They smell like paint thinner

I can't smell them, but I can hear them

Same, never smelled ants.

And I've watched ants a lot when I was a kid. I still do sometimes.

I used to even bring pieces of food from the pantry to give to the ants.

The reason I doubt that is because I can't smell ants "all the time". And I can definitely smell them when they're disturbed. But most people who talk about smelling ants describe the smell as "damp" or "mouldy" or "earthy", and I have never smelled an ant that smells like that.

The only smell I've ever smelled from them is acrid and acidic, and that only happens when they're disturbed or dead.