Futures Charting, Esignal & Ensign?

I apologize for asking this, as it has been discussed many times. But I just want to be sure that I am getting the best system for my needs (day and swing trading E-minis). So far I have only been using Nextrends free service for the e-minis, it has done well for just learning so far, but due to the common problems with the data feed, and what I find to be insufficient charting abilities, I must use something else for live trading (which will probably begin in about a month). basically what I am looking for is something that is open, with many options to explore in my learning. I do not mind something difficult to learn if it will be more robust in the end. And I would also like something that I may in the future use for automated trading. Obviously cost is a factor, but aside from programs in the $1000's, I would rather spend more and get what is good, than try to save a buck (though probably still under $200 or so monthly). Based on the many posts I have read here, it seems Esignal with Ensign is the best solution. It seems this will cost about $170 ($129 futures +$10 for CME, and $29 for Ensign), If I am missing any other costs please let me know. As many others are doing, I plan to use IB for trading.

Thanks,
Ben

 

my likeness toward ensign is known on this board. And I think it is well deserved (the reputation.. hehehe and the quality of the products). It is a very good combination.

Solutions based on realtick should be good too (I have the datafeed and I like it too.. although my experience with futures on it is not so good.. but probably it is me, since I focus on eSignal/ensign instead. However I would really trust something built on top of realtick).

solutions based on quote.com are more of a gamble imo. but why not try it.. all these people offer free trials. so the opinions expressed here are one thing, trying it for yourself is the real deal.. usually you have up to 30 days to make up your mind.
With quote.com you should really look at wealth lab.

tntneo

 

I have the same setup that you are describing. I chart with the Esignal/Ensign combo and use IB to trade. I have been using Esignal/Ensign just a little over a month now and I'm very pleased. I had been using quote.com along with Ravenquote for over a year, until I jumped ship finally after so many problems with quote.com.

Ensign does take a little getting used to, but after a week of everyday use, I was comfortable with it. The support there is also another big plus, over quote.com anyway. I was so use to not having support that when I was getting responses to my questions within a few hours after emailing Esignal or Ensign that I was astonished, because I don't think quote.com ever emailed me back when I had questions. OH wait...yes I remember now they did once. After about 3 wks they did email me back stating that they received my email.

As far as the costs go, well I'm paying:

$99 for the Esignal Equities package with 50 symbols
$3 in exchange fees for NYSE,NASDAQ, & AMEX
$29.95 for Ensign

So looking at 131.95/month. I will have to start paying the $10 CME feed before too long, as they were doing some kind of promotion when I signed up that the CME minis were free for 6 months.

2-B

 

Dear all

I am currently using esignal.
I will appreciate if you could explain to me, before I purchase, what is the added value of Ensign.

With esignal 6.2, (autosorting, linking, etc) I see a lot of improvements, which leads me to think that a further 3rd party software is unnecessary.

What do I miss?
Are you using ensign for the added realtime scanner (esignal's one is really basic IMO)?

Thanks

 

Thanks for the replies.
Yes neo, your many postive posts on this setup is one of the main reason I started looking at them, and esp. in that you do automated trading through it.

For the cost, I was under the impression that I would need to subscribe to Esignal Futures in order to receive e-mini quotes, this is not correct though? I would think I would gain more use from equities than other futures markets, and obviously there is no reason to spend another $30 more than I need. Also, for the news services provided is there an advantage in going to one or the other, or any of them over just watching CNBC (I would mainly just be using it for major news breaks that might affect the whole market, not really trading off of small headlines).

Allesim:
Though I obviously am not using anything at the moment, from the many posts I have read here, and from what I've seen on their sites, it appears that Esignal itself does not have a great deal of charting tools and indicators. It is more used for straight data and simple drawing tools. From the demo of Ensign that I downloaded it appears to have an overwhelming (in a good way) amount of tools to work with. Of course if someone could please verify this for me, it's only what I've read.

Thanks Again,
Ben

 

right on both issues..
you don't need the futures subscription if you only want the eminis.
eSignal's basic charting is really ridiculous. sorry.
you need something better. many software use esignal's data to provide charts. there is ensign, but many others too (metastock, tradestation 2000, AdvancedGET, FiboTrader and I don't know how many else).

tntneo