Optimize the magnetic powder brake tension control system of web press, reduce the response time, overshoot and adjustment time of the tension control system, improve the anti-interference ability of the system and improve the tension control effect of the paper tape. The methods based on the conventional PID controller of paper tape tension, the brake lag compensation link was introduced, and the compensation PID controller was designed by using Simulink simulation software, and the simulation analysis was carried out for the conventional PID controller and the compensation PID controller respectively. The unit step response parameters of the conventional PID controller were:tr = 0.75s, σ=9.5%, ts=2.812 s, es=0.001; the unit step response of the compensation PID controller was tr=0.40 s, σ=6.7%, ts=1.962 s, es=0. The simulation results show that the conventional PID controller returns to steady state in 3.04 seconds and the compensation PID controller returns to steady state in 1.21 seconds after introducing disturbance signal in 10 seconds. Through simulation analysis, comparing the step response parameters and the regression speed after disturbance, the dynamic performance of the compensation PID controller is better than that of the conventional PID controller, and the performance of controlling the paper force of the paper tape is better, which provides theoretical guidance for optimizing the tension control of web press.