Isn't it held that Berhof was summary of Bavinck thought, while Hodge was a summary of Turrentin's?Berkhof is a preparation for anything. Calvin is mandatory reading, but some of his arguments meander and they are easy to lose track of.
And Calvin is easier to read for me in his commentaries, as His Institutes to me was at times hard to follow his train of thought. Again, maybe due to him relating to the times and situations he was writing into?