This paper presents an active vibration control of cantilever beams under disturbances by a primary force. A direct velocity feedback control using a pair of PZT actuator and a velocity sensor is considered. Variation of the stability and performance with the locations of the sensor/actuator pair is investigated. It is found that the maximum gain varies with the locations of the sensor/actuator pair significantly. The maximum gain shows a symmetric distribution along the beam length with respect to the center point, although the boundary condition of the beam is unsymmetric. The control performance is affected by the location of the primary force as well as the location of the sensor/actuator pair. The active control system can more effectively reduce the vibration when the primary force is located close to the fixed boundary.