Best textbooks for RF systems engineering

[adaptivefilter]

I would like to know what books do you consider to be the best books for learning RF system design, in your personal opinion of course.
Hope I posted in the right place.

[bob91343]

There is no best.  RF is no different from any other frequency range.  Learn the basics.  For instance, Terman's Radio Engineering or his handbook.  Books on transmission lines.  Do some experimentation, as there is nothing as informative as watching things work.

RF is such a wide discipline that you need to narrow it a bit to zero in on what it is you want to learn.

A random example: I wanted to measure the flatness of a signal generator so I connected an oscilloscope to it via a piece of coaxial line.  I was amazed to see the signal rise in amplitude whan I got much beyond 5 or 10 MHz.  That showed me that I needed to terminate the cable, not just read it on a high impedance scope.  Otherwise this effect would have remained in the domain of theory.

[Grandchuck]

The ARRL Handbook is an excellent and affordable start in RF:
http://www.arrl.org/shop/ARRL-Handbook-2020-Six-Volume-Set/

[bob91343]

The ARRL Radio Amateur's Handbook is a time honored, traditional source.  Having said that, I have found recent editions lacking in coherence and accuracy.  If you can find an old one, say before the 1960s, I would recommend it.  Of course much has elapsed since then so you don't get up to date info, but they haven't repealed Ohm's law as far as I know.

The newer ones seem more to be trying to fulfill an obligation to publish yearly rather than an attempt to provide a solid source of technical information.  I will say the same for the Antenna Handbook.  ARRL isn't what it once was, and to quote Will Rogers, it probably never was.