long lasting cart

Does the quality of the diamond used affect stylus life? I’m assuming for expensive cartridges might last longer. Is this true? BTW, how many hours will the Ortofon 2m Blue nude-elliptical stylus last?

@mjcmt Please read again what i said, Elliptical stylus is the worst, just next step after Conical, even if the diamond is Nude and Very Well Polished. There are so many better diamond profiles after elliptical to upgrade the sound and lifespan of the stylus. So Elliptical is just starting point, your cheapest ticket to high-end sound.

It is very well explained by JICO about their SAS profile here

Nude Elliptical stylus must be replaced after 600hrs of use
MicroRidge stylus must be replaced after 2000 hrs of use

Feel the difference.

But the key point is not just a life span, but more important accuracy in sound, better detail retrieval and less distortion. 

You can also look at the stylus under microscope to realize that Micro Ridge or MicroLine profile is completely different in comparison to the simple Elliptical profile.

While the MicroRidge is the most expensive profile you will be fine with Shibata or Stereohedron (nowadays called Paratrace).  

Chakster, I understood what you said in your first post. Just wondering if my 2m Blue has the same roughly 600 hour life expectancy. Thanks.

"I listen to records about 30 to 40 hours a week in my home office. "
Wow! That's some serious listening.

The advantage of the SS is, you can sent it back for a rebuild -$300.
You'll get a year of so if the cart's really seeing that kind of use. A "like new" cart every year,  seems reasonable to me-if you're that dedicated to record play.

Consider going down a notch on model, and the rebuild is less.

Boils down to how much you value LP playback, and how it sounds.

Think of it as a consumable item, such as brake shoes on a car.

Yes, the quality of the diamond is important as is the condition of your records and how you play them. I have never worn out a stylus and I have a medical microscope to keep an eye on them. I have 4 cartridges now and I do give one away occasionally if I decide I do not care for it.
The cartridge I use the most is an Ortofon Windfeld Ti. The best styluses are going to be very small (less mass) and glued right to the end of the cantilever (again less mass) Chakster is right. The styluses with the greatest contact areas will wear down slower if their azimuth is set up right. 
Clean, static free records is the key. I always use a dust cover and a conductive sweep arm. Styluses do not wear out and I never have to clean records. (I do not buy used records)