This paper proposes a scheme to control the low-frequency vibration of pipelines by using magneto-rheological (MR) vibration reduction technology. The state equation and the transfer function of the pipeline system are established, and its stability and the sinusoidal excitation response are analyzed. The prototype of MR damper is developed. The dynamic characteristics of MR damper are tested and the double-sigmoid model of MR damper is established. The two-state control, Proportion Integration Differentiation (PID) control and sliding-mode-variable-structure (SMVS) control methods of pipeline vibration using MR damper are analyzed comparatively, and the vibration control laws are deduced. The simulation analyses are carried out to predict the control effect of different pipeline vibration control algorithms. The verification tests through a semi-active measurement and control platform are carried out, and the feasibility and applicability of different pipeline vibration control strategies are analyzed. The test results show that the three kinds of pipeline vibration control methods based on MR damper can effectively control the pipeline vibration. Especially, SMVS control has the best vibration control effect, the pipeline amplitude drop and the acceleration drop can reach 22.31 dB and 16.34 dB respectively, while the amplitude attenuation rate and the acceleration attenuation rate can reach 92.34% and 84.77%, respectively.