TSI (True Strength Index)¶
What it shows: a doubly smoothed measure of price momentum, plus a signal line. Above zero, momentum is up.
How people use it: TSI crossing above its signal line, or above zero, is used as a buy signal; crossing below, a sell signal. The double smoothing gives fewer false signals than raw momentum, but later.
Pairs well with: a long moving average for the trend.
Settings¶
| Setting | Default | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Fast | 13 | The second (short) smoothing. Shorter reacts sooner. |
| Slow | 25 | The first (long) smoothing. Must be larger than Fast. |
| Signal | 13 | Length of the signal line. Shorter gives more crosses. |
You set the defaults on the Indicators page. A condition can use its own settings, which override the defaults for that condition only.
Ready-made conditions¶
| For | Condition | Fires when |
|---|---|---|
| Buy | TSI crosses above signal | the one candle TSI moves from below the Signal line to above it |
| Buy | TSI crosses above zero | the one candle TSI moves from below 0 to above it |
| Buy | TSI above zero | every candle TSI is above 0 |
| Sell | TSI crosses below signal | the one candle TSI moves from above the Signal line to below it |
| Sell | TSI crosses below zero | the one candle TSI moves from above 0 to below it |
| Sell | TSI below zero | every candle TSI is below 0 |
"Above", "below", "is" and "rising" / "falling" stay true on every candle the state lasts, so they can fire many candles in a row. "Crosses" and "flips" fire once, on the candle it happens, so you get one signal per move.
Warnings you may see¶
- "It compares a line with itself (same indicator, same settings), so it can never fire. Give the two lines different settings.": both sides of the condition are the very same line. Pick a different line or different settings for one side. With ">=", "<=", "==" or "touches" the message ends "so it is always true" instead.
- "It can never be true: a cross happens on one candle, so it cannot happen on N candles in a row. Use 'within the last N candles' instead.": a "crosses" condition with a "… in a row" lookback of 2 or more. Switch the lookback to Within the last.
- "Fast must be between 1 and 1000" / "Fast must be a whole number": shown in the condition editor when a condition's own value is out of range. Fix the number; the condition can't be saved until then.
- "Slow must be between 1 and 1000" / "Slow must be a whole number": shown in the condition editor when a condition's own value is out of range. Fix the number; the condition can't be saved until then.
- "Signal must be between 1 and 1000" / "Signal must be a whole number": shown in the condition editor when a condition's own value is out of range. Fix the number; the condition can't be saved until then.
- "Fast must be smaller than Slow": in a condition, Fast has to stay below Slow.
Where they show: on the Strategies page, open Create entry conditions / Edit entry conditions (or the exit ones). Each condition's messages appear right under it. The setting messages ("must be between", "whole number", "must be one of", "must be smaller than") start with the indicator's short name, for example "MACD: Fast must be between 1 and 1000", and keep the conditions from being saved until fixed. The other warnings never block saving and are repeated in the strategy's Entry or Exit section, starting with the condition's name.
Good to know¶
- It is worked out from closing prices only (not volume).
- It needs a lot of history (see below), so it settles later than most indicators.
- It needs some history before its value settles: 3 × (Slow + Fast + Signal) candles (153 at 13 / 25 / 13). Apathia loads that history for you.