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Do we need to use the bar magnifier when backtesting/optimization in MultiCharts?
Looking to get some clarification on the Bar Magnifier. To date, I've looked around attempting to determine the useage of the Bar Magnifier when developing a strategy. (Specifically when using 13 point bar in MC) --we are currently using IOG. The question is, do we need to use the bar magnifier when backtesting/optimization? It seems like with IOG turned on, and bar magnifier..with 13 point bars..it doesnt matter what strategy we are backtesting..the length of time needed to test is dramatically increased..on a quad core processor. I just want to ensure I'm getting the most accurate results in backtesting/optimization.
Thanks in advance for the ideas and thoughts...
-Ben
Can you help answer these questions from other members on NexusFi?
Bar Magnifier is of no use on tick data (range, tick, volume, etc). Only on minute data is it useful, as what it does is apply tick data 'behind the scenes' to your minute data.
Bar Magnifier will let you use something like a minute or day chart and then it will behind the scenes "magnify" that bar using tick data so you can accurately determine what happened inside of 1 bar when needed. It does this so it knows the …
Interesting...I would have thought that the Bar Magnifier would need to be used with tick data. Well, I guess that kills my theory on why I would have historical backtest results that are different from live results. Maybe it's the data feed? Thanks for answering the original question. Much obliged.
Well first I am only stating what I believe to be accurate -- I'm not the developer So, why not fire an email to MultiCharts support or do a live chat with them tomorrow.
But to the best of my knowledge, Bar Magnifier is only useful when taking minute data and wanting to "see inside" that minute data to get a perfectly accurate OHLC order. It does this behind the scenes.
One possibility you are getting different results could be fills. If you are using limit orders, there is an option to make price pierce your limit bid/ask before getting filed. If you are using market orders, you could be seeing slippage in realtime whereas your backtest you did not specify a slippage amount.
Another possibility is some chart types, like line break or renko, won't work well for backtesting. You'll have to use a tick or range dataseries for 'data1' to submit the orders, and have your renko or 3LB chart on 'data2'. This is because of the way Renko and 3LB charts are created.
Hi Mike, with a volume bar, does multicharts when backtesting simulate how the bar would have been formed in real life market conditions. Is there anyway to magnify a volume based bar so that the backtesting will consider how the bar went from open to close? Thanks