter is enabled.
🔹 MAdFT: 6.0 – Defines the moving-average difference threshold or factor at 6.0, controlling the required separation between price and the moving-average reference.
🔹 MAdFM: 3 – Selects the moving-average difference filter mode or configuration value 3.
The screenshot also describes the MA Difference filter as requiring price to remain above the moving average by at least the configured difference for long positions and below it for short positions. The difference is expressed in ATR or Bollinger Band units.
Order Modification Sensitivity Adjustments
These parameters control how sensitive the EA is when replacing or modifying existing orders. The input description specifies that sensitivity is expressed as a percentage change and that an order must change sufficiently to trigger a modification sequence.
🔹 lotchangesense: 5 – Sets the lot-size modification sensitivity to 5%, defining the required percentage change before the EA modifies an order’s volume.
🔹 tpchangesense: 5 – Sets the take-profit modification sensitivity to 5%, controlling how much the target must change before a modification is triggered.
🔹 maxmodDistance: 5.0 – Defines the maximum modification-distance parameter at 5.0, helping control the EA’s order-modification behavior.
Tester Variables
These parameters configure the EA’s strategy-testing behavior and custom scoring system.
🔹 TesterMinTrades: 0 – Sets the minimum number of trades required to calculate a custom tester score. A value of 0 disables the minimum-trade requirement specified by this parameter.
🔹 minitreg: true – Enables the tester’s minimum-trade-related option, as identified by the input variable. Its exact internal scoring behavior is not further specified in the screenshot.
🔹 negscore: 0.0 – Sets the negative score value used by the custom tester scoring system. The input description identifies this as the lowest negative score and the score assigned to a failed run.
🔹 maxtrades: 99999 – Sets the maximum permitted number of trades in the tester to 99,999. The EA description warns that the test can produce an error if this limit is exceeded.
Anti-Curve-Fitting Tester Features
🔹 randFmode: scndf – Selects the randomization mode used by the anti-curve-fitting testing functionality. The current configuration uses scndf.
🔹 distributionmode: evenD – Selects the evenD distribution mode for the tester’s randomization or distribution calculations.
🔹 RandFPercent: 18.0 – Sets the randomization percentage to 18.0, controlling the degree of randomized variation applied during anti-curve-fitting tests.
Additional Configuration Notes
🔹 Default Trading Symbol: USDJPY – The notes section identifies USDJPY as the default trading instrument for the supplied configuration.
🔹 Default Timeframe: M30 – The EA’s notes identify the 30-minute timeframe as the default configuration.
🔹 Symbol Naming Compatibility: All configured symbols must match the broker’s exact instrument names, including any suffixes or prefixes used by the broker.
🔹 Additional .set Files: The EA documentation mentions that several alternative preset files are available for different timeframe and symbol combinations. These presets can be used to explore different configurations.
🔹 Support Information: The screenshot includes the developer’s support contact and additional information links for assistance with configuration and updates.
Conclusion
Shmendridge C7MT4 Channel Breaks EA is a configurable automated trading system that combines D-Channel breakout detection and trendline-based trading signals. Its extensive Inputs panel allows traders to customize execution conditions, trading schedules, position management, volatility-based stop-loss and take-profit calculations, and technical signal parameters.
The displayed configuration uses USDJPY, M30, a fixed lot size of 5.0, Magic Number 61031, and the dchan trading method. It also uses a channel length of 150, channel width of 7, and ATR/Bollinger Band-based calculation options.
One important consideration is that the configured 5.0 lots represents substantial market exposure, while the maximum spread is set to 999 points. Traders should carefully review position sizing, broker specifications, and trading restrictions before deploying the EA on a live account.
Overall, Shmendridge C7MT4 Channel Breaks EA offers flexible channel and trendline trading configurations, making it suitable for traders who want to customize automated breakout strategies and evaluate different trading conditions through MT4 backtesting.
