divergence

What Is Divergence?

Divergence occurs when price and an indicator move in opposite directions. It signals that the current price move is losing internal support — the underlying Momentum, Expansion Wave, or Order Flow is not confirming what price is doing.

In Synergy Signal, divergences are detected on three independent sources and contribute a soft score boost to the signal engine. They never block entries on their own.

Types of Divergence Detected

Bullish Divergence (Long Signal Boost)

Price makes a lower low while an indicator makes a higher low. Sellers are losing momentum even as price drops — a reversal may be forming.

Type
Setting Name
Price
Indicator

Momentum Divergence

Use Momentum Divs

Lower low

Momentum line higher low

Expansion Divergence

Use Expansion Divergence

Lower low

Expansion Wave bull value higher low

Order Flow Divergence

Use Order Flow Divergence

Lower low

Order Flow value higher low

Bearish Divergence (Short Signal Boost)

Price makes a higher high while an indicator makes a lower high. Buyers are losing momentum even as price rises.

Type
Setting Name
Price
Indicator

Momentum Divergence

Use Momentum Divs

Higher high

Momentum line lower high

Expansion Divergence

Use Expansion Divergence

Higher high

Expansion Wave bear value lower high

Order Flow Divergence

Use Order Flow Divergence

Higher high

Order Flow value lower high

How Detection Works

The indicator uses pivot points to identify swing highs and lows:

  • A pivot low is a bar whose low is lower than the 2 bars to its left and 2 bars to its right

  • A pivot high is a bar whose high is higher than the 2 bars to its left and 2 bars to its right

When a new pivot forms, the indicator compares it to the previous pivot. If price makes a lower low but the indicator makes a higher low → bullish divergence detected.

Age Limit

Divergences are only counted if both pivots occurred within the last 120 bars. Older divergences are discarded as stale.

Freshness Window

Once a divergence is detected at a pivot, it remains active for the number of bars set in Divergence Fresh Bars (default 20). This keeps the divergence score active during the window when price typically reacts.

Note: Pivot points are confirmed 2 bars after they form. This means a divergence detected at a pivot is already 2 bars old when it registers. Set Divergence Fresh Bars to at least 5–10 to ensure the boost is active when the signal fires.

Settings (Divergence Section in UI)

Setting
Default
Description

Use Momentum Divs

✅ On

Detect divergences on the Momentum line

Use Expansion Divergence

✅ On

Detect divergences on the Expansion Wave

Use Order Flow Divergence

✅ On

Detect divergences on the Order Flow bars

Min Divergences Required

1

How many divergence types must fire before any points are added

Divergence Fresh Bars

20

How many bars a detected divergence remains active

Min Divergences Required

This controls how many divergence types must agree before the pillar contributes to the score:

Value
Behavior

1

Any single divergence type activates the pillar

2

Two types must agree (e.g., Momentum + Order Flow)

3

All three types must agree simultaneously

Each active divergence type contributes its individual point to the score. Setting Min Divergences Required to 2 ensures at least 2 types are present before any divergence points are added.

Divergence as a Soft Pillar

A key design principle: divergences add score points but never block entries. A strong setup with Expansion Wave + Momentum + Order Flow all aligned should still fire even if no divergence is present. Divergence is a bonus confirmation — not a prerequisite.

When divergence IS present alongside strong hard-pillar confluence, the total score rises and the setup carries more weight.

Tips

  • Set Divergence Fresh Bars higher (40–60) on higher timeframes (4H, Daily) where pivots take more bars to form and confirm.

  • On fast timeframes (1m, 5m), divergences can be noisy. Set Min Divergences Required to 2 to require more agreement before counting any divergence points.

  • Triple divergence (all three types firing simultaneously) is a particularly powerful setup, especially when it coincides with the hard-pillar conditions.

  • To effectively remove divergence from scoring without adjusting Min Score, disable all three divergence toggles (Use Momentum Divs, Use Expansion Divergence, Use Order Flow Divergence).

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