Equidistant Channel

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The Equidistant Channel is an analytical drawing tool used to indicate the support and resistance levels for the price ranges contained in it. The narrower the Equidistant Channel is, the less volatile is the market.

The Equidistant Channel is represented by parallel equidistant lines and may be of several variations:

  • Parallel Lines - are trend lines used to delineate the Equidistant Channel in which the market trades. The upper horizontal line is the resistance line. The lower horizontal line is the support line. If either of these lines is penetrated there may occur a price breakout.
  • Extended Parallel Lines - are the parallel trend lines extended to the left and to the right. They delineate the Equidistant Channel in which the market trades and show the past and future direction of the price movement.
  • Ray Parallel Lines - are the parallel trend lines extended to the right only. They delineate the Equidistant Channel in which the market trades and show the possible future direction of the price movement.
  • Horizontal Parallel Lines - are parallel lines used to delineate the Equidistant Channel in which the market trades, especially when it is a sideway market and there is no significant price movements. The upper horizontal line is the resistance line. The lower horizontal line is the support line. If either of these lines is penetrated there may occur a price breakout.


Inserting Equidistant Channel

  1. Select one of three ways to insert the Equidistant Channel:
    • In the menu select Insert, point to Drawing and click Equidistant Channel.
    • Click the Equidistant Channel Drawing EquidistantChannel.png icon on the Drawing toolbar.
    • Click the arrow next to the Drawing Tools Show Hide Drawing Tools.png icon on the Main toolbar and select Equidistant Channel from the menu.
  2. The cursor will change to the Equidistant channel ECH pointer.gif.
  3. In the Chart Area click where the Equidistant Channel is to begin.
  4. Then keeping the left mouse button pressed move the pointer up, down, left, or right to position the Equidistant Channel.
  5. Release the button.
Note: To create a horisontal Equidistant Channel hold Ctrl while inserting the drawing.


Moving Equidistant Channel

To move an Equidistant Channel without changing the distance between the equidistant lines or their slope:

  1. Point the cursor at the Equidistant Channel that is to be moved.
  2. The cursor Pointer Pointer.png will change into Hand Hand.png.
  3. Then keeping the left mouse button pressed drag the drawing tool to the desired position.
  4. Release the button.


Reshaping Equidistant Channel

To reshape an Equidistant Channel (change the distance between the equidistant lines or the slope of the Equidistant Channel):

  1. Point the cursor at the Equidistant Channel that is to be reshaped.
  2. The cursor Pointer Pointer.png will change into Hand Hand.png.
  3. Left-click the Equidistant Channel and 3 small squares will appear on the equidistant lines.
  4. To change the distance between the equidistant lines, drag the square located on the upper line and release the button.
  5. To change the slope of the Equidistant Channel, drag one of 2 squares located on the lower line and release the button.


Formatting Equidistant Channel

In MultiCharts one can change the settings of the Equidistant Channel. All the changes are performed in the Format Equidistant Channel window.

Each instance of a Equidistant channel has its own Format window. The number (if there are 2 or more Equidistant channels in the same Chart Window) are shown in the titlebar of each Format Equidistant Channel window.

One can change the settings of the Equidistant Channel: its color, style and weight. It is possible to extend the equidistant lines to the left or/and to the right. One can also change the distance between the lines and their direction. Moreover, more than 2 lines can be reflected. It is also possible to change the time and price coordinates of the Equidistant Channel.


Setting Style

  1. Access the Format Equidistant Channel window.
    To access the Format Equidistant Channel window:
    1. Drag the cursor to the Equidistant channel that is to be formatted.
    2. The cursor Pointer Pointer.png will change into Hand Hand.png, then double-click.
    Or
    1. Drag the cursor to the Equidistant channel that is to be formatted.
    2. The cursor Pointer Pointer.png will change into Hand Hand.png, then right-click.
    3. Select Format 'Equidistant Channel'… from the shortcut menu.
    Or
    1. In the Format Objects window select the Drawings tab.
    2. Select the Equidistant channel that is to be formatted and press the Format… button.
  2. Select the Style tab.
  3. In the Color section select any of the preset 40 colors or click the Others… button to select the custom color.
  4. From the Style drop-down list select the desired style.
  5. From the Weight drop-down list select the desired weight.
  6. Check the Use as Default check box to use these settings as the default settings when creating other Equidistant Channels.
  7. Click OK.


Extending Equidistant Channel to Left or Right

  1. Access the Format Equidistant Channel window.
    To access the Format Equidistant Channel window:
    1. Drag the cursor to the Equidistant channel that is to be formatted.
    2. The cursor Pointer Pointer.png will change into Hand Hand.png, then double-click.
    Or
    1. Drag the cursor to the Equidistant channel that is to be formatted.
    2. The cursor Pointer Pointer.png will change into Hand Hand.png, then right-click.
    3. Select Format 'Equidistant Channel'… from the shortcut menu.
    Or
    1. In the Format Objects window select the Drawings tab.
    2. Select the Equidistant channel that is to be formatted and press the Format… button.
  2. Select the Style tab.
  3. In the Extend section check the Left or/and Right check boxes to extend the equidistant lines to the left or/and right.
  4. Check the Use as Default check box to use these settings as the default settings when creating other Equidistant Channels.
  5. Click OK.


Setting Calculation Properties

  1. Access the Format Equidistant Channel window.
    To access the Format Equidistant Channel window:
    1. Drag the cursor to the Equidistant channel that is to be formatted.
    2. The cursor Pointer Pointer.png will change into Hand Hand.png, then double-click.
    Or
    1. Drag the cursor to the Equidistant channel that is to be formatted.
    2. The cursor Pointer Pointer.png will change into Hand Hand.png, then right-click.
    3. Select Format 'Equidistant Channel'… from the shortcut menu.
    Or
    1. In the Format Objects window select the Drawings tab.
    2. Select the Equidistant channel that is to be formatted and press the Format… button.
  2. Select the Properties tab.
  3. In the Channel section enter the desired distance between the lines in the Distance field.
  4. In the Channel section select the desired direction from the Direction drop-down list.
  5. In the Channel section enter the desired number of reflections in the Reflection field or select it.
  6. Check the Use as Default check box to use these settings as the default settings when creating other Equidistant Channels.
  7. Click OK.


Setting Coordinates Precisely

  1. Access the Format Equidistant Channel window.
    To access the Format Equidistant Channel window:
    1. Drag the cursor to the Equidistant channel that is to be formatted.
    2. The cursor Pointer Pointer.png will change into Hand Hand.png, then double-click.
    Or
    1. Drag the cursor to the Equidistant channel that is to be formatted.
    2. The cursor Pointer Pointer.png will change into Hand Hand.png, then right-click.
    3. Select Format 'Equidistant Channel'… from the shortcut menu.
    Or
    1. In the Format Objects window select the Drawings tab.
    2. Select the Equidistant channel that is to be formatted and press the Format… button.
  2. Select the Properties tab.
  3. In the Coordinates section enter the desired time coordinates in the Start Date and End Date fields or use the drop-down calendars.
  4. In the Coordinates section enter the desired price coordinates in the Start Value and End Value fields.
  5. Check the Use as Default check box to use these settings as the default settings when creating other Equidistant Channels.
  6. Click OK.


Cloning Equidistant Channel

To clone an Equidistant channel:

  1. Drag the cursor to the Equidistant channel that is to be cloned.
  2. The cursor Pointer Pointer.png will change into Hand Hand.png, then right-click.
  3. Select Clone Drawing from the shortcut menu.