Setup Cross-Analysis — Finding Hidden Edge

Beyond Single-Dimension Filtering

Standard setup analysis shows you how a setup performs overall. Cross-analysis shows you how a setup performs under specific combinations of conditions — and this is where the deepest edge insights hide.

What Is Cross-Analysis?

Cross-analysis combines two or more filters simultaneously to segment your trades into precise subgroups.

Example: Instead of "How does my ORB setup perform?" ask:

• "How does my ORB setup perform on NQ in the first 30 minutes of the session on high-volume days?"

The more specific the question, the more precise the edge discovery — assuming you have sufficient sample size.

The Most Valuable Cross-Analysis Combinations

Setup × Time of Day

Which of your setups has the highest win rate in the morning versus afternoon? Some setups are morning-only opportunities.

Setup × Instrument

Does your best setup work on all instruments, or only specific ones?

Setup × Market Condition

Does your setup work in trending markets but fail in ranges? Filter by a trend proxy (e.g., SPY above/below 200 SMA) to see.

Setup × Day of Week

Are your best setups concentrated on specific days?

Setup × Emotion

What is your win rate on your best setup when you enter feeling "Calm" vs "Anxious"? This analysis often reveals that emotional state is a statistically significant variable.

The Sample Size Challenge

Cross-analysis requires larger sample sizes because each sub-filter reduces your sample. If you have 100 ORB trades, and you filter for NQ only on high-volume Tuesdays in the morning, you might end up with 8 trades — meaningless statistically.

Rule of thumb: Require at least 20 trades in any sub-segment before drawing conclusions. Below 20, file it as a hypothesis to test, not a confirmed finding.

Building Your Cross-Analysis Matrix

Create a simple table (in your journal or a spreadsheet):

| Setup | Instrument | Time | Win Rate | Avg R | Trades |

|-------|-----------|------|---------|-------|--------|

| ORB | NQ | Morning | 65% | +0.9R | 47 |

| ORB | ES | Morning | 54% | +0.4R | 38 |

| ORB | NQ | Afternoon | 41% | -0.2R | 22 |

| ORB | ES | Afternoon | 38% | -0.4R | 17 |

This table immediately reveals: ORB setup is strong on NQ in the morning, weak everywhere in the afternoon, and weakest on ES in the afternoon.

The optimal action: trade ORB only on NQ in the morning session. Stop trading it in the afternoon entirely.