Previous Time Value Area High (ptVAH)

Previous Time Value Area High (ptVAH) is the Time Value Area High from the immediately prior completed TPO profile, most commonly the previous session or previous day. It is the highest price level included in that prior profile’s Value Area, where the Value Area contains a chosen percentage of total TPO blocks, commonly 70%.

A TPO profile organizes market activity by time spent at price rather than by traded volume. The Value Area is the core zone where the market spent the most time during that profile, and tVAH is the top edge of that zone. ptVAH is simply that prior completed tVAH carried forward into the current session so traders can compare current price to the previous session’s upper boundary of time-based acceptance.

• Choose the prior completed TPO profile window, such as the previous session or previous day. Set the block size, row size, and Value Area percentage.
• Build the TPO profile, start from the TPO POC, then expand outward through the nearby price rows until the chosen percentage of total TPO blocks is included.
• The highest included price row becomes that session’s tVAH.

Note: When that completed level is projected into the current session, it becomes ptVAH.

ptVAH is commonly used in three connected ways:

• Boundary of prior value: price above ptVAH is trading above the previous session’s upper time-based value boundary, while price inside or below it is still interacting with prior value.
• Acceptance vs rejection test: holding above ptVAH can suggest acceptance above prior value, while quickly failing back below it can suggest rejection and rotation back into the prior value area.
• Support/resistance reference: ptVAH is often treated as a structural reference level, especially when read together with ptVAL and ptPOC rather than as a standalone signal.

• Extended ptVAH lines or labels: platforms can extend prior completed VAH/VAL/POC levels beyond the profile period for future interaction.
• Many TPO tools also distinguish between developing value-area levels for the active profile and prior completed levels carried forward into the current session.

• Defining ptVAH as time and volume. ptVAH is time-based and derived from TPO blocks; volume-based VAH is a separate construct.
• Assuming ptVAH is universal. Changing block size, row size, session rules, tick settings, or Value Area percentage can change the computed level.
• Comparing ptVAH across platforms or charts without matching settings. Some platforms specifically notes that Value Area percentage, session times, bar period versus TPO letter length, and price increment settings can all create mismatches.
• Treating ptVAH as a guaranteed breakout or reversal signal. It is better used as a structural reference inside broader market context.