Reflex/Trendflex

Reflex/Trendflex puts John Ehlers' 2020 oscillator pair on one pane, splitting the cycle read from the trend read. The source first runs through a SuperSmoother at half the chosen period; the Reflex and Trendflex calculations then average the filtered series' deviations from two references — a straight line across the window for Reflex, which strips trend and isolates cycle swings, and the current filter value for Trendflex, which keeps trend in. Each sum is self-normalized, so both read in comparable units around zero with dotted bands at +2 and -2 marking typical extremes.

How to Trade the Reflex/Trendflex?

• Reflex zero cross: the cycle inflection — Reflex turns quickly and suits timing; crossings are alerted in both directions.
• Trendflex sign: the regime — positive argues sustained upward pressure, negative the reverse, with its own zero-cross alerts.
• Trend-aligned combination: Reflex crossing above zero while Trendflex is positive (and the bearish mirror) carries dedicated alerts — timing from the cycle, permission from the trend.
• Divergences: optional regular divergences on the chosen oscillator draw dashed lines with Bull and Bear tags — warnings rather than signals.

Reflex/Trendflex Settings

• Length (default 20): the lookback window; the straight-line reference and both deviation averages span it, and the SuperSmoother runs at half this period. Shorter windows respond faster but raise the false-cross count.
• Source (default close): the series fed to the filter.
• Show Divergences (default off) with Divergence Oscillator (default Reflex) and Pivot Lookback (default 5): detection lags by the pivot length.
• Style: visibility and colors per oscillator, plus Gradient Fill (default Reflex; also Trendflex, Both or None).

Frequently Asked Questions

Which of the two should I follow?

The pair puts two questions to one filtered series. Reflex removes the window's trend, so it swings with the cycle and inflects early; Trendflex keeps it, holding its sign through a sustained move — bias from Trendflex, timing from Reflex.

How does the pair compare with the Even Better Sinewave?

The Even Better Sinewave compresses a filtered wave toward its rails, a cycle-phase switch that saturates near extremes. Reflex and Trendflex keep proportional magnitudes, plus the trend view a pure cycle tool strips out.

What do the +2 and -2 bands mean?

The self-normalization divides each raw average by the square root of its own smoothed mean square, so readings come out in units of typical magnitude; the bands mark roughly two-sigma excursions — uncommon territory, not mechanical overbought/oversold triggers.