Aviary launched an online audio editing application called Myna today, and it's all kinds of awesome. Don't get me wrong, it's not exactly Pro Tools or Adobe Audition and it doesn't come with all the audio effects you would expect from those applications. But here's what it does and does well: It lets you create and edit multitrack audio recordings using a Flash-based web interface that's so natural to use you would swear it was a desktop application.

When you first load Myna you can either upload audio files from your computer or record audio tracks up to a minute using your computer's sound card and/or microphone. You can also import clips from a library that Aviary provides.

The editor itself is very easy to use for anyone who has spent time using virtually any audio editing software, from Audacity to Garage Band to Pro Tools. You just drag your tracks from the clip library or imported tracks area to the timeline and drag and drop them into place. One thing that did take me a few moments to figure out was that in order to split a track you need to click the "selection" tool from the toolbar on the right side of the screen, highlight a section of the audio file, and then click the Edit menu to split a track. This means it's tough to create a truly precise split point.

You can trim tracks just by grabbing the beginning or end point and dragging. And you can zoom in and out either by hitting the zoom buttons int he toolbar or by grabbing the edge of the slider above the audio timeline. You can also add fades, pans, or other automation points by clicking the "auto" button on any track. There are also a handful of effects including Reverb, Flanger, and EQ effects.

I haven't tried using Myna to mix down music yet, but my background in audio production is as a radio news journalist. And I can say without a doubt that Myna provides about 90% of the tools I would need to file a story on the go if I didn't have access to a computer with audio editing software installed. Of course, it does take longer to upload audio tracks to Myna for editing than it would to edit them on the desktop, but once a track is uploaded, you can import it into other projects in the future.

Myna has been in the works since Aviary acquired DigiMix in March. You can check out an overview video of Myna in action after the break.

[via CNet]