Active control has been gaining an increasing role in protecting humans against excessive exposure to lowfrequency acoustic noise. They are designed as supplements to passive isolation techniques or as autonomous solutions. Rapid development of technology including smart materials, electronics, control theory and signal processing algorithms makes active noise control an attractive field for research, development and applications. The plenary lecture presents the problem of machinery and device noise control and author's contribution to this technology. Ideas behind classical and modern control structures and techniques along with guidelines for their choice are demonstrated. Emerging modeling, identification and control problems are also addressed. They are related to complex coupled physical and control phenomena. Concepts and solutions without taking unrealistic assumptions are presented. Perspectives for active control of machinery and device noise are outlined.