Order Setup — How Your Trades Open

Order Setup is where you decide how every trade opens: how big it is, how it enters the market, and where its take-profits and stop-loss sit when the signal leaves them out. These settings live on two pages in your dashboard — Position Sizing (fixed lots or % of balance) and Entries & Targets (entry strategy, take-profit, stop-loss, signal overrides, and bad-signal protection). Set them once and they apply to every channel by default; you can later override them per channel with a Config Profile.

TIP

Start simple. Set your lot size and a sensible default stop-loss, leave everything else on its default, and watch the Trade Preview. Tune one setting at a time.

Where these settings live

The Settings area has four tabs plus a Config Profiles button: Position Sizing, Risk Limits, Entries & Targets, and Trade Management. Order Setup covers Position Sizing and Entries & Targets. How an open trade is managed lives on the Trade Management page, covered in Active Trade Setup.

Nothing auto-saves. A sticky Save Changes button at the bottom of each page commits your edits, and a Reset to Defaults button reverts them. A Trade Preview panel updates live as you change values, so you can see the effect on a sample trade before saving — see Trade Preview.

Position size (Position Sizing page)

Your position size is the single most impactful risk decision you make. The Position Sizing page offers two modes:

• Fixed Lots — the same lot size on every trade (default 0.10, range 0.01–100). Simple and predictable: a 0.10 trade is 0.10 whether its stop is 30 pips or 120 pips away. The trade-off is that your dollar risk changes with the stop distance — a far stop loses more than a near one at the same lot.
• % of Balance — you set the share of your account balance a single trade may risk (range 0.1%–10%), and TTMT computes the lot from the signal's stop-loss distance so every trade risks about the same amount whether the stop is near or far. A live Risk per Trade figure shows the resulting dollars as you type. Wider stop → smaller lot; tighter stop → larger lot.

Both modes are available on the Position Sizing page and in a Config Profile; a Per-Asset Override adds a per-class Fixed $ risk option on top. The full picture — how % of Balance sizes across asset classes, and the safety check that rejects a trade rather than round up into more risk than you asked for — lives on Risk Management.

Regardless of what you set, there is a platform safety ceiling on the total volume of a single trade. This is a backstop that protects you from a runaway position — it is always on and is not something you configure. Special accounts can carry higher internal ceilings.

WARNING

The total-volume ceiling is a safety backstop, not a target. It only engages if your other settings would have produced an oversized position — a deep multi-layer setup at a high lot size, for example. It clamps the trade down, protecting you from a fat-finger setting.

How your position is spread — entry strategy and layers

You choose how many layers to split your entry into — from 1 to 6, default 4. That is the only layer control you set. You do not choose how many orders each layer holds: TTMT works that out for you from the volume allocated to the layer and your broker's minimum lot and lot step. More size means more orders, capped at 6 orders per layer and 36 orders in total. So the exact order count depends on your lot size, the layer allocation, and your broker's symbol rules — "4 layers" does not imply any fixed number of orders. The full mechanics live in Order Execution.

Layer 1 enters at the signal entry — as a market order when price is favorable, as a limit order when waiting for a retracement. Deeper layers are limit orders spread across the entry zone.

The Entry Strategy decides how much of your volume goes to each layer:

Strategy	What it does	Best for
Single	One Layer-1 order only. Fires as a market order when price is favorable, as a limit at the signal entry otherwise.	Scalping; you want the one fill or none
Even (default)	Equal volume across all layers — 25 / 25 / 25 / 25 for four layers, before broker rounding. Balanced exposure across the entry zone.	Most signals; recommended starting point
Front-Loaded	More volume at the market layer, less at deeper layers.	Fast markets where catching the move matters most
Martingale	More volume at better (deeper) prices.	Retracement entries where you expect a pullback

A Number of Layers selector (1 to 6) sits below the strategy picker. It is hidden when you choose Single, which is always one layer. As you change your lot size and layer count, a viability badge shows how many of the resulting orders will actually execute — if your lot size is too small to fill every order, the badge warns you and suggests a larger size.

For example: with Even and 4 layers, a BUY that retraces 60 pips fills all four layers at progressively better prices and averages your entry down. With Single, only the Layer-1 order exists — you either get that one fill or you miss the move.

How the order count is worked out

For each layer, TTMT takes that layer's share of your total volume, rounds it against your broker's lot rules, then splits it into however many orders the volume supports — capping the layer at 6 and the whole trade at 36. As an example (not a promise): 0.10 lots across 4 Even layers with a 0.01 minimum lot gives layer volumes of 0.03 / 0.03 / 0.02 / 0.02, which is 3 + 3 + 2 + 2 = 10 orders; 0.12 lots across the same 4 layers gives 0.03 each, or 3 + 3 + 3 + 3 = 12 orders. Bigger size fills more orders — watch the viability badge.

