The Volume Z-Score filter is a pass/block gate: it compares current candle volume to the mean and standard deviation over your lookback and passes when the z-score is above or below your threshold.
Use it when absolute volume floors (Volume Threshold) are awkward across symbols or regimes—you want “busy relative to recent history,” not a fixed number.
When to use it
- Only take breakouts or mean-reversion when volume is unusually high
- Avoid entries on dead books (condition below with a low threshold, or invert a high-volume gate)
- Pair with directional rules under the same section’s filters
What you’ll set in the app
Add Volume Z-Score under filters for entry, increase, decrease, reversal, or exit.
- Lookback bars — window for mean/σ (default 20)
- Z threshold — how extreme volume must be (default 2)
- Condition — above (high volume) or below (quiet volume)
- Volume type — base or quote volume
While the lookback is still warming up, the gate blocks (fail closed). Disabled or threshold ≤ 0 passes.
Tips
- Start with condition above and threshold 2 for “only trade on busy bars.”
- Quote volume can be more comparable when base units differ a lot across coins.
- This does not place orders by itself—it only allows or blocks the pending signal.
Example
Entry filters: Volume Z-Score lookback 20, threshold 2, condition above, base volume. A MACD long only passes when volume is unusually high versus the last 20 bars.