To PlayToWin,
I am in a similar situation as you, even though I do trade stocks and futures. I have been using web based brokers with fairly crummy software. So I am looking at kicking it up to a higher level. For this reason, I started looking at other brokers and software.
In this quest, I ran across the NeuroShell software. It was the most expensive software that I have run across. About $5700 for the DayTrader Professional and all its' add ons. The fact that it used NN tweaked my curiosity as well. Using some dumb logic, that is, "you get what you pay for", I thought that this software might be pretty successful. That is why I was trying to find out if anyone has any experience with it. The general consensus here, is negative on NN, and that just as good results can be obtained without NN.
Now the Genesis software was recommended by my broker. I am not sure what kind of stake he has in it, but if the software is as good as my broker, than it is totally useless.

So that is why I asked about the Genesis software. It is also fairly expensive, so something I wouldn't jump into unless it got great reviews.
Having said all that, let me tell you what I am considering doing. I'll start off with a disclaimer, that I have NOT tried these brokers or software. I only know what I read and learned on web sites and through correspondence.
I am considering MB Trading as my direct access broker. I was considering Terra Nova but they have been unresponsive to my email inquiries. And it appears that the only software that will integrate with them is RealTick. That's ok if you just want to use RealTick. RealTick starts out at $150/mo. as well. MB Trading has a universal account, with no monthly minimums and no inactivity fees. The MBT Navigator software is free. Level II data is $25/mo., but is waived if you have a min. $ or min. number of trades per month. They have trailing stops and can be integrated with other software, like eSignal.
As far as software with back testing, I am looking at eSignal 7.6. I have no idea how difficult the back test coding is or how extensive the back testing capabilities of this software is. But their software is free with the basic data feed, $75/mo. or $49/mo. (annual prepay). You don't need level II data if you are getting it from MB for free. This software can also be fully integrated to MB. And the eSignal data feed can be used with a number of different software platforms.
So for $49/mo. (annual prepay), I believe this is a good place to start.
If anyone sees any mistakes or has any recommendation, please don't hesitate to respond, all comments and additional info are welcomed.