Entry zone — how wide trades reach for a fill

The entry zone is the price band where the limit orders sit. There are two modes:

• Dynamic (% of Stop Loss) — the zone width is your stop-loss distance multiplied by your percentage (default 80%, range 20% to 150%).
• Fixed (pips) — a constant pip width (range 5 to 200).

The page previews the result live; for example, with a 60-pip stop in Dynamic mode at 80%, the zone is 48 pips. (As the UI puts it, 60 pips is about $6.00 of price distance on Gold.)

For example: a 50-pip stop in Dynamic mode at 80% gives a 40-pip entry zone. Set it to 120% and the zone widens to 60 pips — catching deeper retracements, but tying up margin longer.

For multi-layer trades, an Entry Zone Expansion toggle nudges the zone toward take-profit by 1 to 20 pips (default 5) to catch near-miss entries. For example, a signal whose entry was 1 pip from filling when price reversed would have filled with expansion set to 5 pips. See Entry Zone Expansion.

The only width guard is a plausibility check: the entry zone cannot be wider than 5 times your stop-loss distance. There is no asset-class percentage cap on zone width.

Take-profit defaults and strategy

A trade can have up to 6 take-profit levels. The TP Strategy controls how your volume is distributed across them:

Strategy	Distribution shape	Best for
Progressive (default)	Front-loaded — closes most volume at the nearest targets, securing profit early. Closes about 30% at the first target.	Choppy markets; banking profit fast
Balanced	Even split — every target gets roughly the same share.	No strong view on how far price travels
Extended	Back-loaded — holds most volume for the furthest targets, letting winners run.	Trending pairs and high-confidence signals

Active TP Levels decides how many targets you use:

• Keep Signal Settings (default) — use however many take-profits the signal sends, whether that is 2, 3, or 5.
• Use exactly N (1 to 6) — interpolate missing levels or drop extras to match the count you choose.

For example: a channel sends 3 take-profits but you set "Use exactly 6" — TTMT interpolates three more levels between them. Set "Keep Signal Settings" to honor the channel's 3.

Default Take Profit distances (TP1 to TP6, in pips, range 2 to 1500) are only used when a signal omits its targets. The defaults are 20 / 40 / 60 / 80 / 100 / 120 pips.

Two edge-case settings handle fast markets:

• TP Already at Price — when price has already passed a market order's target by the time the order lands: Promote to Next TP (recommended) tries the next target, and the next, until it finds a valid one; Close Immediately books profit at market. For example, if price spiked past the first target before the market order landed, Promote to Next TP aims at the second target instead of closing instantly for a few pips.
• Open TP (Runner Positions) — when on, signals that mark a target as "open" or "runner" create positions with no take-profit. Off by default. See Runners.

WARNING

Enabling Open TP creates positions with no take-profit. They only close via stop-loss, trailing, or manual action. Read the Runners page before turning it on.

Stop-loss defaults and handling

Default Stop Loss is the stop distance in pips (range 5 to 500, default 60) used when a signal omits its stop.

Invalid SL Handling (advanced) decides what to do when the signal's stop looks wrong:

• Use My Default SL (default, safer) — auto-correct a suspected typo by applying your default stop instead.
• Trust Signal SL — use the signal's stop as-is, even if it looks suspicious.

A stop is treated as suspect in two distinct ways: if it lands inside the entry zone, or if it sits more than 5 times past your farthest take-profit. For example, a channel typos a stop at 1.0850 when entry was 1.08500 (a missing zero). With "Use My Default SL," TTMT ignores the broken value and applies your 60-pip default instead of a 5,000-pip stop.

Orphan Order Cleanup (Cancel unfilled limit orders when the stop is hit, default on) pulls any still-pending limit orders for a trade the moment its stop fires. For example, your stop hits on a 4-layer trade with two layers still pending; cleanup cancels those limits so the market does not re-fill you into the same losing trade after you have been stopped out.

Orphan Order Cleanup is on by default and prevents a common trap: getting re-entered into a trade you were just stopped out of, simply because price drifted back into your entry zone.

Signal Overrides — trust your settings over the channel's

The Signal Overrides section has three on/off toggles, all off by default. When a toggle is on, your configured value replaces the signal provider's value:

• Override signal entry zone — use your zone size instead of the signal's. Hidden when Entry Strategy is Single.
• Override signal SL — replace the channel's stop-loss with your default stop pips.
• Override signal TPs — replace the channel's targets with your default take-profit pips.

Turn these on for a channel whose levels you do not trust. For example, a momentum channel sends entries with no stop; with Override signal SL off you simply get your default for the missing value, but flip a different channel's Override SL on if it sends stops you actively distrust. For how and when an override is applied, see Override Modes.

DANGER

Overriding a channel's stop-loss or take-profits means you stop trusting its levels entirely. Make sure your defaults suit that channel's instrument and style before turning these on.

