All the strategy tests are conducted with a spread of 2.0 pips which is considered above normal for EURUSD. Tighter spreads will obviously enhance the overall profitability of the system. Spreads upto 2 pips will not effect the Performance of the EA. The profitability, trade exits may be affected when broker with higher spreads are used. It is highly recommended to use ECN/STP broker accounts with spreads of 1 pips or lower. Best performance is seen on brokers with minimum spread ( <0.5 pips ). Based on live feed studies, Phibase recommends the following brokers : IC Markets, Sensus Capital, EXCEL Markets, AXI Trader, FXPRO and FINFX.
It is recommended to use only tick data for running back tests of Ray Scalper (or any other EA which work on every price tick). The live performance tests match very well with Dukas copy tick data tests. Based on comparison with live trading data, even high quality M1 backtests was found to be unsuitable.
Ray Scalper Version 3.0 : 2007-2014 Tick Data Back Test with Fixed_LotSize=0.1
Fixed Lots can be used in case the traders portfolio is made up of several EA's and the gains are always withdrawn on a monthly basis. This test is also useful to study the equity curve without the effect of compounding hiding drawdowns.
Fixed_LotSize=0.1; FinalTarget_x_H1_ATR=8; StopLoss_x_H1_ATR=4; Trail_StopLoss_x_H1_ATR=2; Trail_Trigger_x_H1_ATR=1; (and all other custom parameters - unchanged)
Click Here to download complete MT4 Strategy Tester Report of this test
Ray Scalper Version 3.0 : 2007-2014 Tick Data Back Test with Max_Allocation_Per_Trade=8 (Geometric position sizing)
Ray Scalper uses geometric position sizing for money management. Max_Allocation_Per_Trade=8 is default which makes the EA trade with lot size of about 0.32 per $10000. The lot size is scaled relative to increase/decrease in equity. MAx DD of about 22% was seen in backtests since 2008. A max DD of 42% was recorded towards the end of 2007 - This could happen in future but is considered highly unlikely since the trading conditions prior to 2008 was very different from what is seen post 2009.
Max_Allocation_Per_Trade=8; Fixed_LotSize=0.1; FinalTarget_x_H1_ATR=8; StopLoss_x_H1_ATR=4; Trail_StopLoss_x_H1_ATR=2; Trail_Trigger_x_H1_ATR=1; (and all other custom parameters - unchanged)
Click here for the MyFxBook Strategy Report
Click Here to download complete MT4 Strategy Tester Report of this test
Ray Scalper V3 vs V2 : Year wise test (from 2007 to 2014)
Parameters : Recommended defaults - Medium risk (MA 8)
It would be more practical to observe the trades on a year by year basis to understand and develop confidence in the system. This will enable traders to handle normal drawdowns in live trading without fear and uncertainty.