This is my first time building a PC, so you are welcome to be as harsh as you can. Here goes!!!
I am planning to use the PC for playing game and recording(rendering) at the same time. My budget for the tower is less than $1250. (I don’t want to include peripherals here) Here are the parts that I use for this build
Storage: Western Digital BLACK SERIES 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive
For storage, I probably going to throw in another SSD as well. But I haven't decide which one yet. For the CPU cooler, should I go with the more general one Hyper 212? The N520 looks bigger than the 212. I don't know if it's going to fit. For the PSU, Is 500W enough or should I be safe and go with 550W or 600W? (Since I am going to add an SSD in the future). In addition, I heard it's better to utilize all 4 memory slots for performance. So I can get 4 x 2GB instead, but this also add to the power needed. Should I goes with (4 x 2GB) or (2 x 4GB)?
I would say since you are gaming and using a dedicated graphics card go with at least a 600w psu, preferably a 650w. Also, have you considered going with an FX-8350 8 - core cpu? It's cheaper, runs at 4.0 GHz, and in Logan's words "Gives i5s a run for their money". Also, socket am3+ boards tend to be loaded, and the gigabyte ones offer a lot of features around the same price point as the asus you have picked out. If you do go with an FX cpu you will definitely need at least 650w. The 8350 tends to like productivity a ton as well. So things like rendering might be a little better on that, but it depends.
Also, I would go with the Hyper 212 evo. Very solid cooler. It doesn't come with two fans but you can always get an extra 120 for next to nothing. As for the memory, it really depends on the motherboard. Sometimes it can be very helpful, but sometimes it doesn't really matter. If you really want to utilize all four slots, I would recommend just getting an extra 8gb kit. The more the merrier with RAM when it comes to rendering.
Swapped out to the Hyper 212 evo cooler (best bang for buck air CPU cooler on the market), less expensive (but still very good) Z97 motherboard, added an SSD, bit better quality PSU and an R9-280 (performs better than the GTX 760 and has 3GB vram instead of 2 (becoming more important with newer games)).
Oops. One more note: Instead of going with the WD drive for $70, why not get a Seagate Barricuda? They're very reliable, run at 7200RPM and the 1TBs sit at about $50 instead..
Good choice going with the 280 and better psu. Be careful with the evo though, because high profile heat spreaders on RAM can get in the way. Just make sure you install it with the fan overhanging the memory and not the heatsink, that way if it clashes you can slide the fan up a little bit.
Seagate's reputation of reliability has been tainted by a bad batch of specific 1.5TB HDD's, which Seagate acknowledged and has since addressed. As long as you're not buying an older 1.5TB Seagate drive, you have nothing to worry about. The other issue is an HDD reliability test carried out by Backblaze which has since been proven inaccurate due to improper methodology.
The spread of these two stories (the bad 1.5TB drives and results of the Backblaze study) has been sensationalized and, IMHO, has created a lot of unjustified biased opinions towards all Seagate storage devices - and thus, the myth that [all] Seagate drives are less reliable.
I'm using a 1TB Seagate Barracuda and I'm very happy with it. It's quite fast for a mechanical drive (little faster than WD Blues) and every bit as reliable, as far as I understand. Seagate has been producing storage devices for a long time and are one of the biggest along side WD. If their reliability really was not that good, then we would all know about it and there would be valid data to support it.
Barracudas aren't the most reliable out there but I wouldn't pay the price of a 1tb black either. I'd grab the standard 1tb blue for the same price as the barracuda and never look back.
Any research I've ever done has shown the 1TB Barracudas are on par with WD Blue 1TB drives. Can you provide a source to support that claim?
I didn't say the Barracudas were WAY faster than Blues, I merely mentioned it as a fact. When choosing between two seemingly identical drives that cost pretty much the same (~$55), one being a little faster than the other is enough to sway my vote. Though I agree, the difference is not significant.