Bad-signal protection (Signal Quality)

TTMT screens every signal for malformed prices — decimal slips, stale copy-paste, a stray digit. The Behavior setting decides what happens when it finds one:

• Auto-Correct Extremities (default, recommended) — replace the extreme value with a safe interpolated one.
• Reject Signal — skip the whole signal.
• Trust Signal Values — use the values as-is. A hard 10x safety floor still applies, so a truly catastrophic value is still blocked.

When Auto-Correct is on, a Signal Consistency Threshold appears — a target-to-stop ratio (range 0.1 to 2.0, default 0.3). Signals whose targets are wide but internally consistent get a lighter touch; lower values are more permissive.

For example: a signal posts a take-profit at 28000 on EUR/USD (a stray digit). Auto-Correct replaces it with a sane interpolated target; Reject would skip the whole trade; Trust would still block it via the 10x floor.

For the full picture of what TTMT catches and how, see Signal Validation.

Ideal Settings & Trading Strategy

Scenario 1 — Conservative Copy-Trader

Setup: A new user on a $2,000 personal account following one well-known complete-signal gold/forex channel.

Settings: Fixed Lots 0.05. Even strategy, 4 layers. Entry Zone Dynamic at 80%. Entry Zone Expansion off. Progressive take-profit, Active TP Levels "Use exactly 3." Default stop-loss 60 pips, default take-profits 20 / 40 / 60. Invalid SL Handling "Use My Default SL," Orphan Order Cleanup on. All signal overrides off (trust the channel). Signal Quality Auto-Correct, threshold 0.3. TP Already at Price "Promote to Next TP," Open TP off.

Why: Small fixed lots and front-loaded take-profits bank profit early while you learn how the channel behaves. Trusting the channel's levels but keeping Auto-Correct on means typos are caught without second-guessing good signals.

Watch for: At 0.05 lots across 4 layers, the viability badge may warn that deep-layer orders are too small to fill. Accept fewer fills or raise the lot size slightly.

Switch when: You have watched 20-plus trades and trust the channel — move to the Moderate setup to capture more of the trend.

Scenario 2 — Moderate / Balanced Trader

Setup: An experienced user, $10,000 account, following two or three forex channels of mixed quality.

Settings: Fixed Lots 0.20. Even strategy, 4 layers. Entry Zone Dynamic at 90%, Entry Zone Expansion on at 5 pips. Progressive take-profit, Active TP Levels "Keep Signal Settings." Default stop-loss 50 pips, default take-profits 25 / 50 / 75 / 100 / 125 / 150. Invalid SL Handling "Use My Default SL," Orphan Order Cleanup on. Override signal SL on for the weakest channel only (via its profile). Signal Quality Auto-Correct, threshold 0.3. TP Already at Price "Promote to Next TP," Open TP off.

Why: A modest fixed lot keeps risk predictable across instruments. Keeping the signal's own targets honors good providers, while zone expansion recovers near-miss entries. Overriding the stop on one weak channel via its profile contains the damage without touching the good channels.

Watch for: "Keep Signal Settings" means a channel that sends 6 take-profits spreads your volume thin. If you prefer to bank earlier, cap it at 3.

Switch when: A channel proves consistently unreliable on its levels — move it to the override-heavy treatment, or to a Per-Asset Override if the problem is instrument-specific.

Scenario 3 — Prop-Firm Scalper

Setup: A trader on a $100,000 prop-firm challenge account following a fast alert-then-details scalping channel on indices and gold, with tight drawdown rules.

Settings: Fixed Lots 0.30 (sized to stay well under the firm's per-trade risk). Front-Loaded strategy, 3 layers (more volume at market — fast fills matter). Entry Zone Fixed at 25 pips, Entry Zone Expansion off. Progressive take-profit, Active TP Levels "Use exactly 2." Default stop-loss 25 pips, default take-profits 15 / 30. Invalid SL Handling "Use My Default SL," Orphan Order Cleanup on. Override signal SL on (the drawdown rules demand your own tight stop). Signal Quality Auto-Correct, threshold 0.3. TP Already at Price "Close Immediately" (scalps move fast — take the small win), Open TP off.

Why: Front-loading volume at market captures fast scalps before they run; a tight fixed zone and 2 quick targets match the channel's style. Overriding the stop guarantees every trade respects the firm's risk cap. Closing immediately when a target is already passed avoids chasing.

Watch for: Front-loaded sizing means a bad entry hurts more. Pair this with the Risk Limits daily halt so a bad session cannot blow the challenge.

Switch when: You clear the challenge and move to a funded account with looser rules — relax to the Moderate setup and let winners run with Extended take-profit.

Related pages

• Active Trade Setup — what happens to a trade after it opens
• Per-Asset Overrides — different lot size and stop/target pips per asset class
• Runners — the Open TP setting in depth
• Trade Preview — see these settings applied to a sample trade
• Override Modes — how and when an override is applied
• Config Profiles — override Order Setup per channel