iMAX3 Fast Trend Detector - indicador para MetaTrader 4

It is now official with me anyway... this version of iMAX3 is now superseded by another version... iMAX3ea, which has been submitted for publishing now.  So, expect it will soon to appear.  But, for now, this indicator is fully functional... not a single report of any technical problem of any kind... and I hope the new version will work out just as well as this has.... and I am pretty sure it will.  But, I strongly encourage users to upgrade,  or wait for the new iMAX3ea indicator, and download it... because that is the indicator I will be supporting... There is one wrinkle, so to speak... and that is that the new indicator will be available only as a .exe file.  Whereas this indicator is available in .mq4 format, in case you are just looking over code.  But, I am no longer going to support this version now that the newer version is released... so don't expect me to be answering any further questions here... I will answer questions about the iMAX3ea in that thread... and I thank everyone who took any time to check out this indicator... And I am surprised, because this indicator really does very little... whereas the iMAX3alert, submitted actually is a working trading tool, as is the new iMAX3mtf... so I am hoping some people will discover, if they haven't already, exactly why this indicator was an important step in the creation of more useful trading tools, and then discover those tools, and how useful they can be...

iMAX3 Fast Trend Detector

iMAX3 is a 3 in one "hybrid" indicator based upon personal prior works... the original "iMAX" indicator and the follow on "iMAXhp," and "iMAXhpx" indicators. These indicators phase shift a "Modified Optimum Elliptic Filter" signal to obtain a phase crossing used to detect fast moving price trends. The calculations are based upon a three bar rate of change, and therefore are virtually independent of any relationship to longer periods, and that is why iMAX is naturally adaptive to dominant periods in market price action, without having to change, retune, or optimize indicator period settings. This, and increasing resistance to volitily between the modes... offers interesting possibilities to intelligently switch between modes as market volatility changes.

"Modified Optimum Elliptic Filter" ref: Source of calculations;

Stocks & Commodities vol 18:7 p20-29

Optimal Detrending by John F. Ehlers Original

iMAX indicator: (photo 1 imaxoriginal.gif)

The MOEF signal was phase shifted by 1 bar period... The MOEF signal as used iMAX has extremely useful characteristics... it provides fast trend information with no adjustments in parameters in all timeframes, and currencies. It is resistant to price spikes and holds a valid trend in all market conditions... from very volatile, until price action goes flat. It is not the fastest trend detection system, but one of best overall for stability. It is an ideal indicator for general purpose applications such as trend change detection/alerts, MTF displays, and other applications requiring fast price trend detection.

iMAXhp (high performance) (photo 2 imaxhpmode.gif)

To improve responsiveness or speed of detection of the iMAX indicator the iMAXhp (high performance) indicator, switched from frequency or bar/phase shifting the MOEF signal, to amplitude phase shifting. This improves response time by about two bars, at the expense of some filtering characteristics, and it requires the second phase amplitude be specified... A general purpose set of amplitude values is built into this indicator for ease of application, and can be adjusted if needed.

For example: Adjustment of the general purpose set of amplitude values would be necessary when you are applying the indicator in hp modes to JPY currency pairs, because the JPY currency is so very different in it's price compared to other currencies. Amplitude is adjusted by varying the Ph1step variable values in the code. An approximate change in value to compensate for price difference in the JPY currency would be to multiply the preset Ph1step variable values by 100. You can change a Ph1step value, recompile the code, and observe the amplitude change using the phase lines generated by the indicator in the chart price area. However, you can use the regular iMAX mode on JPY and any currency or commodity pair with no adjustment whatsoever.

iMAXhpx (photo 3 imaxhpxmode.gif)

Not publically introduced till now... I change the formula for Ehlers' calculations slightly, and again boost speed in trend detection. Where iMAXhp is a piggyback signal leading the baseline iMAX signal in phase, iMAXhpx takes it's own staighter, higher speed trajectory... and you can see it as a clearly separate signal on the chart when all three modes are displayed... it will not detect the microscopic trends the Jurik indicator can, but iMAXhpx is very fast, and quite adaptive to period changes... and executes like lightning by comparison to Jurik, which translates into things like... extremely fast testing if used in an EA.

All three modes are built into this indicator, and any, or all modes can be used simultaneously. Welcome to iMAX3... (photo 4 imax3multimode.gif)

iMAX3 attempts to standardize application of the prior indicators, offering the utility of either frequency, or amplitude phase shifting. By default this indicator will operate in the original bar/phase shifted mode... just drop in on a chart and it works well in any timeframe and any currency. For higher speed amplitude phase shifted modes, the preset amplitude settings can be used, or unique settings specified in code changes.

Another good reason for creating this hybrid version is that the former frequency and amplitude shifted versions are intrinsically 180 degrees out of phase with each other. So, in this version, which I intend to base all future work upon, both methods of phase shifting are compensated for in terms of phase differences... so all future applications can use either method of phase shifting interchangeably

This indicator changes its values on the open bar with no other modifications to its bar/price history.

Indicator buffers are not read unless a particular mode is specified, so execution speed of this hybrid indicator is on par with a dedicated indicator executing a single mode.

iMAX3 is easy to interface... uses 6 indicator buffers (3 pairs), and data can be read from the indicator with the option of suppressing the generation of phase lines on the chart price area.

Phase colors are user selectable for matching chart color schemes.

I am not making customized changes on request... the basic functions have already been exposed to some public input, and constitute a useful trading tool, as is. However, I am always open to any suggestions for improvements that could be incorporated in possible future versions.

Developers can use this indicator as a basis for their own MTF displays, dashboards, and other applications requiring fast trend detection. This is a basic indicator and I might submit an “alert” and “MTF” display version with trend arrows of iMAX3 to further demonstrate it’s usefulness in the near future... you won’t need to ask, because either I will if I have the time, or I won’t. I did it for the iMAX and iMAXhp indicators but have yet to do it using iMAX3.

The original iMAX indicator as published elsewhere by me was done so for the benefit of the public domain without copyright. Subsequent publications of iMAXhp, iMAXhpx, and iMAX3 are copyrighted works and should not be republished in whole, or part, without permission.