Physical modeling sound simulations can be potentially interesting for instrument design as far as they are representative of the functioning of the real instrument. This work studies to what extent sound simulations of a brass instrument (the trumpet) are predictive of certain playing characteristics of the instrument (intonation, timbre). The physical model used is based on an acous-tical modeling of the resonator (characterized by its input impedance), a mechanical model of the excitator (one degree of freedom outward striking valve for the vibrating lips), and an aeroelastic coupling between the excitator and the resonator. Two simulation methods are implemented: (1) the harmonic balance technique (a frequency method for the calculation of sounds in permanent regimes) and (2) time-domain simulations based on the impulse response of the resonator. Different trumpets, obtained by small variations of the geometry of the leadpipe (tube connecting the mouthpiece to the tuning slide) are on the one hand simulated on different regimes, and on the other hand played by a real musician on different notes. Different descriptors (intonation, spectral centroid) of the played notes are extracted to characterize differences between the trumpets. A comparison of the results is conducted in order to assess to what extent sound simulations are able to predict certain dimensions of the quality of the instrument when it is played.