Abstract: A yarn control system and apparatus for use in the manufacture of non-woven, non-knitted fabrics which have a pile supported by a backing cloth, such as carpets, the apparatus including a plurality of needles for inserting yarns from yarn supplies into the backing cloth to provide a pile material and control means for controlling the amount of each yarn inserted by the needles to maintain constant pile height, the control means including a yarn compensating roller upstream of the needles and around which each yarn is entrained, and biassing means acting on the roller to maintain a constant tension in the yarns, the biassing means preferably comprising pneumatic piston and cylinder devices. The compensating roller may have a roughened surface and is preferably able to rotate in one direction only, but in an alternative construction, a driven guide roller which has a roughened surface is provided and the compensating roller has a smooth surface.